Notre Dame has a wide selection of NFL prospects this year from veteran 5th year players, a surprise or two who developed tremendously in their final season, plus an early entry at the traditional strong tight end position for the Irish.

Up first in our NFL scouting reports is a darting slot receiver from Ohio.

SPECS:

Name: Chris Finke
Position: WR/PR
Height: 5-9 1/2
Weight: 184
Hometown: Dayton, OH

STATS:

YEAR REC YDS TD
2016 10 122 2
2017 6 102 0
2018 49 571 2
2019 41 456 4
TOTAL 106 1,251 8

BIO:

Finke was originally a throwaway preferred walk-on in the 2015 class while coming in together with teammate Nick Coleman from Archbishop Alter High School. Not only would Finke out-perform Coleman over his career in South Bend, he did so over 11 others in the ’15 recruiting class, including all of the non-special teams 3-star prospects.

Following a redshirt, Finke made a small impact as a true freshman on special teams (155 combined punt and kickoff return yards) but emerged as one of the late-season bright spots in 2016 with 84 receiving yards over the final 2 games. He was reportedly an excellent practice player but suffered from the incoming transfers at receiver for 2017, plus the general decline of the passing game (42 fewer catches for the team on 36 fewer passes from 2016 to 2017) and an offense that didn’t need a slot receiver very much.

Despite this, Finke put up a healthy 156 punt return yards in 2017 on his way to 3 straight seasons of at least 150 yards as the top return man. In 2018, Finke had his breakout year moving into the starting lineup while catching a pass in every game. While he only caught a pair of touchdowns they book-ended the regular season and were among the most important of all touchdowns in 2018–the first coming in highlight reel fashion against Michigan and the second sparking the comeback in Los Angeles against USC.

Finke was awarded a scholarship prior to the 2018 season and was given the additional honor of captain for his 5th-year this past fall. His final season was a bit of a disappointment as he struggled with multiple injuries and a lack of confidence for a player who had seemed unflappably sure of himself throughout his career. Finke would finish third on the team in receiving over his final 2 seasons and earned an invite to the NFL Combine.

STRENGTHS:

Very quick in small spaces. When healthy, very difficult to cover in the middle of the field. Finke cuts sharply and has the ability to pull away from defenders to create more space for himself before catching the ball. Shows very good toughness for his size. You can count on him to make the first man miss most of the time. Excels crossing the middle of the field but also finds space on the sidelines really well for a smaller receiver. A very good college punt returner whose combination of agility and fearlessness allowed him to be a 3-year starter.

WEAKNESSES:

Size is less than ideal, even for a slot receiver. Finke had some really baffling drops through the years. He doesn’t exhibit very good long speed. Struggles making a second or third man miss in the open field as a receiver. Prone to taking big hits which will be exacerbated at the next level. The ability to stay healthy is a concern. Far from a touchdown machine and went through phases through his career where he would disappear from the offense. Without being a deep threat, he could be smothered easily by nickel corners at the NFL level.

OVERVIEW:

NFL scouts must be intrigued by Finke to believe he should be at the NFL Combine. Do they see a long-term development based on his special teams ability and quickness? Most expect Finke to go undrafted but is it really crazy to think he’s a very similar prospect to former Clemson walk-on Hunter Renfrow?

We don’t expect Finke to run a blazing fast 40-time and Renfrow himself finished 7th slowest among the 2019 wideouts in Indianapolis. Renfrow was the 3rd fastest receiver in the 3-cone (still blows my mind that Miles Boykin was the fastest) and we should expect Finke to do really well in this drill, too.

I went into this report believing there’s no way a team thinks about picking Finke but with better-than-you-think testing I’m reversing course and believe it’s completely on the table. Maybe not prior to the 6th round but he could sneak in as one of the last wideouts selected.

PREDICTION:

6th Round, 189th Overall to the Tennessee Titans

The Titans have an emerging star in A.J. Brown plucked from the middle of the 2nd round last year and will face a tough call on former 1st round pick Corey Davis whose contracts expires after 2020. Finke could add some cheap depth to their roster.

More scouting reports to come:

Asmar Bilal
Cole Kmet
Troy Pride
Tony Jones, Jr.
Alohi Gilman
Jalen Elliott
Julian Okwara
Khalid Kareem
Jamir Jones
Chase Claypool