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Michigan football: 'Explosive' Daxton Hill puts on a show at the NFL Combine

clayton-sayfieby: Clayton Sayfie03/07/22CSayf23
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Michigan football safety Daxton Hill led the Wolverines to the Big Ten title. (Photo by Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Michigan football defensive end Aidan Hutchinson took the football world by storm Saturday, before former Wolverine safety Daxton Hill was one of the top defensive back prospects Sunday.

Hill posted a 4.38-second 40-yard dash time that stood as the sixth-fastest among cornerbacks and the 14th-fastest out of any player at the combine. His times on the three-cone drill (6.57 seconds) and 20-yard shuttle (4.06 seconds), meanwhile, were the top out of the safeties.

Hill wasn’t as stellar on the vertical jump (33.50″) and broad jump (10’1″), with those marks standing as the second- and third-to-last among the safeties, respectively. Like the majority of the safeties, Hill did not bench press.

The former Michigan star was also fantastic in the safety drills, oftentimes impressing the NFL Network broadcast team, which included draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah, who has Hill graded as the No. 19 overall prospect in the class on his big board.

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Jeremiah broke down Hill’s game while highlights of his career at Michigan appeared on the screen.

“He’s my 19th overall player, so I’ve got a huge grade on him,” Jeremiah said. “Let’s start with the instincts and the eyes, being able to get your eyes on the quarterback. He’s outstanding, too, being able to float underneath. Here he is in man coverage, lining up in the slot and coming all the way across the field … the ball skills are outstanding — he can locate it and he can finish. And then as a blitzer, watch out. He is explosive.

“When we look at the way he’s moving out here on the field, it’s a really, really solid day for him on the field.”

Jeremiah compared Hill to Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, calling it “darn good company.”

Hill had an impressive enough day to still have a great chance of being selected in the first round, where many analysts had him projected heading into the event. He’s determined to continue to prove himself during the pre-draft process, then again once he’s on an NFL team.

“I talked to Dax Hill this week, and the player comparison or someone that he studies [is] Devin McCourty — a nice one there,” NFL Network’s Stacy Dales said of the former Michigan player on the broadcast. “He describes this play style as ‘aggressive, yet with finesse.’ And his goal at the next level, he wants to be a starter next year in the NFL.”

Measurements For Michigan DBs Daxton Hill, Vincent Gray

ProspectHeightWeightArm LengthHand Size
Daxton Hill6-2199 pounds32 1/4″9 1/2″
Vincent Gray6-2192 pounds32 3/8″9 1/4″

Recapping Vincent Gray’s Performance At NFL Combine

Michigan cornerback Vincent Gray also competed at the combine, and his 4.54-second 40-yard dash stood out. Gray isn’t known as a burner, and while his time wound up as fifth-to-last among those at his position, it was better than his unofficial times, both of which were in the 4.6s.

Gray also impressed while running ‘The Gauntlet,’ the most famous defensive back drill at the combine.