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2018 NFL supplemental draft: Sam Beal cements strong draft stock in front of Chiefs scouts

By Matt Conner

ARLINGTON, TX - JANUARY 2: Sam Beal #18 of the Western Michigan Broncos and teammate Keion Adams #1 react after stopping the Wisconsin Badgers from a first down during the first half of the 81st Goodyear Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium on January 2, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - JANUARY 2: Sam Beal #18 of the Western Michigan Broncos and teammate Keion Adams #1 react after stopping the Wisconsin Badgers from a first down during the first half of the 81st Goodyear Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium on January 2, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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The Kansas City Chiefs along with every other NFL franchise was represented at Sam Beal’s personal pro day at Western Michigan.

The Kansas City Chiefs are interested in Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal. Unfortunately, so is the rest of the National Football League. Every single NFL franchise was represented with at least one front office member or scout on hand, all of them present to watch the single most promising prospect for the upcoming NFL Supplemental Draft, to be held on July 11, 2018.

Beal was declared academically ineligible for the upcoming college season, Beal’s final one, which left him with little choice but to go pro a bit earlier than expected. Last season, Beal only had 2 interceptions and 24 total tackles, but teams shied away from challenging the MAC team’s best pass defender and scouts remain high on his potential in the NFL, even if the stat book doesn’t jump out at casual fans.

Beal’s pro day revealed a few things that are interesting and impressive. He has a slighter frame than expected, coming in at 6’0, 178 lbs. The lightest cornerback on the Chiefs roster right now is only 185 lbs. and most are 10 pounds or more than even that figure. Given the late summer arrival on any roster, it’s likely that Beal’s first order of business before logging significant playing time would be to bulk up at least 10-15 pounds.

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Beal also hit 37″ on the vertical leap and ran the 40-yard dash with the wind and against it, generating times of 4.40 and 4.51 seconds respectively. Those totals would put him squarely in the middle of this year’s draft class despite his leaner frame. As for the vertical leap, again Beal would be above average there but 4.5 inches lower than Terrell Edmunds.

It seems like the bottom line from Beal’s pro day will be that physically he showed himself to be a very good athlete. Not everyone is a workout warrior, so primarily this wasn’t about wowing scouts with a number on the stopwatch but about alleviating any concerns by performing as expected or needed. If teams liked Beal’s game tape, then this gives them a chance to see him again in person in the middle of the offseason and know that he’s still in great shape.

While the addition of a young cornerback out of the draft sounds great right now to any fan base, the reality is that Beal has missed rookie orientation, offseason training activities, mandatory minicamp, rookie minicamp and even community events to this point. It’s just very hard for any rookie to be ready to play by Week 1, but Beal is now very far behind the rest of his fellow rookies in 2018. Any team making this investment, especially given his slight size, simply must be thinking about 2019 and beyond as the beginning of any real impact.

Given the way that some scouts have talked him up, maybe that’s a move worth making. But fans need to know that the supplemental draft in 2018, as always, is a long-term play at best.

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