Kansas City Chiefs meet with prospects at East-West Shrine Bowl
By Matt Conner
John Hightower, WR, Boise State
Other teams interested: New York Giants, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints
John Hightower is a slender receiver/returner prospect from Boise State who stands an ultra slim 6’2, 172 lbs. who spent his first two years of college eligibiity at the JuCo level before transferring into the Mountain West, where he was an instant hit as an Second Team All-MWC player in each of his last two seasons.
The stats back up the eye test that Hightower is an incredibly fast target to enhance a downfield passing game. In 2019, he caught 51 passes for 943 yards and 8 touchdowns, good for a nice 18.5 yards/catch on average. That bested his mark of 16.3 yards/catch as a junior. He also put up 639 yards on 26 returns including a 98-yard touchdown on special teams.
Basically, Hightower is going to be a bit of a divisive prospect for some who look at his size and shake their heads at his ability to adjust to the pro level. A sub-180 lb. weight is just hard to find at the next level for good reason, but adding weight could take away from the very things that Hightower does most.
That’s not to say it cannot be done. Robby Anderson is an inch taller than Hightower and weighs 190. Will Fuller is 6’0, 180, as is Paul Richardson. But typically if a receiver needs to hover at 175 to do what he can do best, he’s also 3-4 inches shorter (see DeSean Jackson, T.Y. Hilton, Travis Benjamin).
Adding Hightower to the Chiefs would be yet another downfield boost and return option for Dave Toub, which might not hurt as Mecole Hardman transitions to the offense a bit more in year two, a la Tyreek Hill‘s development. But all eyes will be on his combine performance, where his frame will be over-analyzed alongside his shuttle, cone, and 40-yard dash times. If he gets a thumbs-up on both, the draft stock is going to soar.