Jalen Hurd knows he's a day-one contributor in the NFL

Jalen Hurd is a projected middle-round pick in the upcoming NFL draft, which gives Baylor fans a reason to keep an eye on the former Bear over the next few weeks.

With the draft closing in, Hurd said that he has “dreamed about it [his] entire life.” 

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Hurd measured at 6-foot-4 and ¾ inches while weighing in at 226 pounds at the NFL Combine.

“I've worked just as hard or harder than anyone in the league right now,” Hurd said. “I have all the tangibles to do it. I have the intangibles to do it, to sit there and grind out training camp, to grind out the whole season. That's all I've done my entire life. That's all I want to do. So for me to come in and contribute right away is not a problem at all.”

The 6-4 ¾, 220-pound Hurd started his career off at the University of Tennessee at the running back position. He racked up 2,638 yards on the ground with the Vols to become the school’s sixth all-time rusher. 

He then transferred to Baylor, redshirted in 2017, and played his senior season at the wide receiver position.

“It’s just how my body was feeling at my last year at running back. I want to be able play this game longer than what I thought I was going to be able to at the running back position,” Hurd said. 

At Baylor, Hurd caught 69 passes for 946 yards and 4 touchdowns, while still picking up 209 yards on the ground and punching it into the end zone 3 more times.

Hurd was one of the most dynamic players to come through the Baylor football program in recent memory. The Bears utilized him in all aspects of their offense. Whether it was as a deep threat receiver or a red-zone running back, Hurd made the most of his opportunities and showed an impressive ability to adapt to different roles.

That kind of versatility is a common trend in today’s NFL, which makes Hurd a possible game-changer with his size and athleticism if he is put in the right system.

“I can make the spectacular catch, I can make the routine catches, I can make the cross-middle catches, but then when you actually get the ball in my hands, then I'm a running back in space,” Hurd said in regards to his versatility.

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Hurd said he is not against playing running back in the NFL.

Many NFL scouts, however, question Hurd’s sudden exit from Tennessee in the middle of his junior season. So much so that it very well might lead to Hurd slipping in the draft.

“I’ve talked about it with teams and that’s between me and them,” Hurd said at the combine. 

Scouts also believe that there is still room for Hurd to grow with his explosiveness off the line of scrimmage.

Hurd has was unable to participate in any of the NFL combine drills due to a knee procedure other than the bench press, where he got in 23 reps of the 225-pond bar. 

“I'm still kind of upset that I can't do the actual events and measureables, but I'll be able to make that up on Pro Day,” Hurd said. He even said he remembers watching the combine as a little kid, which makes the experience of just being there even more surreal.

The draft will take place in Nashville from April 25th to April 27th in Hurd’s hometown of Nashville, Tennessee.