Arizona State’s D.J. Foster happy with performance at NFL Scouting Combine

D.J. Foster’s journey to the National Football League continued last week.

After a distinguished college career at Arizona State in which he became just one of five players in Division I history to amass over 2,000 yards rushing and receiving, Foster participated in the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

Foster performed well in a few drills, namely the 20-yard shuttle. The Scottsdale Saguaro High graduate had a time of 4.07 seconds, which tied Ohio State’s Braxton Miller for the fastest mark among wide receivers. He ran a 60-yard shuttle in 11.12 seconds (fourth among WR) and 6.75-second three-cone drill (fourth).

The former Sun Devil was pleased with his effort.

“It was good, I definitely was happy with my performance,” Foster told Doug and Wolf Monday morning on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. “I can work on some of my times and get some a lot of my measurements and some times down. I was overall happy, and I thought I competed very well.”

The measurable that most people look at when it comes to wide receivers is their 40 time. Foster clocked a 4.57 40, which ranked just outside the top 15 at the position.

“I can do better,” Foster said. “I think I’m going to do a lot of stuff at my Pro Day this Friday just to re-do it and I think I can compete a little better than that. I wasn’t totally disappointed, I just think I can do better.”

Of course, running is only part of the job description for receivers. They also need to run precise routes and catch the ball, and Foster says he drew praise from evaluators in those areas.

“Very good, especially with a lot of coaches not knowing the transition (I made) from running back to wide receiver,” Foster said. “I was on the top when it came to route running and my hands. I had the fastest time through the gauntlet drill. So, I thought I competed very well when it came to a lot of those other guys — just being in the mix and going out there and showing my acceleration and my speed in my routes and that I could finish routes and definitely catch the ball.”

Although Foster was in the wide receiver group in Indy, some teams could possibly view him as a running back at the next level. Whatever he’s asked to do, the 5-foot-10, 195-pound Foster will do it.

“I’ve met with so many wide receiver and running backs coaches during the process,” Foster said. “I definitely think I could play running back if they need it and I think I could play wide receiver if they need it.

“If all works out, I think I could play that hybrid role like I did at ASU and go back-and-forth and do both. I’m just preparing myself and trying to show my skills that I can do both in the league whether it’s playing running back full-time or receiver full-time and I do feel comfortable and I do think I’ve adapted the skills to play both at a high level.”

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