As the Ravens scour the wide receiver market heading into this year's draft, adding a big receiver who can win one-on-one battles is an attractive possibility.
Michigan's Devin Funchess fits into that category, and the big pass catcher gave NFL scouts some additional evidence of his overall athleticism leading up to the NFL combine. Funchess recently posted an impressive Instagram video of his dunking ability on the basketball court – his head gets above the 10-foot rim in the video – showing that he'll probably have no problem leaping over defensive backs at the next level.
Funchess posted the video after the NBA's slam dunk contest, and he told reporters at the combine that he thought he could have held his own against the NBA's best.
"I felt like I could have been in the dunk contest," Funchess said. "I did that dunk like a week before the dunk contest. And I just wanted to put it up, so I just put it up."
Funchess, 6-foot-4 and 232 pounds, might have a case for himself on the basketball court. He said that Michigan's basketball coach John Beilein even tried to convince him to give hoops a try after seeing him play some pickup ball in college.
"He tried to get me when I was a freshman. He kind of saw me in the gym one day, he tried to get me on the team," Funchess said. "I think he was serious."
Funchess decided to stick with football, and that decision worked out well. He caught 62 passes for 733 yards and four touchdowns last year, and is considered a late first, early second-round pick.
He's been a popular selection for the Ravens in the early mock drafts.
A big question for Funchess is whether he will play receiver or tight end in the NFL. He played both spots at Michigan, and teams have questioned him about where he expects to play at the pro level. Funchess downplayed the question, and instead pointed to his big-play ability as evidence that he could fit wherever NFL teams need him.
"I consider myself as a ball player," he said. "I'm just a big, athletic body that they can just throw the ball up to and go get it."
