Grade

UDFA

2026 Draft Class

Devonte Ross

Status

UDFALos Angeles Chargers

Penn State

5'9"

162lbs

Jun 3, 2026

Executive Summary

Devonte Ross is an undersized slot receiver whose speed, acceleration, and special teams value give him a chance to carve out a niche role at the next level.

Strengths

Versatility, Agility, RAC/YAC Ability

Weaknesses

Route Running, Ball Skills, and Run Blocking

Full Scouting Report

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Route Running

Pros:

•True one cut speed release player

•Can mix his tempo to create separation

•Shown flashes of good footwork on his press releases

•Most effective against soft presses and off-man coverage

•Has enough speed to create separation

Cons:

•Feels like he takes too long to get his head around

•Did not run a diverse route tree

•Not a route technician by any means

•Really struggles with physicality

•Doesn’t stack his routes and gets easily pushed out to the sideline

•Doesn’t manipulate defenders' hips

•Jogs routes sometimes

•No hand activation throughout the route

•Doesn’t sell the go enough on comeback routes

•Doesn’t use his speed threat to his advantage

RAC / YAC Ability

Pros:

•He has home run speed to pick up massive chunk yardage

•Has enough acceleration and burst to outrun defenders and breakaway

•Wins with his short-area quickness to pick up a good 5-10 yards

•Does a really good job turning away from the DB on curls and comebacks

•Doesn’t waste time getting upfield

Cons:

•Doesn’t consistently break tackles

•Not a juker after the catch

Athleticism / Frame

Pros:

•36” vert at his size is very good

•Average hand size at 9”

•4.45 40 time is very solid

•Solid speedster that can stretch the field and take the top off

•Exceptional acceleration in-game to get through openings

Cons:

•Slightly below average arm length at 30” and some change

•Pure slot body at 5’9”

•Extremely thin frame at 162lbs

•Did not test well in the shuttle and 3-cone drill

Ball Skills

Pros:

•Finishes catches through contact or hits

•Makes solid ball adjustments

•Makes impressive low-ball catches

•Has shown flashes of an ability to make tough contested catches

Cons:

•Not strong at the catch point and definitely not a jump ball receiver

•Sometimes jumps when he doesn’t need to and changes his eye level, resulting in drops

•Concentration drops after turning his head too soon

•Just has some flat-out, really bad drops at times

Game IQ / Processing

Pros:

•Can find soft spots in the zone and settle down

•Does a decent job making himself available for the QB in the scramble drill

Cons:

•None

Agility / Twitch

Pros:

•Really solid burst

•Solid short-area quickness and agility

•Uses his agility after the catch

Cons:

•Not an ankle breaker

Versatility

Pros:

•Got motioned all the time in every way you can think of

•Got snaps outside and in the slot

•Line up in the backfield on pitch plays

•Returning and special teams experience

Cons:

•Got taken out in heavy and red zone sets

•Only gonna be a slot field stretcher most likely at the next level

Run Blocking

Pros:

•Good effort

Cons:

•Lacks the technique or size to have any impact in the running game

•The only thing he can hope to do is get in the way

•Really just a poor blocker

Games Watched:

•Week 4 vs ORE, Week 5 vs UCLA, Week 7 vs OSU, Week 6 vs NU, Week 8 vs OSU, Week 13 vs CLEM

Ideal Situation:

•Devonte Ross is a pretty standard undersized fast slot receiver. Ross went undrafted and was later signed by the Los Angeles Chargers as an undrafted free agent. Ross is okay after the catch, as he relies on his short-area quickness, acceleration, and home-run speed, has average game IQ and really good versatility, and has solid agility and twitch. Ross has pretty bad route-running and shows very little nuance or technique aside from one-cut or speed routes. Ross has really bad drops and looks like he has butter on his hands at times. Ross does oddly finish decently well through contact and had an incredible catch against FIU. His run blocking is also bad; his effort is there, but he is simply too thin and lacks the technique to do anything other than hope to get in the way. I don’t see how Ross can make an impact on the Chargers unless he earns reps as a kick returner, on the practice squad, or maybe as a gadget player. Ross is a field stretcher who can take the top off a defense and punish teams if they lose him deep. Ross could maybe carve out a role as a DeAndre Carter or James Washington role. However, I don’t see that likely happening because of all his weaknesses. Ross was a decent signing and could help on special teams, but unless he impresses as a kick returner or somehow overcomes the drops and improves his route-running, I don’t see him staying in the league very long.

Rating

•Route Running – 5.1/10

•RAC / YAC Ability – 6.7/10

•Athleticism / Frame – 7.6/10

•Ball Skills – 5.4/10

•Game IQ / Processing – 7.0/10

•Agility / Twitch – 8.2/10

•Versatility – 8.95/10

•Run Blocking – 3.0/10

Total = 63.8/100 Early 6th

Andrés Griñe

Founder of DiamondProspects and Head NFL Scout View Full Bio

I am an Assistant in Player Personnel/Scouting for Washington State Football with over six years of experience scouting NFL prospects and evaluating talent. I previously covered high school baseball as a writer for NMPreps and now run DiamondProspects, where I publish scouting reports, prospect evaluations, and draft analysis. I am currently a junior pursuing a degree in Sports Management and am originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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