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The buzz around BYU’s Pro Day last week rightfully surrounded quarterback Zach Wilson. After finishing eighth in Heisman voting and leading the nation in touchdown-to-interception ratio, he is highly thought of as the second-best quarterback in the upcoming draft.
However, he was not the only one in the facility that day that caught the eye of NFL evaluators. Former Cougars receiver Micah Simon, who last took a snap for BYU in the 2019 Hawaii Bowl, turned several heads during his workout.
In 2020, BYU’s Pro Day was wiped out due to the pandemic, robbing Simon of a chance to show off his skills. He went undrafted and has been working tirelessly for another shot at the league. It paid off on Friday with his blazing 40-yard dash time.
Micah Simon checking in with a 4.34 ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/8AMok6ru3u
— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) March 26, 2021
Along with his 4.34 40-time, he also turned in a 6.84 shuttle drill, 4.29 20-yard shuttle, 36-inch vertical leap, 10-feet-5 inch-broad jump and 14 reps at the bench press. This is the profile of a receiver that deserves a shot in an NFL camp.
Now Simon gets his chance, as the Carolina Panthers saw enough in his workout to offer him a contract, per Tom Pelissero. Joe Person of The Athletic reports that it is a minimum 3-year deal.
Zach Wilson wasn’t the only standout at BYU pro day last week. Former Cougars WR Micah Simon -- undrafted last year after COVID wiped out his pro day -- caught passes from Wilson, ran a reported 4.34 40-yard dash … and signed today with the #Panthers, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 30, 2021
Panthers have signed former BYU WR Micah Simon after seeing him at Cougars' pro day, as @TomPelissero said. Simon gets a three-year, min. deal after going undrafted last year amid COVID, per source.
— Joe Person (@josephperson) March 30, 2021
The Dallas, Texas native was a regular part of BYU’s receiving corps from 2017 to 2019. In parts of four seasons, he racked up 1,109 yards and five touchdowns on 90 catches. His senior year in 2019 was his best, with 616 yards and two touchdowns. His most famous moment as a BYU Cougar came against Tennessee in 2019. With BYU down by three with less than 20 seconds left and backed up near their own endzone, Zach Wilson found Simon wide open for a 64-yard gain that set up a game-tying field goal. BYU would go on to win the game in overtime. BYU doesn’t win that game without Simon’s catch or his 127 total yards.
He now gets a chance to be on an NFL roster with Matt Rhule’s squad in Carolina. The Panthers just lost their third-best receiver in Curtis Samuel, who signed with the Washington Football Team.
Teddy Bridgewater is Carolina’s current quarterback. However, most pundits believe they will select a quarterback early in the upcoming draft. They currently own the No. 8 pick in the first round. One would think if Zach Wilson fell that far, they would jump at selecting him, thus reuniting him with Simon.
BYU has not had a receiver catch a pass in the NFL since Jordan Leslie in 2017.