Malachi Fields WR Notre Dame |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #0 ROLE: Outside X-Receiver | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 02/11/2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 4.61 seconds (15%*) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowl Invite: Senior Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #0 | |
| ROLE: Outside X-Receiver | |
| Last Updated: 02/11/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2026 | |
| Forty time: 4.61 seconds (15%*) | |
| Bowl Invite: Senior Bowl | |
| Overall Rating: | 84.8 / 100 | |
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| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
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74% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| QB Rating When targeted: | 99.7 | |
| Hands: |
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81% |
| Short Receiving: |
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75% |
| Intermediate Routes: |
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82% |
| Deep Threat: |
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82% |
| Blocking: |
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65% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
3rd
Overall Rank:
#72
Position rank:
#13 (WR)
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| College Games: 48 College Snaps: 2318 | ||
ESPN RATING: 74/100
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247 RATING: 84/100
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RIVALS RATING: 5.3 (87%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Keon Coleman - Florida State |
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87% |
| Cedric Tillman - Tennessee |
|
86% |
| Justyn Ross - Clemson |
|
81% |
Drafted: ROUND: 3 - Pick Number: 74 (NYG)
Draft Profile: Bio
Malachi Fields a three-star recruit out of the Jefferson District in Virginia, was a multi-sport talent who played quarterback in high school, throwing for over 1,000 yards and four touchdowns as a junior while also rushing for 700 yards and 12 scores. That dual-threat background and feel for the game would become a defining trait once he switched to the other side of the ball at Virginia, where he redshirted in 2021 before seeing limited action across 11 games with one start. A five-catch, 58-yard, one-touchdown performance against Pittsburgh as a sophomore in 2022 offered the first real flash of what was coming.Fields broke through in a major way during his third year in Charlottesville. He started all 12 games in 2023 and hauled in 58 receptions for 811 yards and five touchdowns, earning Second Team All-ACC honors from Phil Steele and the College Football Network, along with Honorable Mention All-ACC recognition. A Comeback Player of the Year Award semifinalist that season, he followed it up with an equally productive junior campaign in 2024: 55 catches, 808 yards, and five more scores. His 11-catch, 148-yard explosion at Wake Forest stood out as the signature game of that year, and he landed on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List while earning Third Team All-ACC honors.
Looking for a bigger stage, Fields transferred to Notre Dame for his final season in 2025. The Irish ran a ground-heavy attack, and Fields dealt with more limited volume than he had in Charlottesville, but the production was still meaningful: 630 receiving yards and five touchdowns across 12 starts, with a team-best 17.5 yards per reception among qualified targets. He opened the season with a 66-yard touchdown on the very first offensive snap against Purdue and closed it with a seven-catch, 99-yard, two-touchdown performance at Pittsburgh that included a highlight-reel one-handed grab. At the Senior Bowl in Mobile, NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah called Fields the "best wide receiver of the entire week of practice," and he backed it up with three catches on the American team's first three possessions in the game itself.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Built like a power forward at 6'4" and 218 pounds with the wingspan and body control to turn every jump ball into a mismatch at the catch point.
- Contested catch ability borders on absurd. He attacks the football at its peak, boxes out defensive backs with his frame, and rips the ball away from coverage like it belongs to him.
- Reliable hands that work outside his frame with real grip strength. He plucks the ball cleanly in traffic rather than trapping it against his body, even when contact arrives early.
- Excellent feel for zone coverage, consistently settling into soft spots and presenting his big frame as a target. His quarterback background shows up in how he reads and reacts to defensive leverage.
- Deep and intermediate receiving grades are among the better marks in this class, and the tape matches. He tracks the deep ball naturally and wins at the second and third levels with body positioning.
- Tougher after the catch than his timed speed suggests. He breaks arm tackles with a physical, combative running style and spins out of traffic with surprising short-area wiggle.
- Willing and capable run blocker who uses his size and long arms to lock onto defenders. His effort and physicality in the blocking game show up consistently on the tape.
- Carries himself with a captain's mentality. Competitive on every snap, fights for extra yards, and brings a physical edge that sets the tone for the receivers room.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Gets off the line slowly against press coverage. His release package lacks the quickness and variety needed to consistently beat hands-on corners at the snap.
- Timed speed is average, and it plays that way on tape. He wins with positioning and strength rather than stacking corners or pulling away vertically.
- Route tree will have a ceiling at the next level. He rounds off his breaks too often and lacks the foot quickness to create consistent separation on sharper-breaking patterns.
- Production on short and underneath routes is noticeably less dynamic. He does not have the burst or lateral agility to be dangerous in the screen game or on quick-hitters.
- Struggles to uncover when the pocket breaks down. He does not have the gear change or improvisational quickness to help his quarterback on scramble plays.
Scouting Report: Summary
Fields is a throwback in a lot of ways. In a league that keeps chasing speed and separation, he wins the old-fashioned way: by being bigger, stronger, and more physical than the guy across from him. The ball skills are legit. When the quarterback puts it anywhere near his zip code, he comes down with it more often than not, and that ability to dominate contested situations translates directly to the red zone and on third downs where tight windows are the norm, not the exception. His understanding of zone coverage and his instinct for finding soft spots are tools that will show up early in his NFL career.The concerns are real, though, and they are worth taking seriously. At the NFL level, corners who can match his length and get physical at the line are going to give him trouble if that release package does not improve. He is not going to run past anyone, so if he cannot win at the line and create some early separation, he is going to live on contested throws for his entire career. That is not a death sentence by any means, but it does cap his upside and makes him more quarterback-dependent than you would like. The short-area game is another limitation. He is not someone you are going to scheme touches for underneath and let him do damage in space. His value is between the numbers and beyond them.
The right offensive system will make all the difference for Fields. He needs to be deployed as a boundary receiver who works the intermediate-to-deep part of the field, wins on back-shoulder throws and fades, and serves as a go-to target in the red zone. Put him in a scheme that asks him to run a full route tree and create for himself on every down, and the limitations will show up fast. But pair him with a quarterback who trusts arm talent and ball placement, and Fields can absolutely be a productive starting receiver who moves the chains week after week. He is never going to be a WR1, but as a complementary piece who does the dirty work and comes up big in clutch moments, his skill set has real staying power at this level.
Malachi Fields percentiles vs other Wide Receivers (NFL Combine historically - higher value represents better perfomance)
How other scouting services rate Malachi Fields (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
74.1
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
16.0
*Percentile Ranking in Player's Position Group (NFL Combine Historical Data): This percentile reflects how a player's specific statistics rank
in comparison to historical performances at the NFL Combine, specifically within their position group. A higher percentile indicates a better performance.
For instance, being in the 90th percentile for a particular stat means the player outperformed 90% of their peers in that category.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.