Strengths
John Ross is a living highlight reel. His speed shows on tape when he flat out runs away from defensive backs. He uses his quickness to create plays and gain extra yards. In this play against California in 2016, Ross bails out his quarterback for underthrowing the pass and catches it with great awareness. He uses his amazing footwork and change of direction to create space and gets to the end zone.
At times, defensive backs had to penalize him to defend him after they were beaten in coverage as I noted 5 penalties called on the defenders that were on Ross in 10 games.
Ross is a very capable route runner and was a touchdown machine as he snagged 17 touchdowns in 2016.
His use of his stutter step against man coverage frequently creates space on outside routes. In this play against Oregon in 2016, Ross shows his the stutter step and how effective it is against man coverage in the red zone especially.
If he gets space in front of him; Ross consistently wins on many routes like curls, comebacks, deep outs, crossing routes, etc. In this play against Oregon in 2016, Ross shows his ability to beat cornerbacks and create space against zone coverage.
He worked on route running especially in 2016 and has really improved from previous years.
He also has good enough hands to be a consistent target (noted 5 total drops in 10 total games).
Finally, Ross gives special teams value as a returner and can be used on reverses and screens. In this play against Arizona in 2016, Ross takes off as he tightropes the sideline and accelerates through the blocks to score a touchdown on the trick play.
Weaknesses
Ross does consistently create space on certain routes, but he has trouble against physical corners and press man coverage. If the coverage is good enough, he could disappear in some games. In this play against Colorado in 2016, Chidobie Awuzie has very tight coverage and does not allow John Ross to get any separation. Awuzie reads the play and almost gets the interception. Ross could get bullied by better cornerbacks in the NFL.
Ross did not have a lot of drops in 2016 but is more of a body catcher and has to take care of the ball better. He had a few fumbles in the later games in 2016.
The biggest concern is the injuries and his durability heading into the NFL.
Even though he was healthy for the season in 2016, Ross suffered a torn labrum and played through. As a result, he had surgery right after the scouting combine and team visits. Also, multiple ACL injuries are very concerning for a receiver with that much talent and speed. Finally, his size is also not ideal to taking NFL hits so that is a concern as a smaller wide receiver.