Blinkscout curveball ... exploring top WRs in the draft.

Because ... McVay and Snead.

This has been at me a bit over the past few weeks ... for a couple reasons.

This is Van's last year ... this is also the last year we can't cut Robinson. Van may also bring trade consideration into the picture.
McVay and Snead have prioritized weapons, and our offense did not have enough of that last year for a number of reasons (mainly O line and injuries)

The biggest needs right now are interior O line and Edge. The expectation on draft day is edge or O line. Then likely TE. Considering the fact that we may bring in a vet edge, or aim for one in the third, and that we may think later drafty picks at OL and TE are fine ... I'm thinking that an athlete with ability at WR may be the possibilities for round 2 or 3.

Now, this is contrary to my wants. But my wants were for Tutu to be serviceable ... Robinson to be a force ... and Van Jefferson to be aggressive to the football. None of those have happened, and in my opinion only one is possible (ARob).

I also want Woods to get cut, allowing us to bring him in at a discount, if he'd have us.

That said, there are some players that we might want to consider that could legitimately take some pressure of Kupp, maybe not immediately, but in year 2 and 3 as Stafford is finishing up.

Note ... it is not a strong class. No real top tier except maybe Johnston. But the second tier and third tiers are strong and full. The question is, does a weak class drive up the price or drive it down? Given last year's run on WRs, I don't see as many teams playing with major holes at the position. And given it's a weak class at OT ... there may be runs on edge and CB to get the top players. Of course that could be wrong ... but I'm decent at watching trends play out.

So, who am I looking at.

Flowers, Addison, and Johnston are off the board. For sure.
I am not interested in Josh Downs, less because of size and more because of injuries. He may also be gone.

So let's start with guys that may fall ...

Justin Hyatt. 6-0 185, with likely 4.35 speed. Game to watch? Tennessee vs Bama. He scored 5 TDs. Not a typo. His hands are good but not great. The reason he is valuable is that he is a cushion killer. It doesn't matter how much you give him, his acceleration to full speed will be making you uncomfortable. So deep routes, deep comebacks, and screens are all on the table before he learns a real route tree. Why might he fall? Not a real route tree and not the best off of press.

Jaxson Smith-NJigba. 6-1 200. The guess is 4.48 type speed. Might be more like 4.55. Normally would be a guarantee first rounder, but he was injured all last year and only has one year of tape as a result. Best game to watch would be Ohio State's bowl game from the 2021 season. Plus route runner, aggressive off the line, and plus hands. Best at contested catches and breaking tackles. Issue? Leaves us still lacking a true vertical threat. Not to say he can;t catch deep balls, just that he's not going to make people nervous with speed. He's just a really good WR.

Possible wildcard for round 2. Andrei Iosivas. 6-3 212. Likely to run low 4.3s. Tons of questions, and I need to see his combine work. But he went to Princeton, so he's intelligent. And you can't ignore those numbers. Watson went top 40 last year, could be the same type of thing.


Round 3 ... guys that should likely be higher ... still tier two players IMO. Most got hurt by a coaching change or QB change.

Kayshon Boutte. LSU. 6-0 205. Likely a low 4.4 guy. Why the slide? His tape this year was his worst in his 3 year career. He had some nagging injuries and he and Jayden Daniels never really got comfy.

Dontavion Wicks. UVA. 6-2 212. Again, likely low 4.4 ... Why the slide? UVA changed offensive staff and completely bombed ... Brennan Armstrong was breaking records with Wicks in 2021, and they were incompetent in 22'.

Rashee Rice. SMU. 6-0 200. Low 4.4, like the above, yes there's a theme. Why the slide? If he doesn't separate himself at the combine or run under 4.4, he's likely to be lumped into this group ... which means he could go anywhere from 30 to 80.

Marvin Mims. OK. 5-11 185. They're guessing him at almost 4.5 ... I'm guessing him lower. Slinky route runner with sneaky speed and plus hands. Has a nose for the end zone. If I had to comp him I'd do Antonio Brown honestly. Why the slide? Abandoned by Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams. Dylan Gabriel is barely serviceable and OK was realllllly inconsistent. I'd bet his 3 cone is 6.7 or below.


So, why did I post this?

1) I am not going to mock us a WR. So this is a curveball scenario only IMO.

2) I am doing extra research on WRs because I need it for a fantasy league and you just happen to be recipients of that.

3) I'm procrastinating doing other work.


Questions and comments welcome as always.

---