Originally posted by Draftology:
Size and athleticism are two things you cannot teach. He has both. He may have some bust potential, but he also has huuuge upside
He's big, but by all accounts he's not necessarily blazing fast, so a big slow receiver, sounds like JJ Stokes and Mike Williams with an a*****e complex. No thanks.
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/story/16120970/week-11-rewind-similar-to-sproles-oregons-pintsized-lamichael-james-can-excel-in-nfl
Last year, South Carolina wide receiver Alshon Jeffery made a mockery of SEC defenses catching 88 passes for 1,517 yards and nine touchdowns on his way to All-America honors.
Through 10 games this season: 38 catches for 504 yards and five touchdowns. He was limited to two catches for 17 yards Saturday by Florida. It is the fourth consecutive game the 2011 Biletnikoff Award finalist has been held under 25 receiving yards.
Some are chalking up Jeffery's mediocre production as simply a by-product of the Gamecocks' season-long struggle to find consistent quarterback play.
The truth: Jeffery is overrated.
In his first two seasons, Jeffery used his size and physicality to gain position on defensive backs. With defenses sucked up to try and contain Marcus Lattimore last season, Jeffery was often able to exploit single coverage, break a tackle and gain yardage -- sometimes big yardage -- after the catch. With defenders not in position to stop him, Jeffery appeared to possess explosiveness.
This season the rare talent playing cornerback in the SEC has exposed Jeffery's lack of explosiveness. He's not getting the ball as much this season, in large part because he isn't getting open.
Jeffery reminds me a great deal of another former USC receiver -- Southern California's Mike Williams (now with the Seattle Seahawks). Like Williams, Jeffery's NFL-caliber traits are his size, strength, soft hands and hand-eye coordination. Due to each man's ability to make the catch even with defenders draped over them, many of Williams' and Jeffery's receptions are memorable plays.
The reality is both need to make plays with defenders clutching at them as neither has the agility or straight-line speed to consistently get open in the NFL.
Rob Rang is a Senior Draft Analyst for NFLDraftScout.com, distributed by The Sports Xchange. Follow him on Twitter @RobRang.
[ Edited by Phoenix49ers on Feb 2, 2012 at 7:45 PM ]