Analysis of Round 2 WR Prospects

blm7754 · 2013-03-01T11:03:13-08:00

I've spent some time watching film of several WR prospects likely to be available in round 2 of the draft. I know there are other threads discussing some of these guys. But I thought I'd put my analysis in one place and link to other specific discussions where appropriate. Here it is: Justin Hunter, WR 6-4 196 (4.44 40yrd): Pros: He's fast and tall. Plucks the ball out of the air very nicely. Good at the jump ball. Cons: He looks too lanky to hold up in the NFL. I look at him run, and all I can see is Mario Manningham's knees getting blown to bits. He's got a tall frame and he's an underclassmen, so he could bulk up very quickly without affecting his speed. But I think that needs to happen before we rely on him to be a starter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFykvxt0Cg8 Terrance Williams, WR 6-2 208 (4.52 40yrd): Pros: Positions himself between the ball and defender in tight coverage. Good hands. Uses the sideline well. Cons: He seems to go down too easy. Looses his balance... or maybe afraid of contact. Not real physical. He's a great vertical route runner, but faster NFL DBs may limit this aspect of his game. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ep3ASYyhUB4 DeAndre Hopkins, WR 6-1 214 (4.57 40yrd): Pros: Very tough receiver. Great balance and body control. Great hands. Good route runner. Good jumper and great YAC. Adjusts to the ball while it's in the air. Good over the middle. Cons: He's not a burner. But he's one of the best on film. I don't see a downside other than his 40 time. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVWm9pNiXYY Quinton Patton, WR 6-0 204 (4.53yrd): Pros: Plays faster than his 40 time suggests. He gets good separation on deep routes, even against double coverage. Also a tough receiver that gets YAC. Quick change of direction, he's shifty. Cons: Most of his separation comes from jukes on his breaks and speed. Doesn't sell the more complex routes very well. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htOC2hKV7iM Da'Rick Rogers, WR 6-3 217 (4.52yrd): Pros: A very physical receiver that fights for the ball. Tough to bring down after the catch. Catches the ball away from his body but quick to bring it in and secure it. Cons: He was suspended from Tennessee for repeated violation of the schools substance abuse policy for athletes. This was when he was a sophomore. Aside from potential character concerns, I don't see any downsides to his play on the field. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BHOXRyDLuw My Favorites: My pick of this group would be Da'Rick Rogers. He looks by far the best and most complete on film. Sure, there are some character concerns. But he's young. Give him some quality coaching in a solid locker room and he will come around. If Baalke decides to steer clear of possible bad characters, then my second choice would be Deandre Hopkins. He looked equally physical as Rogers and he looks faster on film than he obviously ran at the combine. I think when it comes down to it, you've got to draft good football players and not pay too much attention to measurables. Hopkins is a very good football player. Thoughts? Rogers is being discussed here: http://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/nfl-draft/171440-darick-rogers-in-round-2/ Hopkins is being discussed here: http://www.49erswebzone.com/forum/nfl-draft/171521-deandre-hopkins-wr-clemson/

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:28 AM

eonblue
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Hopkins and Williams are my favorite. I liked Hunter at one point but after rewatching his video I realized he has awful hands and catchs with his body ALOT. Not going to happen with Kaep throwing the speedball.

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:32 AM

mayo49
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Good work, blm. Much appreciated, man.

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:42 AM

blm7754
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Originally posted by mayo49:
Good work, blm. Much appreciated, man.

Thanks. I'm way excited for this years draft. Having at least 5 picks in the first 3 rounds in this draft is pretty sweet. There is nobody projected to go in the top 15 picks that I'd really want that much. Picks 20-70 are where the real gems are. And we have 3 picks in that range. Very exciting.

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:48 AM

valrod33
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Da'Rick Rogers is my draft crush, I want him and I want him bad

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:51 AM

toppdogg32
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Where do you guyz see Robert Woods of USC going ??, (Harbaugh stood up and watched this guy everywhere he was at the combine and took several notes..)

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:54 AM

blm7754
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Originally posted by valrod33:
Da'Rick Rogers is my draft crush, I want him and I want him bad

Yeah, I'd love to see us pick him at #34 since I doubt he'll last till the end of the 2nd. Take Datone Jones or Desmond Trufant at #31 and you've got a helluva draft IMO.

Mar 1, 2013 at 11:59 AM

SolRebe1
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Great thread!

Mar 1, 2013 at 12:21 PM

Butter
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I really like the idea of both Harper and Rogers, but I'm trying to come up with previous NFL players that they remind me of.

Harper = slower Randy Moss?
Rogers = slower Terrel Owens?

Mar 1, 2013 at 12:46 PM

pd24
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I want Hunter. I think he is better than he showed last year. It was his 1st year back after the ACL tear. It usually takes 1 year of playing to get back to normal and trust it again.

[ Edited by pd24 on Mar 1, 2013 at 1:28 PM ]

Mar 1, 2013 at 1:01 PM

#10

blm7754
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Originally posted by Butter:
I really like the idea of both Harper and Rogers, but I'm trying to come up with previous NFL players that they remind me of.

Harper = slower Randy Moss?
Rogers = slower Terrel Owens?

What about Harper reminds you of Randy Moss? I don't see that much in common.

Rogers is similar to Owens in playing style. I'm not sure about slower though. Owens never impressed me as much of a burner. I'm always skeptical of 40 times anyway. Running in a straight line on a track in under-armor is very different than running a route on the field in pads. Game speed is what I'm interested in. Can a guy get separation against top competition consistently. That's what really matters.

Anyway, Rogers didn't run the fastest 40, but his cone and shuttle times are among the best. His change of direction speed is very good.

Reference: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/prospectrankings/2013/WR/

Mar 1, 2013 at 1:04 PM

#11

blm7754
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Originally posted by toppdogg32:
Where do you guyz see Robert Woods of USC going ??, (Harbaugh stood up and watched this guy everywhere he was at the combine and took several notes..)

I don't know what it is, but in recent history, offensive skill players from USC never do much in the NFL. So I kind of ignored Woods.

There is nothing special about his size or speed. But he was very productive and is regarded as a late 1st, early 2nd prospect.

Mar 1, 2013 at 1:10 PM

#12

valrod33
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Originally posted by toppdogg32:
Where do you guyz see Robert Woods of USC going ??, (Harbaugh stood up and watched this guy everywhere he was at the combine and took several notes..)

I read that Harbaugh recruited him to Stanford. Harbaugh obviously likes him and he was very productive at USC so its something to keep an eye on

Mar 1, 2013 at 1:19 PM

#13

Phoenix49ers
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Quinton Patton.....smooth like butter. He's not super fast but he's very quick and when he hits his top speed, he really doesn't slow down a bit going into his cuts, that will cause any cornerback difficulty in staying with him. His biggest weakness is dealing with teams aggressively pressing him, jamming him...etc, otherwise, I'd say he's one of the most difficult WR's to cover consistently.

If you watch him play, its like poetry in motion, he runs very gracefully, there's no wasted movement, he looks very coordinated and just.....smooth. Also he's got a tremendous set of hands, very natural hands catcher, rarely catches using his body. Still see him winding up at the top WR from this draft in a few years.

As a bonus, great character guy, a team leader, active in charities, highly, intensely competitive and hard-working, the "first guy in, last guy out" type of player, always looking to improve.

[ Edited by Phoenix49ers on Mar 1, 2013 at 1:22 PM ]

Mar 1, 2013 at 1:25 PM

#14

blm7754
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Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:
Quinton Patton.....smooth like butter. He's not super fast but he's very quick and when he hits his top speed, he really doesn't slow down a bit going into his cuts, that will cause any cornerback difficulty in staying with him. His biggest weakness is dealing with teams aggressively pressing him, jamming him...etc, otherwise, I'd say he's one of the most difficult WR's to cover consistently.

If you watch him play, its like poetry in motion, he runs very gracefully, there's no wasted movement, he looks very coordinated and just.....smooth. Also he's got a tremendous set of hands, very natural hands catcher, rarely catches using his body. Still see him winding up at the top WR from this draft in a few years.

As a bonus, great character guy, a team leader, active in charities, highly, intensely competitive and hard-working, the "first guy in, last guy out" type of player, always looking to improve.

Yeah I like Patton too. I'd be happy if we took him... assuming Rogers isn't available. He plays much faster than he ran at the combine. Like you said, very quick in his movements.