2021 NFL Draft Prospects

[diamondbull424]

Kyle Pitts is absolutely a monster. I mean forget TE, he’s running away from DBs and has uncoverable size, leaping ability, and an elite catch radius. This dude is a legit receiving weapon and yet he’s also a blocker that puts a lot of effort into that part of his game. He’s not heavy enough to be a legit TE at the NFL level, but I think he could be a WR in our offense and be used in the same mold as those great Ga Tech WRs in that triple option offense, like Calvin Johnson, DeMaryius Thomas, and Stephen Hill.

Pitts has the size and speed to be a matchup nightmare at the NFL level and would pair extremely well with Lamar and our offense. You can’t guard him 1v1 consistently. Whether it’s a CB or a S or a LB. Pitts would open up so many opportunities for both Andrews and Hollywood with the attention he would bring. While also adding another elite redzone option to the equation.

I’m not fully convinced he can fall to our selection, but if there is a “receiver” worth trading up for in this draft class, IMO it’s Kyle Pitts. I’ve identified my first guy of this draft class. Though I do also really love DeVonta Smith as well. Would be a difficult decision between those two, but Pitts simply has unteachable traits. He’s the next DK Metcalf type NFL weapon IMO. He looks to have legit 4.4 speed and a 40” vertical at 6’6”245 lbs. That’s just ridiculous. Imagine an offense with another unicorn on the field with Lamar. What’s more I wouldn’t have any fears about Greg Roman knowing how to utilize what Pitts can do.

Edited November 11, 2020 by diamondbull424

[DreamKid]

5 hours ago, diamondbull424 said:

I’m not fully convinced he can fall to our selection, but if there is a “receiver” worth trading up for in this draft class, IMO it’s Kyle Pitts. I’ve identified my first guy of this draft class.

Yea, as a likely Top 15 lock. I think Pitts might be an early "I hope this kid knocks out his agent or something" prospect for ya there DB. 

[diamondbull424]

14 minutes ago, DreamKid said:

Yea, as a likely Top 15 lock. I think Pitts might be an early "I hope this kid knocks out his agent or something" prospect for ya there DB. 

Hey who would’ve thought Jeffery Simmons would fall as far as he did. I mean you never want to hope for injury for anyone, but would it be wrong of me to wish Pitts to come up with a high ankle sprain just so his production could suffer and he falls to our selection?

You know, an injury for the good of the cause, that’s not bad, right? It’s not unethical is it? Please tell me it’s not. I think he would love it here. 😂

(I kid, I kid... but maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if he stole a charger from an Uber or something.)

But yeah. I know it’s not realistic. I’m just saying this dude is an animal. And when running a mock simulator, he fell to our pick twice. So it got me hyped. 😂 

[Ray Reed]

Yea Pitts is by far my favorite player in the country who isn't a terp

[sp6488]

I doubt Pitts gets close to our selection.

I would like to see us draft a mid-round TE, though, particularly an in-line blocker who can contribute in the short-to-mid range passing game. A potential successor to Nick Boyle for 2022 and beyond.

[diamondbull424]

Only two WRs in this draft class that I’m confident in being go to receivers for us in the 1st round, that we COULD have a shot with in the draft:
- DeVonta Smith
- Justyn Ross (if he declares)

With DeVonta Smith. He’s just an absolute baller and I wanted him in last years draft, had he declared. Unfortunately he seems to possibly be out of our draft range now. But because of his rail thin frame, there’s always a possibility. He’s also very similar in his speed to Alshon Jeffery where he has very deceptive speed. He’s obviously faster than Jeffery and they’re not comparable as receivers, just in terms of their ability to consistently, as prospects, get behind defenses. It never seems like he has the speed where he should be blowing by defenders, but he always seems to still blow past them anyway. It’s some sort of weird trait that he possesses that I haven’t seen much since Jeffery (I think there was another prospect as well but I can’t recall). Likely has something to do with his long strides he has, defenses underestimate just how much ground he can cover with a step. While he’s 6’1”, he seems to have the lower body length of a receiver that’s like 6’4” to 6’5” or so, but with the cat like agility of someone that’s 6’1” 175 lbs. If I had to provide a player comp for his skill set, I would go with Chad Johnson/Ocho-Cinco formerly of the Cincinnati Bengals. Same Cheeta level movements, tight frame, packed with underrated power, baller that plays the game tough and big in big moments. Doesn’t shrink and is consistently a go to target. I’m not convinced that he’s “special” but neither would I have been convinced that Jerry Rice was special had I been around to watch him as a prospect. Some guys are just so consistent that they dominate and that looks like it could be DeVonta Smith. If Smith isn’t available for us in round one it would be quite unfortunate circumstance.

Also unfortunate would be that Ross won’t declare for this draft. Hopefully he does. Ross is a clear and easy fit within our scheme IMO. He’ the best WR fit for Lamar and our offense in this draft IMO. We could take advantage of his size, route releases, route running, ball skills, vertical route and vertical jump ability. If ever there was a smooth player comp to AJ Green, this is it. Ross is the kind of impact WR talent we need, if he declares. Probably the best WR fit for us in this draft class. The Ravens would be fools to pass on him because of the medical as they did with Tyler Biadasz, if he’s available and within range. There’s no way we’d have any hope of drafting such an elite WR option if there wasn’t something “wrong” with him, otherwise. He probably won’t declare, but hopefully Trevor Lawrence likely leaving college influences him to make a business decision. No reason to risk significant injury without at least some guaranteed cash in your pocket. Going back could get him to a top 10 selection next season OR he could underperform some and still fall due to the medical concerns.

Anyways, similar to AJ Green he’s not an elite speed specimen, yet his advanced route running, varied route releases, and agility in his package allows him to be a dominant WR option within the intermediate passing attack, while also having the combination between quality speed, physicality at the top of the route, and the vertical jumping ability to be a deep threat option to target as well. As a receiver he’s not the YAC threat we would do well to have (Duvernay seems to be that guy moving forward however), but he’s the size mismatch option we need that can just body overmatched corners when nothing else is working and our WRs are in 1v1 situations.

 

[diamondbull424]

On 11/11/2020 at 10:48 AM, Ray Reed said:

Yea Pitts is by far my favorite player in the country who isn't a terp

Forgot I ran out of likes before when looking this over. He’s definitely a beast.

On 11/11/2020 at 3:59 PM, sp6488 said:

I doubt Pitts gets close to our selection.

I would like to see us draft a mid-round TE, though, particularly an in-line blocker who can contribute in the short-to-mid range passing game. A potential successor to Nick Boyle for 2022 and beyond.

Absolutely. Once I get more likes.

[diamondbull424]

LT Jackson Carman.

I’m sure he can legitimately play OT in this league, but he reminds me so much of Kelechi Osemele out there. I think he’s an elite PB/AP level OG if he makes the transition there. I think I like him there more than I like Wyatt Davis along the IOL. Carman’s a legit people mover and his athleticism also is there as well. He’s got the same combination of length, strength, and athleticism as KO. If he could be durable, I see an AP level talent at the next level. Same as what KO was, when healthy.

[diamondbull424]

Q.Williams is showing to be a top 10 DI in the NFL to this point and Creed Humphrey had a couple pancakes in pass pro in this game and never gave up a pressure to him that I saw. Absolutely phenomenal. I’ve seen this tape before, but at the time was more so paying attention to the CeeDee Lamb at the time.

Humphrey is an absolute bully and would certainly make for an excellent 1st round pick. Definitely an elite center prospect from every box I see him checking. Certainly a better center prospect than Cesar Ruiz from last year and on a similar level to Frank Ragnow coming out, probably marginally higher. Can’t say I’d put him above Biadasz, but he’s top 3 with Ragnow and Biadasz.

He’s not as versatile as Biadasz as he doesn’t provide nearly the same level of pulling quickness, but he’s probably more stout in pass pro against strength and has the necessary quickness to handle speed. He does an excellent job with line checks and cerebral understanding of the position to boot, which is what really separated the above 3 guys from some of the other recent options I’ve seen.

Creed probably has the smoothest and cleanest reach block of the top 3 guys. Biadasz I feel was a little more consistent as a snapper as well, so he’s marginally the better prospect IMO to Humphrey. But if there are no healthy concerns with Creed, I think he’s about as slam dunk a center as you can find. He’s so good at what he does that I’d strongly consider taking him over Kyle Pitts, Pat Friermuth, and DeVonta Smith... if somehow some combination of those guys were all on the board.

Arguably for our blocking scheme and for what we’ve struggled the most with along the IOL, I’d say Creed might have been the best fit of my big three center prospects; Chris Jones is more explosive than Williams and would still wreck havoc, but Creed is probably the best equipped to stop him of the center prospects that I’ve scouted over the last 5 years or so.

My only slight concerns with Creed are versatility, he’s a better scheme fit than both Biadasz and Ragnow were (not that they were bad fits, but there was more athleticism present), but not as good a fit in zone as those guys.

In this draft class there’s a clear drop off in ability from Creed Humphrey to Josh Myers. I still need to watch more tape on Trey Hill and Josh Myers, who look like they’ll be my #2 and #3 options, but to this point, Hill looks to be on a similar level to Ruiz.

If anyone is interested, current Raven Ben Powers is the LG obviously and thus you could scout his ability in this tape against some pro level talent, just in case he continues to see playing time. But Humphrey then, still seemed to be the superior player and probably best player along this OL. Really impressive player.

[diamondbull424]

Wasn’t particularly sure where to post content like this, but I suppose this is kind of one of the better places. Figured either this or TART thread. While this speaks towards route running in the pros, I think it’s very viable in terms of what to look for when studying WR prospects in the draft. Particularly guys that can gain great yardage off of consistent route running. Seems to have great channel content as well, he did the Justyn Ross breakdown above.

 

[diamondbull424]

While he doesn’t have an elite catch radius, Tylan Wallace is a definite day 2 WR that if he’s available would present a good fit for Lamar. Reminds me of Derrick Mason, he’s going to attack the ball, he’s got some solid YAC ability, but nothing elite. He’s great at that long comeback route, gets a lot of separation off of it.

Considering Snead is a free agent and while I like him, I’d rather use the money that could go towards him on retaining Jimmy Smith, we could use a guy like Wallace to compete with Proche in filling Snead’s vacated role. Wallace is more explosive and could present more explosiveness to what Snead provided. Wallace also could continue to be deployed outside the hashes in a similar manner to how Mason was used, he’d be a versatile fit for our offense and Lamar as a QB... even if we still would need an elite catch radius option if we really want the offense to take the next step (well that and actually use the WRs).

 

[diamondbull424]

Early Receiver Rankings
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 🌟 (4.5 stars)
Waddle’s athleticism, elite YAC instincts, and elite agility make him a fringe AP level talent. That said, I have serious concerns about his durability moving forward.  Waddle has the most potential, but durability concerns for his size, playing style, and recent injury makes me question his ability to stay healthy at the NFL level consistently. Considerable injury bust potential. That and he’s only had a small sample size. That said he outruns angles with elite speed and acceleration unlike even most deep threats. His elite burst separates him from just the normally fast guys because he appears to get to his top speed faster. I see him as having the highest potential of all the Bama WRs, even if I prefer Smith over them all.
1. Jaylen Waddle = Tyreek Hill

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫 (4.25 stars)
High Impact WR talents, likely PB level talents, but unlikely AP level ability. I’m obviously not as high on Chase as others, but I also couldn’t see Justin Jefferson’s greatness on tape. Must be something about the LSU receivers. I still like the AJ Brown comp well enough, but Chase isn’t the same level of brute, even if he’s a tackle breaker. He’s also better in jump ball situations IMO. So there’s definite variance in their styles of WR. I feel a bit more comfortable with a high end of Sterling Sharpe and an expected result in the Peak Victor Cruz area of production. I think he’s going to be a very good player, but I don’t think I see a special trait such as elite speed or elite size that I think gives Chase next level elite/HOF impact potential impact to an offense. But if he’s better than what I believe, his style of play would compare him to a great like Sharpe.

Smith on the other hand, I’m hugely high on. He just makes plays. He’s also got an elite catch radius considering his long arms. Plays WR in a similar way to Calvin Ridley, but he’s more effortless as a runner with his long strides. Smith is also better at the catch point considering his increase length. I’d be remiss If I failed to mention Smith has deceptive speed. His speed isn’t elite, but he consistently seems to find a way to get behind corners and surprise them with how much ground he eats up.
2. DeVonta Smith = Chad Johnson
3. Jamar Chase = Sterling Sharpe/Victor Cruz

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
4. Justyn Ross = AJ Green
Ross’ situation is an obvious concern. You’ve got AJ Green level potential/ability, but such an injury could lead to a serious drop on draft day, regardless of if he comes out in 2021 or 2022. Assuming he’s smart and comes out this season, so he can get paid sooner, I’m a definite believer in his ability. My problem however is the more I think about his playing style, it’s a little more physically reliant than Green’s. Considering his injury, it makes me incredibly nervous moving forward. He’s not possessed of quite the same cat like agility as Green at his peak, but the comparison fits well enough. I’m rooting for him, but I’m not quite as sure about taking him at this point.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 🌟 💫 (3.75 stars)
I like all of these WRs and feel they fit our offense to varying degrees. I see fringe PB level talents that have clear and obvious potential, but I don’t necessarily trust the development of Marshall and Moore, while Wallace probably has the least special traits of most, if not all the WRs in terms of their ability.
5. Tylan Wallace = Derrick Mason
6. Terrace Marshall = Poor man’s Randy Moss
7. Rondale Moore = Poor man’s Steve Smith

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 🌟(3.5 stars)
I still need to watch more of the group, ARSB is someone I certainly need to watch more of. Could easily be in the above field, but I’ll need to watch more before I make that determination. What’s more I feel the WRs above give me better feelings about being a fit within our offense and with Lamar’s skill set. But again, I’ll need to watch more of this group.
8. Amon Ra St. Brown = Odell Beckham Jr (?)
9. Chris Olave
10. Rashod Bateman

Edited November 24, 2020 by diamondbull424

[diamondbull424]

Loved this interview. Just seems like a Raven. Sounds humble, competes with his teammates for best blocks amongst the WR core, not how many catches. Is smaller, but plays with the mentality of someone 40 lbs heavier. His gloves are a literal black hole, you thought Hayden Hurst had automatic hands, Smith’s due to his catch radius are even better. I just sense something special with this dude that I don’t necessarily get from other WRs in this class.

 

[ThatJaxxenGuy]

I can’t wait until once again we overdraft a project receiver with “upside” who can’t catch or run routes...

Edited November 24, 2020 by ThatJaxxenGuy

[diamondbull424]

The Draft Machine results. Two big elite mismatch targets for Lamar to throw to. Didn’t really think this deserved it’s own thread though.

18. Baltimore Ravens
Kyle Pitts TE, Florida:
Pitts has flaws, let me start with that. He needs to become a better route runner and not run his routes so rounded and at times, lazy. That or he needs to become more physical, but he attacks the ball in the air and his tools are elite to work with. Reminds of a young Jimmy Graham. Can allow smaller corners to get physical with him, when in reality they shouldn’t have any chance against him. So physicality within his route along with route precision will be key areas for him to work on at the NFL level. He does high point and attack the football in the air, so he’s not a complete Miles Boykin. But the physicality is definitely concerning. Though with better technique and more body development, he should be able to body NFL defenders at an unbelievable clip. Pitts would offer the Ravens some assurances in case Andrews decides not to resign or price himself out of Baltimore. What’s more however, if we can retain Andrews long term, Pitts offers another game breaking option in the middle of the field. He’s very similar to Hayden Hurst in how you’d deploy him, his hands aren’t quite as good, but he’s far better in identifying the soft spot in zone, has a far bigger catch radius, and offers elite game breaking speed for the position.

50. Baltimore Ravens
Creed Humphrey IOL, Oklahoma:
Humphrey is the best center in the draft by a good margin. He’s got the physicality in both his lower and upper body to stop rushers in their tracks and reset his base. His upper body in particular allows him to just wall off at the second level with seemingly little effort. Creed isn’t a hyper athlete, but his feet are incredibly quick on the field. His ability to get to his reach block is pretty insane. He’s not nearly as good as a puller or with identifying and destroying in space, but in the most important things you need your center to do he’s elite. He’s more Travis Frederick then he is Alex Mack. Better fit for our scheme, but wouldn’t be as good a fit in others. 

119. Baltimore Ravens
Justyn Ross WR, Clemson:
Ross should give us what we hoped Boykin would provide. Just have to worry about his spinal issue... but that’s why he’s a 4th round pick. Ross has legit talent and with the likely improvements he would have made this season and being Trevor Lawrence’s go-to receiver, he’s a likely 1st round selection in this draft class if not for the huge medical issue. He’s IMO Tee Higgins from last season, but with slightly more upside. He could separate at an average level as a sophomore. He likely would’ve improved on that this season... he’s still able to work on his craft even now, he just can’t take the physical blows yet. I’m a little concerned about how he’ll hold up but in the 4th round, this is where you gamble on guys with character concerns or medical issues. Ross is a stud talent that could prove to be a top 15-20 NFL WR if all works out.

172. Baltimore Ravens
Patrick Johnson EDGE, Tulane:
talent PJ is the classic versatile edge selection the Ravens tend to make in the later rounds of a draft. He looks very comfortable in zone defense when asked to drop back. He’s also on pace for double digit sacks on the year. He’s got plus athleticism, he rushes in a contained manner instead of getting too far upfield, leading to wide lanes for the modern QB to scramble through. In run defense, he’s solid, holding a good enough edge, but his problem is he needs to squeeze inside a little more to prevent a big enough lane for the RB to squirt through.

195. Baltimore Ravens
Marco Wilson CB, Florida:
Wilson is the brother of Giants corner, Quincy Wilson, who was a 2nd round pick recently. Thus there’s obvious pro roots and ability. Marco has legitimate athleticism. He’s physical, he has plenty of experience playing both the nickel and along the boundary. His flaws are his hand usage when asked to press and that he’s not always understanding of what WRs are trying to do and that’ll occasionally lead to missteps in coverage. Thus there’s some Anthony Averett there with him in that capacity. With time to be coached up and with veterans like Humphrey, Peters, Smith (?), and Young in tow... he should be able to grow over time to become a reliable NFL corner.

210. Baltimore Ravens
Trey Hill IOL, Georgia:
talent Hill is IMO the 2nd best Center in this draft class. This scenario reminds me very much of Cesar Ruiz last season where he was heavily underrated in the process until much later. But hey, if they have him available in the 7th round, why not strike mock draft gold amiright? Dude is a people mover and did very well against top 10 pick Derrick Brown last season. He’s an ideal fit for our system. 

https://thedraftnetwork.com/mockDraft/view