WRs: 2015 NFL Draft by position – ESPN Wisconsin
Third in a series.
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Amari Cooper is considered the top wide receiver in the 2015 draft class.
If there’s a position that appears to be in endless supply in the college ranks, it’s wide receiver, as the NFL has another bumper crop to harvest this year.
By JASON WILDE
GREEN BAY – Perhaps there will eventually be a regression to the mean, and the cavalcade of ready-made NFL wide receivers entering the draft will slow. But for at least another year, general managers and head coaches can expect to find another impressive class of wideouts during the April 30-May 2 draft.
Maybe not as impressive as last year’s group, but impressive nonetheless.
From 1990 through 2013 – a span of 24 NFL seasons – only eight wide receivers had 1,000-yard seasons as rookies: Joey Galloway (1995), Terry Glenn (1996), Randy Moss (1998), Anquan Boldin (2003), Michael Clayton (2004), Marques Colston (2006), A.J. Green (2011) and Keenan Allen (2013). Last season alone, three rookie wideouts did it:
The New York Giants’ Odell Beckham Jr. (the 12th overall pick) led the way with 91 receptions for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns, while Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans (seventh pick) had 68 catches for 1,051 yards and 12 TDs and Carolina’s Kelvin Benjamin (28th) had 73 receptions for 1,008 yards and nine TDs, In addition, Buffalo’s Sammy Watkins (fourth) had 65 catches for 982 yards and six TDs, Philadelphia’s Jordan Matthews (42nd) had 67 catches for 872 yards and eight TDs, and Miami’s Jarvis Landry (63rd) had 84 receptions for 758 yards and five TDs.
In all, five wideouts went in the first round last year and seven more went in the second. All told, 10 rookie wide receivers caught at least 48 passes last season, and 12 had at least 500 receiving yards.
For comparison, a year earlier, only three wide receivers were taken in the first round – and the top rookie pass-catcher was Allen, a third-round pick who caught 71 passes for 1,046 yards and eight touchdowns for San Diego as the 76th overall pick.
“Last year’s class was really, really good. They’ll probably do a [ESPN] “30 for 30” [documentary] on those guys,” St. Louis Rams general manager Les Snead said. “But the way high school football is going, college football’s going, there’s a lot more passing of the football. So I think the development of wide receivers [will continue].
“I think coaches put some of their best athletes, at a young age, running routes and catching balls. So that’s probably the evolution that you’re seeing.”
Added Steelers GM Kevin Colbert: “Last year’s wide receiver class was unique. It was unique in terms of numbers and in terms of impact players. Again, I am not sure it will have quite the impact of last year’s class, but in all honesty, not many will going forward, because that was a special group of players.”
Nonetheless, NFL executives agree that this year’s group has quality and depth in it, led by Alabama’s Amari Cooper, who is expected to be the first of four or five wide receivers who’ll go in the first round.
“And it’s pretty darn deep, the wide receiver group,” said Carolina Panthers GM Dave Gettleman. “All shapes and sizes, whatever you’re looking for, you should find be able to find and you’re going to get value.”
Most coaches and GMs believe the trend will continue because of the proliferation of spread offenses and the development of the passing game at the college level. And while most won’t come into the league anywhere near being finished products – “They’re probably not running the entire NFL route tree,” Snead said – the potential will be there.
“From a throwing standpoint in the National Football League, you end up throwing the ball quite a bit. I think the college game has really helped,” Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “It’s helped because they’re throwing the football more and these guys are having more opportunity to run the routes that we run and go against these different coverages that are little bit more sophisticated at the college level and have to make adjustments on those coverages. I think from a quarterback’s standpoint, tight ends and wide receivers, it’s a beautiful thing.”
BEST OF THE BEST
1. Amari Cooper, Alabama (6-foot-0 7/8, 211 pounds, 4.42 seconds in the 40-yard dash): Caught 124 passes for 1,727 yards and 16 touchdowns in 14 games last season as a true junior, setting school records for receiving yards and TD receptions. … Impressive athlete with the flexibility to line up anywhere on the field and produce. … Primed to be an instant contributor, although his ceiling may not be as high as some other top-10 wide receiver draft picks.
BEST OF THE REST
2. Kevin White, West Virginia (6-2 5/8, 141, 4.35): Caught 109 passes for 1,447 yards and 10 TDs last season as a true senior. … Spent two years at Lackawanna Junior College before transferring to West Virginia, where he only caught 35 passes in 2013. … Impressive leaping ability (36.5-inch vertical) makes him difficult to defend when the ball is in the air. … One-year production might be a concern for some teams but talent and potential make him a likely No. 1 receiver once he finds his comfort zone.
3. DeVante Parker, Louisville (6-2 5/8, 209, 4.45): Caught 43 passes for 855 yards and five TDs in only six games (four starts) last season as a senior, as he missed the first seven games of the year because of a foot injury. … Foot injury isn’t considered a long-term issue but does create some question about durability. … Tall, long, athletic player with huge catch radius who should be off the board before No. 20.
4. Dorial Green-Beckham, Oklahoma (6-5 1/8, 237, 4.49): Sat out last season after being kicked off the team at Missouri, then transferring to Oklahoma but having his appeal to play immediately denied. Then chose to surrender final two years of eligibility to declare for the draft. … Caught 59 passes for 883 yards and 12 TDs in 2013 as a true sophomore at Missouri. … Incredible size and athleticism but is still raw and comes with significant red flags after the way the past two years have unfolded, including an arrest (although no charges) for an incident in which he allegedly pushed a woman down a flight of stairs.
5. Breshad Perriman, Central Florida (6-2 1/8, 212, 4.25): Caught 50 passes for 1,044 yards and nine TDs last season as a true junior. … Played well last season despite losing star quarterback Blake Bortles, who was taken third overall by Jacksonville in the 2014 NFL Draft. … The son of ex-NFL wide receiver Brett Perriman, he had NFL genes and a significant upside but may take some time to develop.
OTHERS TO WATCH
Jaelen Strong, Arizona State; Nelson Agholor, Southern California; Devin Smith, Ohio State; Rashad Greene, Florida State; Tre McBride, William & Mary; Rashad Greene, Florida State; Phillip Dorsett, Miami (Fla.); Devin Funchess, Michigan; Vince Mayle, Washington State; Jamison Crowder, Duke; Chris Conley, Georgia; Sammie Coates, Auburn; Stefon Diggs, Maryland.
DRAFT SOUNDBITE
“Physically, we think he has all the gifts in the world. We’ve all admired him, all of us who have been in the state of Missouri and the Kansas City area, have seen him afar, have admired his physical traits. I think now what people want to do is get a feel for him as a person, see where he is at this stage.” – Kansas City Chiefs GM John Dorsey, on Green-Beckham’s physical talent vs. off-the-field red flags.
SURVEILLANCE VIDEO
Amari Cooper
PACKERS PERSPECTIVE
Position analysis: By re-signing Randall Cobb on a four-year, $40 million deal, the Packers kept their top two pass catchers, having inked Jordy Nelson to a four-year, $39 million extension as training camp got underway last summer. The Cobb deal was huge for an offense that saw a whopping 189 of quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ regular-season completions go to those two players, who both earned trips to the Pro Bowl and have developed unprecedented rapports with the two-time NFL MVP QB.
After Cobb and Nelson, though, are three young players with much to prove in Davante Adams, Jared Abbrederis and Jeff Janis, all of whom were selected in the 2014 NFL Draft. Adams, who unseated the now-departed Jarrett Boykin for the No. 3 receiver job early in the year, showed his vast potential as a rookie second-round pick with breakout games against eventual Super Bowl-champion New England and against Dallas in the NFC playoffs, but his production fluctuated and he’ll need to rise up in Year 2.
Abbrederis, a fifth-round pick from Wisconsin, won Rodgers over in organized team activity practices and the first week of training camp before suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that ended his rookie season before it began. He should be good to go before training camp. Then there’s Janis, the player Packers fans clamored for all season after both his preseason catches went for touchdowns. Raw and not yet ready for prime time, he will be under the microscope as he looks to take off in Year 2.
Draft strategy: One thing Ted Thompson has always done as the Packers’ general manager has been to stock the wide receiver position with talent for his quarterbacks. In his 10 drafts in Green Bay, Thompson has taken a whopping 13 wide receivers. During the time he had Brett Favre as his quarterback (2005 through 2007), Thompson drafted five of them: Texas A&M’s Terrence Murphy (second round, No. 58) in 2005; Western Michigan’s Greg Jennings (second round, No. 52) and TCU’s Corey Rodgers (fourth round, No. 104) in 2006; and San Jose State’s James Jones (third round, No. 78) and Virginia Tech’s David Clowney (fifth round, No. 157) in 2007.
Since Rodgers ascended to the starting job in 2008, Thompson has taken eight more: Kansas State’s Nelson (second round, No. 36) and San Diego State’s Brett Swain (seventh round, No. 217) in 2008; Kentucky’s Cobb (second round, No. 64 overall) in 2011; Grand Valley State’s Charles Johnson (seventh round, No. 216 overall) Maryland’s Kevin Dorsey (seventh round, No. 224) in 2013; and Fresno State’s Adams (No. 53), Wisconsin’s Abbrederis (No. 176) and Saginaw Valley State’s Janis (No. 236) last year.
Although Cobb’s return prevented the position from being a major need entering the draft, don’t be surprised if Thompson adds another middle-round pass-catcher to the mix.
NEXT:Tight ends.
Listen to Jason Wilde every weekday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on “Green & Gold Today,” and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/jasonjwilde.
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