John Vogel’s 2019 NFL Draft Board: The Wide Receivers

Hey, NFL Draft fans!

It’s November, and the NFL Draft season is just starting to heat up. I’ve been watching a ton of college tape these past several weeks trying to get a feel for the NFL Draft prospects and where they stand. This is the third in a series of articles, a series that I hope will become a staple during the Draft season for you to use.

Each week, I will introduce a new positional board, as well as update the old boards. This will go until February, when I will be unavailable due to my recent venture in joining the National Guard where I will be shipping out to Boot Camp.

That means that all of my draft work will be done old school – Before the Combine.

Here is the third piece in this series: The Wide Receiver board.

What are we looking for in these prospects?

Catching

Hands is the most important thing that a wide receiver needs to have. If he can’t catch the football, how can he play the position? His hands are the structure of how he plays the position. How is his catch radius? Can he bring in one handed grabs? Does he catch in traffic? How well does he handle being hit? These are all parts of the most important trait a wide receiver needs to have. 28/100.

Route Running

A good route runner is a consistent threat down the field. Being consistent helps the quarterback know where you are on the field at all times. A great route runner will break the ankles of the defensive backs covering them. Does he get a good release off of the line of scrimmage? Are his routes crisp and consistent? How well does he work back to the quarterback when the play breaks down? 18/100.

Size/Speed

Size and speed are two great physical traits for a receiver to have. The bigger the body, the better. The bigger you are on the perimeter, the harder you will be to cover by the cornerback. Speed is important too because if the receiver can outrun the coverage every play, he will be wide open every play. Does he have a size mismatch? Does he have a speed mismatch? Does he play to those strengths? 18/100.

Physicality

Sometimes, a receiver has to fight for the football. The ball could be put up in a 50/50 place. Does the receiver attack the football? Does he fight in the air to make sure it’s his, or does he sit back and wait for the ball to get to him? 12/100.

Footwork

Footwork is important to a receiver. If a receiver is in the red zone, the back of the end zone, and goes up for a catch, he needs to be able to bring his feet down in-bounds. In college, it’s one foot. In the pros, it’s two. Does he show that body control to be effective in that part of the field? 10/100.

Run Blocking

Every receiver is asked to run block at some point of a game. The perimeter is a great place to break a big run, and it could depend on the block of a receiver to spring the big play. Can he hold his own on the perimeter and spring a big play? Or does he show very poor blocking technique and find himself getting blasted? 8/100.

Leadership/Attitude

While wide receivers aren’t normally the leaders on the offense, they certainly can be complementary pieces with a positive attitude. Sometimes, the leader is going to get discouraged. The people around him need to pick him up. 6/100.

The Prospect Board: Wide Receivers

1st Round
1 JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Stanford
2 Hakeem Butler, Iowa State
3 Riley Ridley, Georgia

2nd Round
4 Deebo Samuel, South Carolina
5 Collin Johnson, Texas
6 AJ Brown, Ole Miss
7 DK Metcalf, Ole Miss
8 Marquese Brown, Oklahoma

3rd Round
9 TJ Vasher, Texas Tech
10 N’Keal Harry, Arizona State
11 Kelvin Harmon, North Carolina State
12 Bryan Edwards, South Carolina
13 David Sills V, West Virginia

4th Round
14 DaMarkus Lodge, Ole Miss
15 Stanley Morgan Jr, Nebraska
16 Terry Godwin, Georgia
17 Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Texas
18 Dillon Mitchell, Oregon
19 Van Jefferson, Florida
20 Parris Campbell, Ohio State
21 Hunter Renfroe, Clemson

5th Round
22 Devin Duvernay, Texas
23 Denzel Mims, Baylor
24 Gary Jennings, West Virginia
25 Anthony Ratlif-Williams, North Carolina
26 Mecole Harman, Georgia
27 Anthony Johnson, Buffalo
28 Antoine Wesley, Texas Tech
29 Preston Williams, Colorado State

6th Round
30 AJ Richardson, Boise State
31 Jalen Hurd, Baylor
32 Isaiah Wright, Temple
33 Emanuel Hall, Missouri

7th Round
34 Darius Slayton, Auburn
35 KeeSean Davis, Fresno State
36 Jaylen Smith, Louisville
37 Jauan Jennings, Tennessee
38 Nick Westbrook, Indiana
39 Tyrie Cleveland, Florida
40 Will Hastings, Auburn
Last Updated: November 26th, 2018 

Added: N’Keal Harry (Arizona State) 

Here’s the rest of the wide receiver content on this website!

Draft Prospect Profile Kelvin Harmon (Via Terrance Biggs)

Draft Prospect Profile Hakeem Butler (Via Terrance Biggs)

Draft Prospect Profile Anthony Johnson (Via Terrance Biggs)

Draft Prospect Profile TJ Vasher (Via Terrance Biggs)

Draft Prospect Profile AJ Brown (Via Terrance Biggs)

Draft Prospect Profile N’Keal Harry (Via Terrance Biggs)

Preseason Top 5 Wide Receivers (Via Ryan Dunbar)