Powered by:
as known from New York Timesas known from USA Todayas known from yahoo!
VA
Contains commercial content
The Grueling Truth - Where Legends Speak / 2017 NFL Draft Sleeper Wide Receivers Prospects

2017 NFL Draft Sleeper Wide Receivers Prospects

7 WR Sleepers for the 2017 NFL Draft
Publish Date: 04/15/2017
Fact checked by: Mike Goodpaster
Sep 17, 2016; Oxford, OH, USA; Miami (Oh) Redhawks defensive back Tony Reid (14) is stiff armed by Western Kentucky Hilltoppers wide receiver Taywan Taylor (2) in the first half at Fred Yager Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

 

2017 NFL Draft Sleeper Wide Receivers Prospects

Many people have talked about how deep the year’s NFL Draft class is at defensive back and tight end, but the wide receiver position may be just as deep.  While prospects like Corey Davis, Carlos Henderson, and ArDarius Stewart are often discussed, there are several high potential players who have been seemingly overlooked.  Which of these players could go from mid round pick to Pro Bowl production in the NFL?

KD Cannon 5’11” 182 Baylor (4th or 5th Round Projection)

KD Cannon is an athletic receiver with the ability to stretch a defense vertically.  He has a bit of a thin frame and will need to improve his route-running, but he has the speed to be a playmaker in the NFL.  Cannon can make catches on vertical routes or make would-be tacklers miss and turn shorter routes into big gains.  He had 87 receptions for 1,215 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2016.

Chad Williams 6’1” 204 Grambling State (4th or 5th Round Projection)

Chad Williams was a playmaker at Grambling and has the skill set to be the same in the NFL.  Williams has the speed to win on routes over top and the quickness to make excellent cuts on underneath routes.  He is not easy to bring down once he has the ball in his hands.  Williams was a major part of Grambling’s offense, tallying 89 receptions for 1,334 yards and ten touchdowns on the season.

Fred Ross 6’1” 213 Miss State (4th or 5th Round Projection)

Fred Ross caught 160 passes for 1,924 yards and 17 touchdowns over the last two seasons at Mississippi State.  Ross has a lot going for him as a receiver.  He has good size, Odell Beckham Jr. hair, and was the favorite target of Dak Prescott in college.  Ross, however, lacks the speed to run past defenders vertically and drops too many passes.

Amba Etta-Tawo 6’1” 208 Syracuse (4th or 5th Round Projection)

Coming out of nowhere, Amba Etta-Tawo had 94 receptions for 1,482 yards and 14 touchdowns in his senior season.  Etta-Tawo has good size and speed and can go up and get jump balls.  Unfortunately, he has struggled to catch the ball over the course of his college career.   He seemed to improve in this area as a senior, but it may still be a work in progress.

Ricky Seals-Jones 6’5” 243 Texas A&M (4th or 5th Round Projection)

Ricky Seals-Jones caught 26 passes for 333 yards and a touchdown playing just eight games in an injury-shortened season.  Seals-Jones was a highly touted recruit who never really panned out in college.  His size, however, will get an NFL team to take a chance on him as he is a mismatch nightmare for defenses.

Taywan Taylor 5’11” 203 WKU (4th or 5th Round Projection)

Taywan Taylor is a fast and super-productive receiver from Western Kentucky.  He caught 86 passes for 1,467 yards and 17 touchdowns as a junior in 2015 and followed that performance up with 98 receptions for 1,730 yards and 17 touchdowns in 2016.  In both seasons he averaged over 17 yards per reception.  Taylor is on the shorter side which some think may limit him to a slot role in the NFL.  Those who question his level of competition have to look no further than his nine reception 121-yard performance against Alabama in 2016.

Zach Pascal 6’2” 219 Old Dominion (4th or 5th Round Projection)

The all-time receptions leader at ODU, Zach Pascal had 133 catches for 1,916 yards and 17 touchdowns over the past two seasons.  Pascal has excellent hands and catches the ball well in traffic.  He runs good routes but has limited quickness.  He has decent speed but needs a long runway to get going.

Josh Malone Tennessee 6’3” 208 (5th or 6th Round Projection)

While 2016 was the top statistical year of Josh Malone’s career as a Volunteer, he still had only 50 receptions for 972 yards and 11 touchdowns averaging 19.4 yards per reception.  His lack of production is concerning, but his combination of speed and size that makes Malone worth the risk.  He is capable of making big plays and can catch the ball in a crowd.

Robert Davis 6’3” 219 Georgia State (5th or 6th Round Projection)

Robert Davis has the size and speed to overcome the small-school stigma.  He has good hands and has shown the ability to shake defenders turning short passes into big gains.  He was not as productive as you would like to see particularly for a small school prospect.  As a senior, he had 67 receptions for 968 yards and five touchdowns.

Rodney Adams 6’1” 189 South Florida (5th or 6th Round Projection)

Rodney Adams is a fast receiver who runs good routes and can adjust to make tough catches.  Regrettably, he still drops too many balls.   He is also thin and may not have the strength to defeat press coverage at the next level.  With the ball in his hands, he is a force on offense and special teams as a returner.  Keeping the ball in his hands has been a problem though as he fumbled five times last season.   On the season, Adams had 67 receptions for 822 yards and five touchdowns.

Kenny Golladay 6’4” 218 Northern Illinois (5th or 6th Round Projection)

Kenny Golladay is a big, fast, long-striding runner who can get up and highpoint a ball in traffic.  Golladay had 87 receptions for 1,156 yards and eight touchdowns this past season.  Golladay has speed once he opens up his stride but lacks quickness.  Due to this fact, he will need to improve his route running to have any hope of getting open against NFL defenders.

 

Travis Rudolph Florida State 6’ 189 (5th or 6th Round Projection)

Travis Rudolph is an excellent route runner who will make tough catches across the middle of the field.  A true possession receiver, Rudolph catches the ball well, but will not do anything spectacular once the ball is in his hands.  He is also a a good blocker in the run game.

Read Also
Esteban de Jesus, Roberto Duran y AIDS (1972-89)
Many of us dream of celebrity sports fame, but only cruel individuals ...
Pugilists in Petticoats: Hattie Stewart Challenges Hattie Leslie for Recognition as the True Female John L. Sullivan
“I like to fight,” exclaimed Hattie Stewart, whose portrait graced a full ...
BetMGM Promo
Grading every NFL team’s picks from the 2021 NFL Draft
Quickly, click away if you’re going to get upset by reading draft ...
Daniel K’s 2021 NFL Draft Position Rankings/Draft Grades
  Round Grade Big Board Rank Position Rank Player Name Position College ...
Top 100 remaining 2021 NFL free agents after Day 1
This is the most up-to-date list of available NFL free agents following ...
Predicting the next five Pro Football Hall of Fame classes
Induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio is ...
Ranking the top 200 players in the NFL ahead of the 2021 season
This list isn’t based solely on performances from the 2020 NFL season. ...
Sportsbook of the month
PointsBet - Get your Bonus Bet now!
-
Latest News
Top-10 Third Basemen of All-Time: Schmidt or Brett at number one?
The hot corner has seen some great players ...
The Nine Most underrated Heavyweight Boxers of All-Time
I love making these lists. I grew up ...
Our Latest YouTube Videos
Video: Indiana Basketball weekly W/Steve Risley: IU/Harvard Preview and UCONN and Louisville Recaps!
Indiana Basketball weekly W/Steve Risley: IU/Harvard Preview and UCONN and Louisville Recaps!
Video: Indiana Basketball Weekly W/Steve Risley: Indiana vs Army Preview and Florida Gulf Coast recap!
Indiana Basketball Weekly W/Steve Risley: Indiana vs Army Preview and Florida Gulf Coast recap!
Video: Indiana Hoosiers hire Curt Cignetti as Head Coach, Is it the right Hire?
Indiana Hoosiers hire Curt Cignetti as Head Coach, Is it the right Hire?
Betting Tips
12/02/2023 - 4:00 pm
Mercedes Benz Stadium
Tip:
Georgia to Cover
-5.50
FanDuel
12/01/2023 - 9:00 pm
Allen Fieldhouse
Tip:
Kansas to Cover
-2.50
FanDuel
12/01/2023 - 7:30 pm
Allegiant Stadium
Tip:
Oregon to Cover
-9.50
FanDuel
Sportsbook of the month
PointsBet - Get your Bonus Bet now!
-
Top Betting Sites
Top Betting Bonuses
DraftKings
DraftKings
DraftKings Review
4.6/5
FanDuel
FanDuel
FanDuel Review
4.6/5
BetMGM
BetMGM
BetMGM Review
4.5/5
Bet365
Bet365
Bet365 Review
4.5/5
BetRivers.com
BetRivers.com
BetRivers.com Review
4.5/5
DraftKings
DraftKings Bonus
Bet $5 Get $150 Instantly
T&Cs apply
4.6/5
FanDuel
FanDuel Bonus
Bet $5 Get $150 in Bonus Bets
T&Cs apply
4.6/5
BetMGM
BetMGM Bonus
up to $1,500 back in Bonus Bets
T&Cs apply
4.5/5
Bet365
Bet365 Bonus
$1000 in Bonus Bets
T&Cs apply
4.5/5
Place your first cash bet up to $1,000, and if the bet loses, you will have your wager refunded in Bonus Bets. T&Cs, time limits and exclusions apply. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-Gambler 21+
Caesars
Caesars Bonus
100% up to $1000
T&Cs apply
4.5/5
Our Team
Mike GoodpasterAuthor IconJosh SchwartzSamuel TeetsSimon Briffa
+10
Mike Goodpaster
Mike Goodpaster
Chief Editor
Author Icon
Christopher Carlson
Content Writer
Josh Schwartz
Josh Schwartz
Editor
Samuel Teets
Samuel Teets
US Sports Veteran
Simon Briffa
Simon Briffa
Sports Editor
Mark Lewis
Mark Lewis
Editor
Chris Benedict
Chris Benedict
Editor
Author Icon
Daniel Kornhauser
Author
John Raspanti
John Raspanti
Author
Author Icon
Malik Zorrok
Author
Author Icon
Buddy Gibbs
Author
Brian Coburn
Brian Coburn
Author
aukje
aukje
Author
Peter Bonahoom
Peter Bonahoom
Author
berina
berina
Author
Find out what the legends have to say about sports this week....

Players must be 21 years of age or older or reach the minimum age for gambling in their respective state and located in jurisdictions where online gambling is legal. Please play responsibly. Bet with your head, not over it. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, and wants help, call or visit: (a) the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey at 1-800-Gambler or www.800gambler.org; or (b) Gamblers Anonymous at 855-2-CALL-GA or www.gamblersanonymous.org.

This site is using Cloudflare and adheres to the Google Safe Browsing Program. We adapted Google's Privacy Guidelines to keep your data safe at all times.

21+NCPG
Move to Top
Close
Players accepted in the US US Flag
Stake.us Exclusive Bonus
$25 No Deposit + 250,000 Gold Coins + 5% Rakeback
Promo Code
Copy
Visit Site
T&Cs apply, 18+
Payment Methods
Bitcoin
Litecoin
Ethereum
Dogecoin
Highlights
  • Exclusive promo code: TGTSOCIAL
  • Play Plinko, Hilo, Crash and more!
  • Get Stake Cash bonuses every day!
Stake Originals
Dice
Crash
Plinko
Mines
×
Your Promo Code:
The bonus offer of was already opened in an additional window. If not, you can open it also by clicking the following link:
Visit Site