Green Bay Packers Draft: Pre-Combine Rankings for Positions of Need
By Dan Dahlke
Need #7 – Wide Receiver
Top-10 WRs
- Laquon Treadwell, Ole Miss (6-2, 210)
- Michael Thomas, Ohio State (6-3, 210)
- Josh Doctson, TCU (6-2, 195)
- Corey Coleman, Baylor (5-10, 190)
- Will Fuller, Notre Dame (6-0, 184)
- Tyler Boyd, Pittsburgh (6-2, 200)
- Sterling Shepard, Oklahoma (5-10, 193)
- Braxton Miller, Ohio State (6-1, 204)
- De’Runnya Wilson, Mississippi State (6-4, 215)
- Pharaoh Cooper, South Carolina (5-11, 208)
The Breakdown: There isn’t a “can’t miss” prospect in this group, but Treadwell and Thomas are really solid first-round talents. They’re both effective boundary receivers with good size and strong hands.
Coleman might be the biggest playmaker of the group, but he’s not a polished route runner at this point. Given his size, some may also only see him as a slot receiver in the NFL.
Doctson is highly underrated, in my opinion. He did nothing but make big-time catches at TCU. He’s tough in traffic and does a tremendous job high-pointing the ball and pulling in receptions in coverage. The one qualm with his game is he doesn’t create a lot of separation in his route tree, even though he makes tough contested catches on a routine basis.
On the other hand, Fuller has lights-out speed and can create separation downfield, but his hands aren’t as strong or as consistent as Doctson or Thomas. Boyd is a polished route runner who isn’t great at any one aspect of the game, but good at everything at the position. He should be a solid day two option.
Shepard, Miller, and Wilson are also interesting day two prospects. Shepard is a dynamic slot receiver, who was incredibly productive in the Sooners offense. Miller is still working on the transition from quarterback to wide receiver, but all early indications show he could be an explosive offensive weapon in the NFL.
Wilson is unique in this class in the fact he’s one of the few wide receiver prospects with excellent size and physicality downfield. It’ll be interesting to see how fast he runs at the Combine this week because he could really help himself with a fast 40 time. At this point though, his downfield speed only seems adequate.
Receivers, like Chris Brown, Cayleb Jones, and Leonte Carroo, didn’t quite make my top ten list, but they could be good selections in the middle rounds of the draft that find an immediate role on a team in their first year.
Tulsa’s Keyarris Garrett and Baylor’s Jay Lee are also boundary receivers with good size, production, and speed. They should test well at the Combine, which will garner them more attention.
Next: Need #8 - CB