Smith over Chase? One respected talent evaluator doesn’t even rank him ahead of teammate Waddle
At the close of the college football season, the NFL Draft seemed to have a three-man top tier of pass-catchers: Florida’s Kyle Pitts, LSU’s Ja’Marr Chase and Alabama’s DeVonta Smith.
But that might never have actually been the case, and it almost certainly is not now.
Smith was a marvelous college player, but most every talent evaluator views Pitts and Chase as the superior prospects.
And if the player and positional rankings provided by the Athletic’s Dane Brugler reflect the thinking of NFL execs, Smith might not even be the third skill position player taken in two weeks.
Brugler has released his universally celebrated and immensely helpful annual draft guide — a 262,000word tome known commonly as The Beast — and in it he lists Smith as WR3 behind Chase and Crimson Tide teammate Jaylen
Waddle.
He explained why to the Miami Herald Monday:
“I think we’re splitting hairs on these top three receivers. You can make a case for any of them being the top guy. For me, I gave Waddle the slight edge over Smith due to his athletic creativity.
“He’s not as polished as Smith, but he understands the details of route-running, and his special athleticism makes him a unique threat before and after the catch. He’s not Tyreek Hill, but he’s in that mold.”
Of course, this is just one person’s opinion, but Brugler is super credible. Peter King shouted
Brugler out in his weekly “Football Morning In America” column, saying he’s “in awe awe of Brugler’s work ethic, and the info.”
Brugler ranks Pitts, the Gators’ dynamic tight end, as the draft’s No. 2 prospect behind Trevor Lawrence. Then it’s BYU quarterback Zach Wilson at 3 and Chase at 4.
Waddle, who averaged
18.9 yards per catch in three seasons at Alabama, comes in at No. 6 on Brugler’s big board. As for Smith, the Heisman Trophy winner? He’s the draft’s ninth-best player, regardless of position.
Naturally, the Dolphins will draft based on their own needs and grades,
and perhaps they disagree with Brugler’s order at the top.
But if they, like Brugler, see the top three receivers closely bunched, it explains why they were comfortable sliding down from third to sixth in a series of trades. That decision might ultimately cost
them the chance at Pitts or Chase, but Smith or Waddle would be an excellent consolation prize in that scenario.
Plus the high-end depth of playmakers in this year’s draft could allow the Dolphins to trade yet again in the first round.
After quarterbacks go in the top three picks, the draft will begin in earnest when the Falcons go on the clock at No. 4.
Should Atlanta take Pitts, as many around the league anticipate, and Cincinnati take Chase at No. 5, it’s not hard to envision the Dolphins getting some sweet offers to move out of the sixth spot. The Broncos (who pick ninth) need a quarterback.
Perhaps they would be willing to part with a second-rounder to move up three spots to get one.
With Smith and Waddle still available at sixth, the odds are quite high one would still be there at ninth.
Taking either one of them at sixth might be a bit of a letdown for Dolphins fans, but it would be solid value, based on Brugler’s evaluation.
Taking one of them at No. 9 and picking up another valuable draft asset?
A win-win.