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NFL draft preview: Cooper, White head another stellar WR class
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_375fc94c-6a65-5a32-aad0-71b58538b260.html
About a year ago at this time, Rams coach Jeff Fisher was asked by a confidant about the possibility of taking a wide receiver with the second pick of the draft, No. 2 overall.
Fisher’s reply: “What? And get fired?”
Yes, there have been plenty of wide receivers who were busts at the top of the NFL draft in recent years, with Charles Rogers, Roy Williams and Mike Williams (the one from Southern Cal) coming to mind. Some might add Darrius Heyward-Bey to the list.
And that in part explains why Fisher doesn’t like taking wide receivers high in the draft. The fact that former No. 8 overall pick Tavon Austin has been only so-so in his first two NFL seasons hasn’t given Fisher a reason to change his mind, either.
All that being said, it would be difficult to say “no” to Alabama’s Amari Cooper or West Virginia’s Kevin White if either is available when the Rams pick at No. 10.
Both are expected to be gone by then, but we won’t know for sure until April 30 — the first day of this year’s NFL draft.
There seems to be a split among NFL scouts and draft experts on whether it’s Cooper No. 1 and White No. 2 at wide receiver, or vice versa.
“The teams that have Cooper above White would say he’s more pro ready,” said one veteran NFC scout, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “The teams that have White ahead of Cooper say the upside with White’’ is greater.
Cooper is an excellent route runner, with good speed, and what the scouts call “great tape.” But he will drop a pass now and then, and he might not be as explosive as White.
White ran a sizzling 4.35 in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, and that’s at a shade under 6 feet 3 and weighing 215 pounds — big receiver size.
“White’s got big-time play-making ability and he screams out that he could be a No. 1 receiver,” the NFC scout said. “What you don’t like about him is he’s really had only one year of production.”
White began his post-high school career at the junior-college level and played only two seasons of major-college football (at West Virginia). His statistics as a junior, in 2013, were nothing to write home about—35 catches for 507 yards and five touchdowns.
“My junior year I put bad film out there,” White said. “That’s not the kind of receiver, the kind of player, I am. Going into my senior year, I just put everything on the line and did what I had to do.”
So what happened as a senior last season?
“Motivation,” White said. “Like I’ve been telling teams, it finally clicked.”
He finished third in the Football Bowl Subdivision in catches last season (109) and sixth in reception yards (1,447). He topped 100 yards receiving in nine of 13 games.
“He’s got phenomenal hands,” a veteran AFC scout said. “He snatches that ball; he just catches it like nobody’s business.”
Still, some wonder if those kinds of numbers will translate to the NFL. Former West Virginia Mountaineers Austin and Stedman Bailey, both now with the Rams, put up similar eye-popping numbers at West Virginia but have yet to light it up in the pros.
Cooper, on the other hand, can point to the success in Atlanta of former Crimson Tide star Julio Jones as evidence that perhaps his college feats will translate to the next level.
“I’ve definitely met with (Jones) and talked to him a few times,” Cooper said. “He’s definitely given me advice on what it takes to be a great player.”
In 2012, Cooper broke Jones’ school freshman records for most receptions and reception yards —with 59 catches for exactly 1,000 yards. Foot and knee injuries slowed his production in 2013 (45 for 736), but he was a glittering star in 2014 with a Southeastern Conference record 124 catches for an Alabama record 1,727 yards.
Even with all that college production, Cooper will be a mere 20 years old on draft day; he doesn’t celebrate his 21st birthday until June. So he will have plenty of time to develop and grow as an NFL receiver.
And even so, having former Oakland Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin as his offensive coordinator at Alabama gave Cooper exposure to not only a pro-style offense, but also to being moved around all over the formation.
“I certainly want to be the best receiver, not just in this class but overall — wherever I go — and I’m going to work hard to try to be that,” Cooper said.
Whether it’s Cooper & White, or White & Cooper, they are the mere headliners in what again figures to be a stellar wide receiver draft class.
“It’s a terrific receiver corps — a year like last year,” said former Rams assistant coach Rick Venturi, currently an NFL radio analyst in Indianapolis. “I think it’s the strongest position in the draft.”
And that’s saying something in comparison with the Class of 2014, which featured three wideouts who finished with 1,000 receiving yards-plus as rookies and six with more than 750 yards.
“We’re all confident,” White said, speaking for his classmates. “We always talk about it. There’s no doubt in our minds that we can do the same thing as last year’s draft class.”
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_375fc94c-6a65-5a32-aad0-71b58538b260.html
About a year ago at this time, Rams coach Jeff Fisher was asked by a confidant about the possibility of taking a wide receiver with the second pick of the draft, No. 2 overall.
Fisher’s reply: “What? And get fired?”
Yes, there have been plenty of wide receivers who were busts at the top of the NFL draft in recent years, with Charles Rogers, Roy Williams and Mike Williams (the one from Southern Cal) coming to mind. Some might add Darrius Heyward-Bey to the list.
And that in part explains why Fisher doesn’t like taking wide receivers high in the draft. The fact that former No. 8 overall pick Tavon Austin has been only so-so in his first two NFL seasons hasn’t given Fisher a reason to change his mind, either.
All that being said, it would be difficult to say “no” to Alabama’s Amari Cooper or West Virginia’s Kevin White if either is available when the Rams pick at No. 10.
Both are expected to be gone by then, but we won’t know for sure until April 30 — the first day of this year’s NFL draft.
There seems to be a split among NFL scouts and draft experts on whether it’s Cooper No. 1 and White No. 2 at wide receiver, or vice versa.
“The teams that have Cooper above White would say he’s more pro ready,” said one veteran NFC scout, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “The teams that have White ahead of Cooper say the upside with White’’ is greater.
Cooper is an excellent route runner, with good speed, and what the scouts call “great tape.” But he will drop a pass now and then, and he might not be as explosive as White.
White ran a sizzling 4.35 in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, and that’s at a shade under 6 feet 3 and weighing 215 pounds — big receiver size.
“White’s got big-time play-making ability and he screams out that he could be a No. 1 receiver,” the NFC scout said. “What you don’t like about him is he’s really had only one year of production.”
White began his post-high school career at the junior-college level and played only two seasons of major-college football (at West Virginia). His statistics as a junior, in 2013, were nothing to write home about—35 catches for 507 yards and five touchdowns.
“My junior year I put bad film out there,” White said. “That’s not the kind of receiver, the kind of player, I am. Going into my senior year, I just put everything on the line and did what I had to do.”
So what happened as a senior last season?
“Motivation,” White said. “Like I’ve been telling teams, it finally clicked.”
He finished third in the Football Bowl Subdivision in catches last season (109) and sixth in reception yards (1,447). He topped 100 yards receiving in nine of 13 games.
“He’s got phenomenal hands,” a veteran AFC scout said. “He snatches that ball; he just catches it like nobody’s business.”
Still, some wonder if those kinds of numbers will translate to the NFL. Former West Virginia Mountaineers Austin and Stedman Bailey, both now with the Rams, put up similar eye-popping numbers at West Virginia but have yet to light it up in the pros.
Cooper, on the other hand, can point to the success in Atlanta of former Crimson Tide star Julio Jones as evidence that perhaps his college feats will translate to the next level.
“I’ve definitely met with (Jones) and talked to him a few times,” Cooper said. “He’s definitely given me advice on what it takes to be a great player.”
In 2012, Cooper broke Jones’ school freshman records for most receptions and reception yards —with 59 catches for exactly 1,000 yards. Foot and knee injuries slowed his production in 2013 (45 for 736), but he was a glittering star in 2014 with a Southeastern Conference record 124 catches for an Alabama record 1,727 yards.
Even with all that college production, Cooper will be a mere 20 years old on draft day; he doesn’t celebrate his 21st birthday until June. So he will have plenty of time to develop and grow as an NFL receiver.
And even so, having former Oakland Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin as his offensive coordinator at Alabama gave Cooper exposure to not only a pro-style offense, but also to being moved around all over the formation.
“I certainly want to be the best receiver, not just in this class but overall — wherever I go — and I’m going to work hard to try to be that,” Cooper said.
Whether it’s Cooper & White, or White & Cooper, they are the mere headliners in what again figures to be a stellar wide receiver draft class.
“It’s a terrific receiver corps — a year like last year,” said former Rams assistant coach Rick Venturi, currently an NFL radio analyst in Indianapolis. “I think it’s the strongest position in the draft.”
And that’s saying something in comparison with the Class of 2014, which featured three wideouts who finished with 1,000 receiving yards-plus as rookies and six with more than 750 yards.
“We’re all confident,” White said, speaking for his classmates. “We always talk about it. There’s no doubt in our minds that we can do the same thing as last year’s draft class.”
