Rookie Report Card: Week Sixteen

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In my weekly column, we take a longer look at another two rookies.  I will compare their individual performances to date against my original expectations of them.  Let’s continue the 2013 series by looking back at two wide receivers that started with a whimper but have come on much stronger as of late, St. Louis Rams rookie Stedman Bailey and Tennessee Titans rookie Justin Hunter.

Stedman Bailey, WR STL
Here is what I saw in college from Bailey: Bailey was the more dependable playmaker over Tavon Austin for the West Virginia offense as he does not have the swings in performance of the smaller play maker. Not only is Bailey a deep threat, but the young wide out can take a short crossing pattern, break a tackle with a chance to score on any play.  Bailey catches the ball at its highest point, uses great lateral movement getting in and out of breaks, and busts out a hurdler’s jump if he gets near the end zone. Het had a 59 yard pitch and catch that he played as a more imposing and physical threat than he truly is.  It was hard to believe he wasn’t bigger than his 5′ 10″ and 190 lb. frame.

His heart and determination was clear when the young receiver out-muscled his coverage on his second touchdown of their bowl game. If he lands in a great situation, Bailey could be a plug and play dynasty WR3, but if not, it might take some time for him to make the starting lineup.  I don’t see him ever becoming a superstar, but Bailey should become a sold pro.

This is what I saw from Bailey against the Buccaneers:  Due to the injury to fellow former Mountaineer Tavon Austin, the less seasoned Bailey started the game split out wide.  The young receiver does a good job catching the ball away from his body in stride while running precise routes.  There is a bit of Jeremy Maclin to his game, not superstar burst or speed, but shades of a solid dependable playmaker who does the dirty work in the middle of the field.  He showed decent effort as a run blocker as the Rams are committed to run the ball with Zac Stacy – that effort will get him more playing time as the Rams are a run-first team.

He reads his blockers well down the field while finding the seam to exploit.  This ability was on full display when Bailey got pitched the pigskin on a double reverse.  The wide out hugged the sidelines and weaved around the defense 28 yards down the field for his first rushing touchdown of his short NFL career. If you squinted hard enough, you almost thought you were watching Austin with his quicks. Bailey tracks the ball well in the air and fully extends to make a catch while having a defender on his hip.  He is strong enough to snag the ball and secure it, despite the defensive back chopping his hands.  Even when the ball is thrown behind him, the young receiver contorts his body to bring in the ball for the first down.  There is a natural smoothness in his routes as he glides all over the field.

I’m not sure Bailey will ever be more than a WR4 on your dynasty team with the slew of more explosive play makers in front of him in St. Louis.  Don’t let that stop you from trying to acquire him as he has worked himself from the Rams fifth receiver at the start of training camp into their second starter.  He played second fiddle to Austin before and exploited the situation for his benefit.  Buy low!

Justin Hunter, WR TEN
hunter_fotorThese are some of the observations of Hunter during his time in college: Hunter is a tall receiver at 6′ 4″, but dropped 10-15 pounds to get quicker at the Combine.  That is a bit concerning as he has the frame to be more muscular.  The young wide out is an elusive runner who possesses the best body control of his class with great vision to see the entire field in front of him.

I enjoy the way he catches passes in stride as this makes him very dangerous to break any route and can take any reception to the house.  Hunter gets to the football at its highest point, has tremendous concentration on the ball and uses his frame to get separation from defenders. The wide receiver takes great angles, catches passes in triple coverage and is a master at making the spectacular one-handed catch.  Hunter could become a true number one receiver to build an offense around.

Here is what I gleamed during Hunter’s game against the Jaguars:  Let’s say the first word that comes to mind is inconsistent.  The young receiver missed last week’s game due to a violation of team rules and ended up not starting the game.  Hunter was featured on three wide receiver sets early, but soon faded.

He runs deep routes, getting separation, but his quarterback did not have the time for the play to develop getting the ball that deep down the field most of the day.  When Hunter did get the single long target, the pass just missed his out-stretched hands.  This rookie did not seem to be on the same page with Ryan Fitzpatrick as the quarterback preferred his more seasoned weapons as he did not get another look for the rest of the game.

Hunter does a good job run blocking which will help him see more playing time in 2015.  The Titans played a more ground and pound game in their win against the Jaguars other than the occasional thrown to Nate Washington.  Don’t give up on the rookie yet with his modest year so far of 18 receptions for 354 yards and four touchdowns.  With Kenny Britt leaving town and Washington a year older, Hunter has a lot of upside and could be undervalued by his current owners.  Wait until closer to your rookie draft and players like him and Bailey might be available for second round rookie picks.

For follow-up questions or information, contact me on twitter @AndrewMiley