Double Take: Kevin White
Editor’s Note: This article is a Dynasty Scouts exclusive. Remember, our Dynasty Scouts section focuses on the stars of tomorrow, with a laser focus on High School recruits and College players who look to have the talent to be future assets in dynasty leagues and have value today in devy leagues. These articles are part of our Premium Content package. To subscribe by year or month, just click here.
Here at DLF we’re always trying to give our members the very best and that may include trying some new things. Out of that has spawned an idea to give multiple views of a prospect for upcoming drafts within a single article. We’ll give our writers certain guidelines, then let them take it from there. Therefore, they may agree or have completely different takes on a player, but the more conversations we can have on a prospect the better informed everyone will be when you need to make a decision on whether to draft this player or that player.
Our inaugural “double take” will be on wide receiver Kevin White from West Virginia. He jumped all over the national spotlight with a great game to start 2014 against Alabama and his value has continued to build. Nick Whalen and Rob Leath break down the essentials.
Kevin White 6’3” 209 pounds
Three star
2011-2012 (Lackawanna College): 36 receptions for 535 yards six touchdowns
Transferred to West Virginia in January
2013: 35 receptions for 507 yards five touchdowns
2014 (thus far): 91 receptions for 1,207 yards eight touchdowns
Athleticism, Route running and RAC ability
(Nick Whalen) Sneaky good would be the best term to define White’s athleticism. He’s not a Julio Jones or Calvin Johnson-type of dominating athlete, but he’s also not a stiff. He will run in the high 4.4’s to low 4.5’s, but he won’t test well in the short shuttle or 3 cone drill because his short area quickness is a weakness to his game. This is really telling when he runs routes because some cornerbacks can stay with him. On the other hand, White is a good route runner who is very technical. Therefore, he makes up for some of his deficiencies the old fashioned way….through hard work. It looks like he has honed his craft and does a good job of releases off the line of scrimmage. Oddly enough, he can have trouble with physical cornerbacks and needs to use his hands more effectively. He’s never going to be dynamic after the catch, but he puts forth good effort and is smart with using the space around him.
[am4show have=’g1;’ guest_error=’sub_message’ user_error=’sub_message’ ]
(Rob Leath) Former junior college talent often gets lazily dubbed as being “raw” or “lacking polish.” That is definitely not the case with Kevin White, a receiver as skilled without the ball as he is with it. Possessing the work ethic of a yeoman, he’s a tenacious blocker and avoids taking plays off as many receivers do. Athletically, he checks a lot of the boxes. He’s big (though I’m not quite buying the 6’3” listing) and has more than enough straight-line speed to warrant safety help over the top. He does not possess the jelly legs or the sheer power a lot of NFL stars do, yet he’s capable of making things happen after catch due to sheer will. His average short-area quickness means he will likely need an accurate quarterback in order to thrive, as he is not a natural separator in his routes. Overall, however, he has enough in each of these categories to give defense’s fits at the next level.
Hands, Ball skills
(Whalen) White has very good body control and will high point the football over defenders often. In this way, he will remind some of Larry Fitzgerald or Sidney Rice because he uses his size to his advantage. He’s able to track the ball well and will come back to it when needed. He has good hands and will come down with some great catches. However, at times he drops very catchable passes and hopefully this is just a concentration issue.
(Leath) These are two areas in which White really shines, particularly with his ball skills. Even if he fails to measure in at the full 6’3”, he plays big, and he’s fearless in going up and getting the football at its highest point in traffic – that’s a trait in receivers I find endearing and one he has in spades. The ability to fight for the football and use your body wisely is paramount in the NFL, where any sliver of separation is rare. His hands are somewhere between above-average and good; in fact, he’s natural in plucking the ball out of the air and seldom lets the football get on his body. The drops he does have seldom appear to be a hands issue.
Dynasty projection
(Whalen) Situation is going to be very important for White’s projection in the NFL. I don’t think he has the sheer athletic ability to be a fantasy WR1 without having an elite quarterback throwing him the football. Therefore, I think he can be a mid to late WR2 for much of his career if we’re looking for a realistic scenario. I do think White has a high floor in that he is so technically sound he will not flop at the NFL level. He has some things to work on, but his game reminds me of a Larry Fitzgerald or DeAndre Hopkins-type of receiver.
(Leath) White is not the type of talent who can transcend any situation. He’s a rock solid addition to any receiver group, yet is not going to carry a passing game on his back. At the NFL level, he has the makings of a low-end WR1 or rock-solid WR2 for an NFL team. As a fantasy player, he’ll need either a high volume of high efficiency passing attack to reach fantasy superstardom. Short of that, I see him as a long-term contributor to fantasy teams, yet not an indispensable asset. Long-term I’d put him in the 20-25 range of dynasty receivers.
[/am4show]
Nick can be found on Twitter at @_NickWhalen
- Dynasty Capsule: Chicago Bears - February 1, 2017
- Dynasty 101: Trading - September 5, 2016
- Summer Sleeper: Chicago Bears - August 19, 2016
