20/20: DJ Moore

Travis May Posted On February 16, 2018

Welcome to the 20/20 series. As part of our continued Dynasty Scouts coverage and in preparation for the NFL Combine, we will be profiling 20 of the top incoming rookies of the class of 2018 by giving you 20 facts you must know.

1.) Player name – DJ Moore

2.) College – Maryland

3.) Height/Weight – 5’11”, 215 pounds (yes, he’s a wide receiver with a typical running back build)

4.) Birth date – 4/14/97 (20 years old)

5.) Class – Junior

6.) College stats – DJ Moore kicked off his college career playing for the hot mess that was the 2015 Maryland Terrapins. He grabbed just 25 receptions for 357 yards and three scores as a freshman that year. However, in the two years that followed Moore absolutely dominated. He led the team in receiving yards and touchdowns with 637 yards and six scores (27% and 40% of team totals) in 2016. Then in 2017 DJ put the team on his back to the tune of 80 receptions for 1,033 yards and eight scores (46%, 53%, and 53% of team totals).

7.) NFL Draft round projection – There may not be a player soaring up draft boards faster than DJ Moore right now. Last fall he wasn’t being talked about by just about anyone in the national media. Now he’s being touted as a potential top-40 player by some. Due to his mix of solid production against top competition and diverse skill set to play inside and out Moore should safely find a home inside the first three rounds. He likely goes in between picks 40 and 80 of the NFL Draft.

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8.) Current NFL comparison – Doug Baldwin. Moore is actually a little thicker than Baldwin and may be able to play outside just a bit more, but they have a lot in common. Both of them are solid route runners. They find gaps in defenses incredibly well. Both Moore and Baldwin run incredibly well after the catch. And lastly both wide receivers position their body strategically to finish strong in contested situations. If you sprinkle in a little Michael Crabtree and Golden Tate, you’ll really start to see who Moore could be in the NFL.

9.) Best possible destination – San Francisco 49ers (at pick 59 overall via the Saints). The 49ers have their shiny new expensive quarterback. Now they just need a few young playmakers for him to throw to. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has this fantastic habit of taking wide receivers and leading them to their career-best seasons. Moore could learn from savvy veteran Pierre Garcon for a year. Plus, Marquise Goodwin could continue stretching defenses deep allowing Moore to work underneath utilizing his YAC ability. It’s no secret that whichever wide receiver lands with the 49ers is going to see a major dynasty value spike.

10.) Worst possible destination – New York Giants. The quarterback is ancient and has clearly lost some of his ability. Who knows what kind of quarterback play will be in place for the Giants in the near future. Then, of course, the team already has Odell Beckham Jr, Sterling Shepard, and Evan Engram. Moore would be set to be the fourth target on a possibly awful offense for the foreseeable future. It was clear last year that when Odell went down the Giants clearly had no depth at wide receiver beyond Sterling. The Giants may try and grab some help this year. This landing spot is career condemning from day one.

11.) Best current skill – DJ Moore is incredible in many ways, but his best current skill is probably the ability to create with the ball in his hands. It doesn’t matter if he catches the ball on a screen, on a crossing route, or outside on a corner route. He finds a crease and gets downfield. If he’s by the sideline or end zone, DJ finds a way to finish for the score or find the first down marker. That awareness will serve him well immediately at the next level.

12.) Skill that needs to be improved – It’s quite difficult to find a glaring weak spot in his game. However, Moore wasn’t asked to beat tight press man coverage off the line very often. When he faced a more physical corner in close quarters, DJ could create enough space to make a play, but didn’t create consistent and significant separation outside of a few highlight plays. Beating press coverage is one thing that many NFL rookies struggle with early on due to the fact that many college defenses just don’t do it. If Moore can figure this out and show consistency in that way, then he’ll most assuredly see a healthy amount of targets early on in his NFL career.

13.) Past/Current rookie ADP – Moore currently sits 12th in February 2018 Rookie Mock ADP right between Kerryon Johnson and Equanimeous St. Brown. That slot makes him the WR5 right now in this draft class. The only way he sees much of an uptick from that slot is if he lands with the 49ers.

14.) Projected dynasty value – Moore will probably do just fine at the NFL Combine. He won’t wow anyone with elite athleticism in any one drill except for possibly the three-cone. So really, his dynasty value may currently be sitting as high as it will be in terms of his near future. If he does, in fact, find a home on day two of the NFL Draft then it’s quite possible he could be selected in the seventh or eighth rounds of startup drafts this summer.

15.) Dominating the competition – Moore is the only draft-relevant wide receiver in college football to account for at least 40% of their team’s receptions, yards, and touchdowns in 2017. If you like Dominator Ratings and Market Share analysis then DJ Moore is your guy in this class.

16.) Elite company in Maryland – The last two wide receivers to go for more than 800 receiving yards and six scores in a season for Maryland: Stefon Diggs (2012) and Torrey Smith (2010). Both of those wide receivers dominated in less than ideal offenses in college just like DJ did in 2017. Both found significant roles in the NFL.

17.) Returning some value – One aspect of his game that goes overlooked is the fact that he has 30 combined kick and punt returns on his resume. This provides additional value for a team looking to plug in a new toy that can add some yards with the ball in his hands. It may not play a huge factor in where DJ gets selected, but it’s worth mentioning should his new team choose to utilize this.

18.) Is that a running back? – Around this time last year I wrote a similar piece on Alvin Kamara. You may remember that Kamara is 5’11”, 215 pounds just like Moore. While Moore may look like a running back, don’t expect him to go the way of Ty Montgomery. Moore did log 17 career carries for an average of 7.4 yards per carry, but he isn’t a future running back. DJ is one of the better route runners in this class and should find success at wide receiver. However, the right offense may choose to hand him the ball from time to time given his vision with the rock in his hands.

19.) Quarterback dependent? – It seems that NFL fans often wonder whether college players receive production boosts thanks to their team’s offensive system or quarterback. To put it bluntly, it’s truly a miracle that DJ Moore did absolutely anything with the horrific quarterback play and overall offensive talent around him. Maryland quarterbacks completed a disgusting 47% of their passes in 2015 (Moore’s freshman year). And they didn’t get much better in the years that followed with 57% and 55%. He made the best of an unbelievably impossible situation.

20.) Possible Colts connection? – The Indianapolis Colts have a new head coach in Frank Reich. Why does that matter? Reich played for quarterback for Maryland in the 1980s. Yes it may be a stretch to call that a connection for DJ Moore, but hear me out. The Colts very well may not bring back Donte Moncrief. If they don’t, then that leaves a gaping hole at the WR2 position for them. Why go overpay for a free agent when you can lock up a rookie for four years much cheaper? They have picks 36 and 67 overall, both of which lie within the expected selection range for Moore. This wouldn’t be the best landing spot, but it makes for the only real connection that any significant NFL decision-maker has to Maryland and DJ Moore. Even if this doesn’t happen I can’t wait to see where he lands.

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