Dynasty Fantasy Football Rookie Update: Braxton Berrios, WR NE

Levi Chappell

Let’s be completely honest… before the 2018 NFL Draft, you had no idea who Braxton Berrios was. You may still have no idea who he is, or you may simply know him as “that guy the Patriots drafted”. My goal in this article is to inform you of who Berrios is. He’s not just “that guy” – he has feelings too.

Braxton Berrios, born October sixth, 1995 to parents…

Okay, maybe that’s a bit too far back. Let’s jump ahead to the athletic accomplishments. Berrios was a four-star wide receiver recruit from Raleigh, North Carolina. He received offers from many power-five schools including Clemson, Ohio State, Oregon, and more. Obviously, he was no slouch in high school. He ended up committing to the U (Miami), probably because he is a big fan of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (that is a wild guess… I can neither confirm nor deny that claim).

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The Stats

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Statistics from sports-reference.com

Berrios saw the field as a true freshman but never achieved significant playing time until his senior year in 2017, where he had a respectable 55 catches for 679 yards and an impressive nine touchdowns which earned him All-ACC honors.

Beyond his pass-catching ability, Berrios is adept at punt returning. I have touched on Dante Pettis in the past about his exceptional punt returning ability, but Berrios is not far behind. Danny Amendola returned quite a few punts for the Patriots, but he is now a Dolphin and the Pats could be looking to find a replacement in that category as well. Berrios, who was also the team captain at Miami, averaged 15.9 yards per punt return.

The Tape

When I dive head first into “the tape” of Berrios, there are a lot of things to like about him. The first thing that pops off the screen are his incredible hands. 2017 Hurricanes quarterback Malik Rosier absolutely loved throwing to Berrios, and you can see why… he never dropped a pass. That is something Tom Brady will surely love about this rookie.

The second thing that pops off the screen when watching Berrios is his crisp route-running, which is something you must have if you want to compete as a slot receiver in the NFL. He made many defenders looks foolish in college, especially in the red zone.

The last thing that I noticed is that he is not afraid of contact and fights through tackles very well, something you wouldn’t associate with a 5’9” 185 lb wide receiver. Simply put, all these skills will fit perfectly with the “Patriot Way”.

Take five minutes out of your day and watch some fantastic football plays:

Measurables

When you take a look at Berrios’ spider chart via MockDraftable, a few things stand out. In many categories, his profile is underwhelming. He lacks in the height, weight, and strength categories. But when you are selecting a wide receiver in the sixth round, you know they are going to come with flaws. The Patriots have excelled in drafting/acquiring slot receivers who have been able to produce at a high level. Berrios was drafted to fit into the same mold as Welker, Edelman, and Amendola.

The positive aspects of his spider chart appear in the speed and quickness areas. He ran a 4.44-second 40-yard dash which is a good time, and he excelled at the three-cone drill (82nd percentile) which is a great measurement for quickness.

Like I stated before, Berrios does lack in some areas, but what you may not know is that he attended “The Opening”, which is a Nike Combine event located in Oregon for high school athletes. He was the number five athlete out of the top 100 recruits. That athleticism was showcased in the agility and quickness drills where he performed better than current NFL players Curtis Samuel and JuJu Smith-Schuster.

If you are drafting Berrios in a rookie draft, it is for his quickness and decisiveness on routes. These give him an edge over defenders. He also landed in a great spot where he can sit behind Edelman and learn the ins and outs of the NFL.

Dynasty Value

In DLF’s July Rookie ADP, Berrios sits all the way down at overall rookie number 50 and wide receiver 22. If I did my math right (which is probably incorrect), in a 12-team league with a four-round rookie draft… Berrios will most likely go undrafted. Berrios was not a fit for every NFL team, but he surely was a fit for the Patriots and what they like to do with wide receivers.

If you like Berrios and have a fourth round pick in your rookie draft, go ahead and take a flier on him… he is worth the shot. He will have to sit behind the likes of Edelman (although Berrios may get some run in the first four games), Hogan, Eric Decker, and others, but he is almost assured a roster spot due to his punt return ability.

Conclusion

Hopefully now you will refer to him as Braxton Berrios, instead of “that guy”, and while I try and stay away from stereotypes when it comes to NFL players and what position they play or what type of player they will be… Berrios absolutely fits the stereotype of slot receiver. But in this case, it’s not all bad.

If you are asking me for a NFL comparison for Berrios (which I will assume you are), it would honestly be ex-Patriots or current ones. At times while watching his tape, I thought he looked like Wes Welker, at other times I thought Danny Amendola, and other times I thought Julian Edelman. All of those players have been solid producers for their teams and I think Braxton Berrios can produce like that as well once he gets used to the speed of the NFL and gets his chance. For now… draft Braxton and be patient, his time will come.

Cheers.

Follow me on Twitter @levichappell.

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levi chappell