WR Big Board

[Icness]

So I've been working up a WR big board for what seems like months and I hate to admit it, but I'm freaking stymied. I cannot differentiate between #1 and #4 and I'm open to arguments for and against each guy.

My top 4, in no order:
James Hardy
Early Doucet
Adarius Bowman
Malcolm Kelly

The next grouping is an even bigger clusterbleep of ordination. Somebody sell me on why any one of these guys is better than any other:
DJ Hall
Limas Sweed
Earl Bennett
Keenan Burton
and perhaps Harry Douglas and Mario Manningham in this group

Beyond that I'm pretty clear

Note on Desean Jackson, because I know he'll inevitably get thrown into the conversation:
I believe Jackson is nothing more as an NFL WR than Sinorice Moss or Shaun McDonald. He is a legit mid-1st round pick based on his KR/PR ability, but strictly as a WR he's no better than about 12th in this class. I leave his return man ability out of the WR evaluation.

Go ahead guys, sell me on one guy over another!

[studcrackers]

if sweed was healthy this year would he be in your top 4?

nice to see hardy in your top 4, id say he doesnt have the big play ability that others have but like you've mentioned before he has great hands, maybe he can come into the league in the keyshawn or hines ward mold.

what do you think of dj hall's playmaking abilities? he seems to make one or 2 big plays a game but im not sure if its his speed or going against inferior competition?

[Wizards2Lottery]

Limas Sweed has rare ability to box out corners and get the jump ball. I've hardly seen recievers adjust to deep balls as smoothly as he can.

Other than that Malcolm Kelly is the guy I hope the Redskins get in the first round. I'm hoping for either Malcolm Kelly/Quentin Groves or Tyson Jackson/Limas Sweed.

[GYBE]

I like Malcolm Kelly the best. He just has such an advanced feel for the game for his age.

He has remarkable hands and every move he makes seems smooth, well thought-out and perfectly executed because of his football IQ. I don't know how he'll do at the combine, but I really don't see him being less than at least an average NFL wideout. Immensely low chance of being a bust IMO.

[A.J.]

watch out for my boy donnie avery

[Icness]

Sweed would probably be #1 if he had played this season healthy. He's got to time better than 4.6 though, and I'm not sure he will.

I'm liking Doucet less the more I see of him. He's "just another guy" way too much.

The list should be up today or tomorrow...

[Monkeyfeng06]

all i know is manningham and jackson... damn... i suck.

[Icness]

watch out for my boy donnie avery

I just got the report on Avery from a team scout in that region, and it's a very good one. From what little I've seen of him this year I notice he's greatly improved his toughness and hands--which he definitely needed to improve. This guy thinks he'll be the fastest WR in the draft.

[Icness]

The WRs this year are an interesting lot, very tough to distinguish clear-cut rankings. My #1 might be another guy's #6, and my #12 might be another guy's #3, and arguments could be made to support either position. They will be drafted more on team preference than overall rating in most cases. Perhaps more than any positional group in recent years, the interviews and academic backgrounds of these WRs could make the difference between the 1st round and 3rd round, which is now second day. As with all positions, note that positional ranking does not always correlate with draft order; some teams like some guys better than others or have different needs.

1. Malcolm Kelly, Oklahoma--Junior who is the most dynamic of the bigger WRs in this draft; runs very well and has a very controlled motion; the word that always comes up when scouts watch Kelly is

[Icness]

Clumsy merge, sorry...

If you want to comment on one particular guy, please don't copy or quote the entire 6,000 word post!

[PhilipNelsonFan]

I've heard people say that Robert Jordan is better than Hawkins and Jackson, and I'm not too sure I disagree. Jordan is, I believe, the most productive WR on the team and has been for some time, while Hawkins has just started to "come into his own" and DeSean is a glorified kick returner.

I've seen a couple Florida games but Caldwell never has really stood out to me. Maybe that's because of Tebow.

[Next Coming]

Wow. A lot of insightful stuff there Icness. Thanks for that. Now excuse me while I read all of that.

[Next Coming]

Oh and what about Jaison Williams out of Oregon. Is he more of a TE than a WR?

PNF I'd like to read your take seeing as your our resident Duck backer.

[Icness]

Add in Paul Hubbard to the mix, he was a regretful omission. I've actually seen very little of him but he's in the mix to go somewhere between Bowman and Burton, 2nd-3rd round. He could nudge higher if he shows he's healthy and runs better than anticipated.

Drop Manningham down about 5-6 slots after his disastrous OSU game, as well as how he handled himself in the Wisconsin game. I can't recall seeing a player change character in a bad way so much, so quickly. Without trying to start a rumor or allege anything, I wonder if he started/stopped taking drugs or something...

[PhilipNelsonFan]

Oh and what about Jaison Williams out of Oregon. Is he more of a TE than a WR?

PNF I'd like to read your take seeing as your our resident Duck backer.

Jaison Williams is more tight end than WR, although he's physically imposing wherever he plays. He's 6-5, 240, and can reportedly run a mid-4.5 40 time, very respectable for a TE. Decent downfield blocker but inconsistent, and he has notoriously bad hands. He's been dropping 3 balls a game this year, and he gets alligator arms on occasion. However, he's bigger than most linebackers he plays against and can flat run over people, and he has some breakaway speed on deep balls. He grades out as a 7th rounder at this point in time, so he'll be back at school next year.

[ExplosionsInDaSky]

DOUCET IS THE BEST OF THE GROUP