- Joined
- Apr 7, 2013
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- 52,637
ObservationsI've watched every ND game since he has been there and trust me, he's had his more than his share of drops and they were generally on balls away from his body. Just about any ND fan and even Scott Wright from NFL Draft Countdown cite his hands as an area in need of improvement. On top of that, he is undersized for an NFL WR. He is an elite deep threat but he's undersized for an outside receiver and his body probably couldn't take the pounding of an NFL slot receiver.
Don't get me wrong, he is/was an electrifying college receiver but we all know that doesn't always pan out at the next level. I can tell you he is not a #1 type NFL receiver and am skeptical that he would be a competent #2 guy. His numbers might make him an elite type of receiver but it's the intangibles that I personally believe knock him out of the top two rounds. Unless the Raiders take a shot at him. ;)
Fuller isn’t the biggest receiver. His body type (6-0, 180) sort of reminds me of a young Robert Woods at USC. He’s not going to blow anyone away with his physical stature, but he brings plenty to the table to cover that up. Still, I would like to see him bulk up to at least 190 to hold up at the NFL level.
One thing that you notice about Fuller right away is that he racks up YAC, making plays in the short screen game and short-intermediate passing game. He has great vision with the ball in his hands.
Fuller has excellent deep speed, and quickness in and out of his breaks. He isn’t a fully polished route runner by any means, but he runs pretty good routes and gets needed separation.
Good ‘hands’ catcher. Doesn’t let the ball into his body all that often and snatches the ball out of the air.
Does a good job making plays in the red zone with great field awareness to know when and where to get his feet down, as well as the ability to climb the ladder and win one-on-one jump ball situations.
Overall
I’m really excited to see how much Fuller can improve from his sophomore to junior season. His body type is not too dissimilar to Robert Woods at USC, and I think he has a lot of similar traits as a possession receiver who can also excel in the red zone, out of the slot, and after the catch. His size is something that NFL scouts are going to want to continue to evolve as he grows into his game, and perhaps the biggest obstacle he faces right now is adjusting to not having Everett Golson as the quarterback and moving to Malik Zaire, who is more of a running QB himself.
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By the way, Scott Wright is a joke.