With the future of Calvin Ridley in Atlanta still up in the air and with both Cordarrelle Patterson and Russell Gage set to hit free agency, the Falcons may need to look to the draft to address the wide receiver position. Few know the position here in Atlanta better than Harry Douglas, and he joined the Morning Show on 92.9 The Game to share his opinion on how the team should approach the offseason when it comes to wide receivers.
Outside of Kyle Pitts, who surpassed 1,000 yards in his rookie season at the tight end position, Douglas is looking for the Falcons receiving core to become a more physical unit moving forward.
“When the Falcons are looking for a wide receiver, they need a guy that is big-bodied, big stature and strong to go over the middle because, when you watch this team this year, that’s the deficiency that this wide receiver group had. You didn’t have a guy that wanted to go over the middle and make the tough catches and knew they were probably going to get hit and knocked out anyway and sacrifice their body. That’s what this offense needs," Douglas said.
With the combine underway in Indianapolis, Douglas explained that the number one rule when drafting wide receivers is to look for a player that fits within the team’s offensive system. For Arthur Smith’s scheme, Douglas explained that a player in the mold of Tennessee’s A.J. Brown would be the ideal fit for the Falcons along with other examples like Ja’marr Chase, Deebo Samuel, Davante Adams and Cooper Kupp.
In this year’s draft, the number one prospect that matches Douglas’ description appears to be Arkansas' Treylon Burks. At 6’3, 225 pounds with speed, NFL.com's comp for Burks is Brown “with more wiggle.” Another fit at the top of the draft is USC’s Drake London who Todd McShay has the Falcons taking in his latest mock. Should the Falcons opt to address the trenches at eight like most fans hope they do, all hope isn’t lost for the wide receiver position.
On with Andy & Randy, NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah praised the depth of the position in this year’s draft saying “I think there are going to be wide receivers for days; they’re everywhere.”
“The college game—everybody is chucking it all over the place with four or five wide, spread offenses. I feel like for the last decade, we’ve seen one loaded receiver draft class after another and this year is really no different,” he said.
With eight total picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, the Falcons hold the eighth-most draft capital as it currently stands and four of those picks are inside the top 75.
