#240: 2021 Dash To The Draft (WR/TE with Jacob Infante)

Sports Krunch w/DKROM

1. Not only the best pass-catcher in this draft, but arguably the best prospect period, is Florida TE Kyle Pitts. Daniel Jeremiah suggested that Pitts would be the overwhelming choice of folks around the NFL if they had to vote on which 2021 prospect is most likely to don a gold jacket. What makes Kyle Pitts so special and why is he worth a top-five pick despite playing a position that is less valued?

2. The WR class was arguably the centerpiece of the entire 2020 draft. Many, if not most, were pegging it as a generational crop. But some believe this year’s WR class could be even better. Do you share that belief, and if so, why?

3. The top WR on your board at the moment is the 2020 Heisman Trophy winner himself, Alabama’s Devonta Smith. And I can personally understand why you would have him there since it can be argued he is the best route runner and has the best hands of the bunch. However, some say he isn’t somebody who can absolutely dominate at the pro level and as he said himself today, he only weighs 170 pounds. And if you wanted to find the last WR standing over six-feet tall and weighing less than 180 pounds that was drafted into the NFL, you would have to go all the way back to 2001 when Marvin “Snoop” Minnis was taken by the Chiefs in the third round (that nugget courtesy of our friend Jordan Reid at The Draft Network). What is your message to all those who doubt Smith can make a generational impact in the NFL because of his lack of size and freakish athleticism?

4. As the Kansas City Chiefs have shown the league in recent years, speed is an absolute necessity in modern day NFL receiving group. And the best speed receiver in this year’s draft is Devonta Smith’s teammate Jaylen Waddle. Last year, another speedy wideout from Alabama, Henry Ruggs, was the first WR to go off the board. Buzz around the league suggests that scouts and GM’s are higher on Waddle than they were on Ruggs. Why do you think that’s the case and would you be surprised if Waddle is the first receiver off the board?

5. LSU’s Ja’Marr Chase is considered to be the best WR prospect in this class by many, including Dane Brugler and Daniel Jeremiah. He was obviously Joe Burrow’s go-to guy during LSU’s national title run in 2019, hauling in 20 TD’s in the process. But above all, it’s his yards after the catch ability and ball skills that make him the ideal prototype for today’s “X” receiver. What are the weaknesses in Ja’Marr Chase’s game that prevent you from ranking him number one on your board?

6. After the big three of Smith, Waddle and Chase, there’s a logjam of guys with diverse skill-sets. You have gadget-types like Kadarius Toney of Florida, Allen Robinson/Courtland Sutton-type talents like Terrace Marshall, Jr. of LSU and Rashod Bateman of Minnesota. If you were a GM of a team that had a bare cupboard at WR and had to choose between those three prospects while you were on the clock, who would you choose and why?

7. The distant second-fiddler to Kyle Pitts in this year’s TE class is, according to many, Penn State’s Pat Freiermuth. What makes Freiermuth a good consolation prize for a TE-needy team picking in the top 50 that has no shot at Pitts?

8. Best Team Fits

-Kyle Pitts: Bengals

-Devonta Smith: Dolphins

-Jaylen Waddle: Lions, Giants

-Ja’Marr Chase: Eagles, Lions

-Kadarius Toney: Packers

-Terrace Marshall, Jr.: Ravens

-Rashod Bateman: Patriots

-Elijah Moore: Bears

-Rondale Moore: Bengals

-Dyami Brown: Vikings

-Pat Freiermuth: Jaguars

-Brevin Jordan: Panthers

-Tre McKitty: Chiefs