When it comes to a lack of blue-chip prospects at the top of the 2018 Draft class, the theme continues. Some of the most sought after positions at the top of round one appear to lack star power, but there is a wide receiver emerging as the second half of the season is underway. Courtland Sutton, a redshirt junior, originally began his career as a safety. That idea quickly disappeared when the coaching staff recognized there was a rare combination of hard-to-find traits that could be used on offense. After a medical redshirt in 2014, he re-wrote the freshman receiving record book at SMU then evolved into a 1st team All-AAC player in 2016. The two-sport athlete has the makeup and ceiling of a top tier prospect; let’s take a deeper look at what he brings to the table.
What He Does Well:
At his size, Sutton starts off each play with a physical advantage over anyone that is covering him. Not only does he carry a nice blend of height, length, and girth to his body, he plays a very violent brand of football. It shows up after the catch, when he’s blocking, and in 50/50 jump situations. The former safety in him is still very much alive when it comes to his approach each week. Sutton is an easy hands-catcher that can pluck the ball out of the air with great awareness of where his feet are in relation to the boundaries. He gets a smooth and easy release and shows plenty of lower body fluidity when changing directions. For a high hipped athlete, his agility is a plus.
Where He Needs Work:
Sutton needs to show more consistency when it comes to his catching mechanics and ball skills. He tends to rely on body-catching at times, especially on comeback routes. His rate of acceleration is average, making him an easy guy to cover underneath when it comes to sticking to his hip pocket. Sutton will also have an uphill climb when it comes to learning the NFL route tree, as the SMU offense simply doesn’t have a ton of variance to theirs. His skill set comes across as raw and green at times, but that should continue to evolve. The question is, how long will that take?