2025 NFL Draft Wide Receiver Scouting Report (Part 3) - Dont'e Thornton Jr., Elic Ayomanor, Elijhah Badger, Emeka Egbuka, and Isaac TeSlaa
Hey all,
Back with another part of the WR Scouting Series! For part 3 we have a star-studded lineup as I’ll be doing in-depth evals of Dont’e Thornton Jr., Elic Ayomanor, Elijhah Badger, Emeka Egbuka, and Isaac TeSlaa.
As usual, I have a video and Spotify/Audio-only option below if anyone prefers to watch/listen to the eval.
Video Link:
Spotify/Audio-Only Link:
Dont’e Thornton Jr., Tennessee
Height: 6’5”; Weight: 205 pounds
Age on Draft Day: 22 years and 5 months
Class: Senior
Overall Grade: 2.75/4 (Good Role Player)
2024 Stats:
Receiving: 34 targets; 26 receptions; 661 yards; 6 touchdowns
Drops: 2 (Drop Rate: 7.1%)
Snap Distribution: Wide (95.7%); Slot (4.3%)
Hands: B
Route Running: D+
Release: C-
Yards After Catch Potential: B+
Jump Ball/Contested Catch: B-
Body Control/Ball Tracking: B+
Future role: B-
RAS: A
Strengths:
Fast, fast, fast
Physical traits make it easy to stack defender
Great ball tracking skills downfield
Showed promise with ball skills
Very good blocker
Areas of Improvement:
Vertical man
Lack of tempo in routes
Sloppy cuts on hitches
Success in contested catch can be deceiving
Release skills are a question mark
Comp: Martavis Bryant
If you’re just looking at receiving stats and see a player get 661 yards and touchdowns, you’d probably think nothing of it. However, when he does that on just 26 receptions for a ridiculous 25.4 yards per reception, you’re probably pulling up his highlights. Then you’re probably pulling up his combine profile and seeing his 6’5” size and 4.3 40-yard dash time and starting to get excited. It’s hard not to get excited about Thornton’s highlights. He is a fantastic deep threat and is a natural at finishing catches over his shoulders. He has such a great eye to track the ball downfield and chase it down. His ability to consistently stack his defender is also impressive and a big part of his success. With his great speed, he is able to naturally threaten the defense with his vertical every play to make things easy on hitch routes. He also does a great job working back to the quarterback on his hitches. When catching the ball, he catches the ball with good hand technique and consistently catches it away from his body. He also showed good ability to rise up and maximize his big frame to go get the ball on short patterns and some of his post patterns. Once he makes the catch, it’s off to the races as he can blaze past defenders and get to full speed in an instance. Finally, I was pretty impressed with his blocking. He has very good effort and even form in his blocks. He also does a good job getting leverage in his blocks despite his height.
While it’s fun to get wrapped up with the potential and his highlights, we also need to talk about his lowlights and even just his usual every-play ability. First, on every play he runs nearly the same route either running a vertical, post, or hitch route. In very rare cases he’ll throw in a slant when he’s feeling spicy but most times it’s just those three. While that can work for Tennessee’s gimmicky offense, that will not fly for most teams in the NFL. Even in the few routes he ran, he had poor use of tempo in his routes which limited how consistently he could get open downfield. Also, his cuts were pretty sloppy due to being too upright in his breaks. Those rounded ended up giving the defender room to catch up and cover his route underneath. When he tried to tighten things up, he often needed multiple extra steps to make a sharp cut. I also noticed a number of times when he could be taken out of the play and even out of bounds by physical coverage which could be problematic in the NFL with his limited skill set. Also, he had a very limited number of opportunities in these situations due to his route tree, but his ability to finish catches through contact may not be as good as his 75% success rate this year suggests. The biggest reason why I have this concern is due to some lapses in proper technique to protect the ball from defenders which could lead to more missed opportunities in the NFL. Also, he can sometimes be a bit delayed in his attacks on the ball which makes matters worse. It’s also difficult to assess his ability to best press since he benefited in the majority of his snaps getting a free release and avoiding press. Speaking of snaps, it is worth noting that he didn’t get regular starter snaps and played pretty sparingly at the beginning of the season. That lack of consistent playing time led to him having 3 or more receptions in just 10 of his career games throughout his 4 seasons and 42 career games. Finally, while he is undoubtedly fast, I’m not positive he can add more after the catch other than speed. He seems to lack great moves in open space and lacks the creativity and timing to make defenders miss.
Dont’e Thornton Jr. is a physical freak who some may try to claim his comps are DK Metcalf or even Mike Evans. There are a number of differences but the biggest reason why those comps likely won’t hold up is that Metcalf and Evans are both 20 pounds heavier than Thornton. That may sound like a minor thing but that extra weight gave them more momentum to drive downfield, stack defenders, and become a freight train on their vertical pattern. While Thornton can stack defenders, I can’t confidently say he can do the other two consistently especially against press with the limited reps he had. So, as a comp I instead of Martavis Bryant as his comp. Both have blazing speed and can consistently stack their defender to open up their basket for the quarterback. Both also have really good ball tracking skills to finish catches over their shoulders. Outside of that though, both are really questionable contributors with sloppy route running and questionable ability to play through contact due to their frame. Bryant went to a perfect landing spot to kick-start his career and it’s not impossible the same could happen to Thornton. However, if he goes to a team that doesn’t like to air it out or wants more out of him, I fear he’s in trouble.
Elic Ayomanor, Stanford
Height: 6’2”; Weight: 206 pounds
Age on Draft Day: 21 years and 10 months
Class: Redshirt Sophomore
Overall Grade: 3.04/4 (Good Starter)
2024 Stats:
Receiving: 109 targets; 63 receptions; 831 yards; 6 touchdowns
Drops: 6 (Drop Rate: 8.7%)
Snap Distribution: Wide (86.6%); Slot (13.2%)
Hands: B-
Route Running: B+
Release: B
Yards After Catch Potential: C
Jump Ball/Contested Catch: B
Body Control/Ball Tracking: B+
Future role: B
RAS: A
Strengths:
Nuance in route running
Clean cuts in routes
Ball tracking skills
Vertical ability
Big catch radius
Areas of Improvement:
A bit stiff
Uninspiring in open space
Difficulties staying clean in release
Inconsistent separator
Lapses in hand technique
Comp: Michael Crabtree
Elic Ayomanor was a player I was high on to be a big riser this season with another year removed from his torn ACL and after having a good finish to the 2023 season. Though he didn’t live up to my expectations, in part due to very poor quarterback play, he still has a lot of the traits that made me a fan of his. While some may recognize him from his highlight reel catches or his vertical ability, what first jumped out to me was his route running. Despite his build, he runs routes with really good hip sink to make some really sharp cuts. He also has a good understanding of how to win with leverage, especially in his short and intermediate routes. In those routes, he also does a really great job setting up his defender to open their hips and then break the other way. If you want to see the textbook way to do this, go watch his film against Colorado in 2023 when he kept doing this to Travis Hunter and Hunter still couldn’t stop him. What also makes him successful in these routes is his use of head fakes and tempo which add a bit of deception to his routes. He can use these to successfully beat man coverage but is also a good zone beat thanks to having a really good eye for openings in the defense. On his deep patterns, he does a really good job stacking the defender to make an easier throwing window for his quarterback. So, he ran a very diverse route tree which will give him a lot of potential as a route runner in the NFL. If he isn’t able to create separation, he is able to still make a play on the ball thanks to his tough hands. Though he can have some lapses in concentration and technique, he made some sensational catches with great adjustment skills and through contact. Something that he did this season that helped him be more successful was establishing better positioning. Last year, he could sometimes not use his frame to box out the defender but he did a much better job using that frame to make these opportunities more manageable. He has such a big catch radius with his size and his ability to go low and high for off-target throws. He also looked comfortable finishing catches over his shoulders which is essential if he wants to remain a vertical threat in the NFL. His strength and balance in his release also give him the opportunity to win vertically as he can often power through press coverage to get out on the intended path of his route. When he makes a catch, he has a good transition to runner and has very good straight-line speed to pick up yards if there is an opening. Finally, he is a very good blocker who blocks with good leverage and a sturdy base. His strength and frame also lets him hold up blockers to keep openings open for his teammates.
Though Ayomanor can make clean cuts, his cuts often aren’t the quickest or have the best burst. Last year, I accredited some of the lack of explosion in his cuts due to him recovering from his ACL. However, I didn’t see much, if any, improvement in his cuts this year which was disappointing to see. That lack of improved burst and sometimes lacking foot speed led to inconsistencies in being able to separate from defenders. What also led to some of his difficulties in separating was his release. While it’s still good, he sometimes wouldn’t have the quickness to be able to keep himself clean and away from contact. That led to the defender being able to stay in his hip pocket and be close to make a play on the ball. Also, his ability to create after the catch is pretty disappointing as well. He has great speed for his size but is a bit stiff in his change-of-direction ability which can limit him after the catch. Also, his moves in open space suffer from the same issue as his cuts as they are often too slow developing to successfully make defenders miss. He also has disappointing contact balance for his size. At his size, I expected him to break more tackles but he went down to initial contact way too frequently. Also, he just doesn’t seem like an overly creative runner in space and often gets tunnel vision. So, with all the ways his stiffness has already impacted him in other parts of his game, I would suspect that he would be limited to just the X-receiver position. Finally, while he has incredible flashes of ball skills, he still struggles with lapses in hand technique and concentration drops. Also, he can be a bit slow to react to the ball and with his approach which may also contribute to some of those lapses.
As much as I’m still a fan of Ayomanor, he unfortunately doesn’t have the ceiling I had hoped for since his lack of burst in his cuts will be an ongoing issue. I still think he can help contribute as a vertical threat and has good ability to win underneath with his route running. However, I don’t think he has what it takes to be a top receiver for a team and more likely is best suited as a WR2 for a team to compliment a twitchy, more explosive receiver who wins underneath. As for a comp, I have Michael Crabtree as Ayomanor’s comp. Both have flashes of great hands and the range to make some impressive catches away from their body. Also, both show good ability to run routes with good nuance but can struggle to consistently separate due to a lack of burst in their cuts. Also, neither is likely suited to be top receivers but can operate as a complimentary receiver for a team. Crabtree enjoyed a long, productive career despite rarely putting up great production numbers. I think Ayomanor could do the same and could be a player who helps off the stat sheet as well with his ability to stretch a defense and help as a blocker.
Elijhah Badger, Florida
Height: 6’1”; Weight: 200 pounds
Age on Draft Day: 23 years and 8 months
Class: Redshirt Senior
Overall Grade: 3.08/4 (Good Starter)
2024 Stats:
Receiving: 61 targets; 39 receptions; 806 yards; 4 touchdowns
Drops: 0
Snap Distribution: Wide (79.2%); Slot (20.8%)
Hands: B
Route Running: C+
Release: B
Yards After Catch Potential: B+
Jump Ball/Contested Catch: B-
Body Control/Ball Tracking: A-
Future role: B
RAS: A-
Strengths:
Twitchy, fluid athlete
Great ability after the catch
Big catch radius with ball skills
Versatility to play inside or out
Good route running and release foundation
Areas of Improvement:
Route consistency and effort can vary
Delayed hands in release
Thin frame
Can be thrown off balance in routes
Poor blocker
Comp: Jerome Simpson
These grades may seem very surprising especially since a number of people reading this may not be overly familiar with Elijhah Badger even if they closely followed the college football season. Well, this is where I go full draft sicko with an under-the-radar sleeper player that I do truly believe in. Badger first caught my eye after being recommended to check him out for my summer 2023 receiver rankings. I instantly became a fan thanks to his fluidity and twitch as an athlete. It shines after the catch as he’s able to change direction on a dime and has great timing in his cuts to consistently make defenders miss. He also has great acceleration to get to full speed quickly and enough breakaway speed to pick up some big gains. When things are more congested over the middle or on screen plays, he can operate with great vision to make the most of his opportunities. His fluidity also shows in his route running. While there is some polish needed, his fluid movement skills, twitch, and burst give a lot of potential to turn into a great route runner with the right coaching. Also, his experience running a diverse route tree also gives hope for improvements in this area. At Arizona State, he had poor quarterback play and was typically used on short passes so the quarterback could have easier completions and leverage Badger’s skills after the catch. Then when he went to Florida, he turned into the opposite type of player regularly running intermediate to deep routes. So, the ability to be a good playmaker in both styles shows great versatility. Also, his experience playing both inside and out also makes it easier for him to earn a role in an NFL offense. As for how his route running is now, his best attribute other than his movement skills is the tempo he brings to his route. That lets him get uncovered as he plays with the defense and maximizes his athleticism. He also has a great eye for finding openings against zone coverage. He also showed a lot of promise in his release. With his athleticism, he has very quick feet to get the defender off balance and has good awareness of how to set himself up to get early leverage against his defender. Also, he can use arm counters effectively to help clear contact and get out on his route. When he’s going for the catch, he consistently uses good hand technique which showed with zero drops this year and just a 4.2% career drop rate. He consistently catches the ball away from his body and can make some extremely impressive body adjustments to off-target throws to give him a big catch radius. He even showed really good sideline awareness to finish tough catches on the boundary. Finally, he also showed really tough hands to finish catches through contact as he converted 68.8% of his chances in 2024.
Regardless of all this hype and potential over projection I’m doing for Badger, I’m not going to pretend that he is a perfect player who just got lost in the process and people are overlooking him. He has some pretty clear flaws holding him back from his full potential starting with his focus in his routes. While his routes can look very fluid and get him open on a regular basis, he seems to potentially have variable effort and consistency which impacted his success rate. I hate assuming a player’s effort but when I notice that as a possible issue especially in players who have the ability to be better than they performed, it does make me concerned. Regardless of possible effort issues, he needs to clean up the cuts in his routes. He is capable of making sharp cuts but he often doesn’t break down enough and just settles on rounded cuts. I’d also like to see him slow down his process a bit more on double moves so he can better sell the initial move. On the contrary, sometimes he can be a bit slower when working in the middle or trying to read openings against zone which can delay him in being a viable option for his quarterback. I’d also like to see him sell his vertical more as defenders didn’t seem overly concerned and seemed ready to jump underneath routes like hitch routes. On those hitch routes, he can also sometimes give up leverage due to not boxing out the defender and protecting the ball. That is another major issue of his which could decrease his success rate in contested catch situations. There were too many times when physical or aggressive defenders would outmuscle him for balls due to his lack of urgency at times and his smaller frame. His smaller frame also led to a number of times when he was thrown off balance in his route. His small frame also even seemed to come up on his vertical patterns as he had trouble consistently stacking his defender. Also, though he can use arm counters in his release, they can sometimes be a bit delayed letting defenders jam him up. He also can sometimes have delayed hands and isn’t always ready for the pass. Finally, his delayed hands can also show up in his blocking. He’s a pretty ineffective blocker who is often more of a speed bump than a roadblock with how easily defenders can get past him. He often takes poor angles with his blocks and uses poor hand technique which could lead to more holding penalties in the NFL. Also, he is a very upright blocker with little to no leverage which further worsens the quality of his blocks.
I know these grades and this eval may seem like I’m throwing it out as a hot take but I do truly see a potentially great player in Badger. The big thing for him is to have more consistency and silence my concerns about his effort. If he can do that and polish his route running and do a better job playing through contact, watch out. As for a comp, if I want to give an extremely lofty comp, I do see shades of Calvin Ridley in his game. Now I don’t think he has the polish Ridley has and hopefully doesn’t have the gambling problem Ridley had. But, that is what I’m talking about with the potential he has. As for what I think is a more realistic projection, I have Jerome Simpson as his comp. Simpson had a slow start to his career as he needed polish and was stuck behind quality receivers but did shine near the end of his rookie deal. Both Simpson and Badger are very fluid, explosive athletes who can make impressive adjustments to off-target throws and moves in open space. Also, both have great burst that could let them be great route runners. However, both have thin frames which leads to difficulties in maintaining their route. Both also need to sharpen up their route running and cuts to be more of a consistent force. Also, both could struggle with that physicality in their ball attacks and in contested catch situations. There are also concerns that both sometimes lack consistent effort and focus which could impact if they can reach their ceiling. Simpson had his career derailed due to a run in with the law but he seemed on pace to be a solid contributor. If Badger stays out of trouble and is taken under the wing of a veteran receiver or lands with a great coaching staff, I think he could be a huge value and late-round success story.
Emeka Egbuka, Ohio State
Height: 6’1”; Weight: 202 pounds
Age on Draft Day: 22 years and 4 months
Class: Senior
Overall Grade: 3.12/4 (Good Starter)
2024 Stats:
Receiving: 106 targets; 81 receptions; 1011 yards; 10 touchdowns
Drops: 5
Snap Distribution: Wide (16.5%); Slot (81.1%)
Hands: B+
Route Running: A-
Release: C+
Yards After Catch Potential: B
Jump Ball/Contested Catch: B-
Body Control/Ball Tracking: B+
Future role: B
RAS: A-
Strengths:
Tough hands
Impressive nuance and control in routes
Easy separator
Underrated ball tracking skills
Strong blocker
Areas of Improvement:
Limited experience out wide
Release still a work in progress
Inconsistent success on deep routes
Can mistime attacks on balls
Average contact balance and burst limit YAC
Comp: Christian Kirk
At the time of writing this, Emeka Egbuka is still typically projected to be a first-round pick but does not seem to be getting the attention that most of the other possible first-round receivers have been getting. I understand getting more excited about perimeter receivers but I don’t think that gives Egbuka the respect he deserves. First, he’s one of, if not the best route runner in the class. While a number of receivers in this class seem like they are relying on their athleticism, Egbuka brings so much nuance and understanding of how to win with his routes that make him an easy separator. He has a very good understanding of how to set up his defender to win leverage very quickly. Also, he has great use of tempo to get the cornerbacks off balance and does a good job working back to the ball to help uncover himself. He is also so good at attacking the corner and getting their hips to open up with his footwork and head fakes to break to the other side. His cuts are also really snappy and clean thanks to him getting great hip sink and having clean footwork in his cuts. He also has a good eye for seeking out and attacking openings against the defense which is vital for success as a slot receiver in the NFL. His veteran experience and route running craftsmanship just really shine since he just looks in such great control in his routes. When he’s going to make the catch, he catches the ball with good hand technique and reliable hands. He routinely catches the ball away from his body and can make adjustments to poorly placed balls. His ball tracking skills are a bit underrated since he wasn’t a deep threat but he showed really great concentration to consistently finish catches over his shoulders. With him working more in the shorter areas and in the middle of the field, he needed to have strong hands. Thankfully, he showed really impressive hand strength to snatch and hold onto the ball and never was shy of going after the ball even if it led to a hit. He also wasn’t hesitant to stay inbounds once he made the catch and showed good athleticism and a bit of wiggle to pick up some yards after the catch. He helped himself after the catch with a good transition from receiver to runner and good vision to follow his blocks. Speaking of blocks, I feel his blocking is such an underrated part of his game. He puts in great effort while also having a sturdy base to keep his defender in front of him. He also has good hand use to be sticky with his defender. Finally, while he has ways he can develop his release which we’ll get into soon, he did do a better job using his hands and footwork to keep himself clean on his routes.
However, despite the hope that his release can further improve, it will take a lot of projection since he just isn’t battle-tested on the outside and against press. His snap percentage from the slot increased every year and peaked in 2024 at 81.1%. His lack of experience shows with a pretty minimal release package which can win in the few instances he needs it but likely wouldn’t hold up over the course of a full game. Also, though he had better hand use, he still could have trouble shaking off physical coverage. He also has trouble shaking off defenders due to average at-best contact balance that likely won’t get better in the NFL. He can also be a bit limited after the catch since he doesn’t have great explosion in his cuts. Also, there were times when it seemed he was rushing things and didn’t let his blocker establish their blocks and missed some bigger openings he could have run through. He also seemed a bit inconsistent with his attacks at balls since he can sometimes mistime his attack and can struggle to establish good positioning on 50/50 balls. Though he can make adjustments to off-target throws, he can sometimes come off just a wee bit stiff and not have the explosion in his jump which also affects his approach. Finally, while he is a great route runner on short and intermediate routes, he was seldom asked to run deep routes. In the deep routes he ran, he often failed to get defenders to bite to create separation and struggled to stack his defender.
While there may be some who are hopeful he can play more from the outside, his lack of success downfield, his ADOT dropping each of the last 3 years, and his increased snap percentage in the slot all paint the picture of a player who will likely be a slot exclusive player in the NFL. While that is deflating and can make him a difficult fit for all teams, I do think there is still a lot of value he can add to a team. His smoothness as a route runner and quality athleticism typically leads to a player becoming a successful NFL receiver. He may not have the high ceiling or easy fit as some of the other prospects, but I can easily see him being a starter in week 1. As for a comp, I’ve seen some comp him to Amon-Ra St. Brown which I’m a bit wary of doing since that is such a high projection. St. Brown has become the new Cooper Kupp where every slot player is comped to him whether it fits or not. However, I do see him having a chance of reaching that potential. But anyway, to be a bit more conservative, I have him comped to Christian Kirk. Though the size isn’t perfect, both play the majority of their snaps from the slot and are very good route runners with concise cuts. Also, both know how to win with tempo and get consistent leverage. Both also have very strong hands to make catches over the middle and enough athleticism to get some extra yards after the catch. However, neither are blazers nor have great burst to be big-play weapons. That also showed with their limitations to win downfield and get consistent separation on deep routes. Both also show some traits to potentially be solid against press but have very limited experience against it and are likely slot-only players. It might be awkward to have Kirk as a comp since at the time of writing this, he was just cut by the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, he has been a quality player for the majority of his career and I could see Egbuka doing the same. He might slide in the draft due to being limited to the slot but that just creates better value for a team who has a place for him in their offense.
Isaac TeSlaa, Arkansas
Height: 6’4”; Weight: 214 pounds
Age on Draft Day: 23 years and ??? months
Class: Fifth-Year Senior
Overall Grade: 2.54/4 (May Have a Future Role)
2024 Stats:
Receiving: 36 targets; 28 receptions; 546 yards; 3 touchdowns
Drops: 0
Snap Distribution: Wide (20.6%); Slot (79%)
Hands: B+
Route Running: D
Release: D
Yards After Catch Potential: C-
Jump Ball/Contested Catch: B+
Body Control/Ball Tracking: B+
Future role: C+
RAS: A
Strengths:
Good blend of size and speed
Interesting versatility as big slot
Great hands
Big catch radius
Tough
Areas of Improvement:
Raw route runner
Poor cuts that lack explosiveness
Stiff runner
Questionable release skills despite size
Very poor production in the past 2 seasons
Comp: Tyler Johnson
There weren’t too many people paying attention to Isaac TeSlaa but he turned a lot of heads at the combine. His combination of size and speed make him very interesting especially with the fact that he played the majority of his snaps from the slot. He also ran a good mix of routes at all levels of the field to add even more versatility. With his big frame, he has a big catch radius and does a good job holding onto balls thrown to the very end of it. He is also capable of rising up to attack the ball and has good timing with his strikes. He also shows a lot of toughness going for catches as he’s never afraid to make a play on the ball regardless of whether he’ll be hit or not. Even with that aggressiveness, he has been successful in contested catch situations the past 2 seasons with a success rate of 54.2%. He also shows really great focus with zero drops in that same timeframe. His hands are one of his best attributes and he maximizes them by consistently using arm extensions when making catches. He also does a good job working back to the quarterback to make a more QB-friendly target. Also, he is very comfortable following the ball downfield and finishing catches over his shoulders. Finally, despite his tall height, he runs with good pad level which makes him tough to bring down.
The problem with TeSlaa is that he is a very intriguing player but a pretty inexperienced and unproductive one. He has only played at the FBS level for the past 2 seasons and wasn’t a full-time starter. That led him to have career highs of just 34 receptions, 546 yards, and 3 touchdowns. So, it’s hard to expect him to suddenly become a more consistent and productive playmaker in the NFL. His lack of experience shows in his route running with sloppy cuts that seem like he’s just relying on his athleticism. His cuts also lack the explosiveness to create separation due to being too upright and not getting enough hip sink. That lack of separation persists in the rest of his routes and causes him to have a lot less separation than he should have with his athleticism. His struggles against physical coverage can sometimes also play a part in this as defenders can often dictate where his route goes. Also, he will sometimes try to use stem fakes to add some nuance but these are unsuccessful in tricking defenders. He also didn’t look very confident finding openings against zone which again, speaks to him just relying on his athleticism against man coverage. He also relies on his athleticism, or straight-line speed specifically, after the catch. He doesn’t have much wiggle or creativity in space and typically just relies on outrunning his defender which will be less viable in the NFL. He can also look a bit awkward when he turns upfield after the catch which further limits his ability to pick up extra yards. He can also look a bit awkward or stiff when he goes up to get the ball as well. Also, he can do a better job protecting the ball from defenders to make his job easier. Finally, while him playing in the slot is exciting, it seemed like it was mostly due to struggles in his release.
TeSlaa is a very fascinating physical profile but the play profile isn’t there yet. He has good ball skills which at least gives him a foundation. However, he is so far behind as a route runner, and in his release it feels hard to see him getting meaningful playing time. I think the best approach for him is to work to lock down the gunner role on a team and slowly work on his route running to make the most of an opportunity when an injury occurs. At the very least, that contribution on special teams should keep him on the roster since he has a great mold for a gunner. As for a comp, I have Tyler Johnson as his comp. Both have great ball skills and never were afraid to finish a catch through a hit. Also, both have very good ball tracking skills and the ability to run routes at all levels of the field. However, both are tight athletes with questionable burst in their cuts. Also, both lack nuance in their routes to fool defenders when they can’t win with athleticism or size on their own. Tyler Johnson has struggled to make much of an impact in the NFL due to the limited impact he can have on offense and special teams. However, I think TeSlaa could at least earn his keep by becoming a special teams ace.