Jalen McCleskey is an athletic and versatile wide receiver prospect entering the 2020 NFL Draft.McCleskey played for Oklahoma State prior to making the move to Tulane University where he played. Top Receivers in NFL Draft: Justin Jefferson LSU’s Justin Jefferson, who dominated from the slot, checks in at No. 4 in our ranking of the top receivers in the NFL Draft. This is the draft you want your team to pick a wide receiver. Actually, selecting two wouldn't be a bad idea. The likes of CeeDee Lamb, Jerry Jeudy, and Tee Higgins will be off the board rather. 2020 NFL Draft receiver rankings: CeeDee Lamb at No. 1 in absolutely stacked pass-catcher group. Duvernay is interesting because he's not the traditional slot receiver who can shake defenders.

• Slot Receiver Nfl Draft 2020
• Slot Receiver Nfl Draft Ny Giants
• Nfl Draft 2020

Donovan Peoples-Jones never quite blossomed into the superstar that comes with the expectation of being a five-star recruit, but the Michigan Wolverines wide receiver still enters the 2020 NFL Draft as a prospect oozing with promise and potential. Here at Maize n Brew, we are going to be profiling Michigan’s draft prospects leading up the event on April 23-25.

Here’s a look at Peoples-Jones’ background and what he brings to the table as a prospect.

Slot Receiver Nfl Draft 2020

Info

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 212 pounds

School: Michigan

Position: Wide Receiver

Projected: 2nd-3rd round

Combine Results: 4.48 40-yard dash, 44.5 vertical jump, 139.0 broad jump

Player Comparison:Cordarrelle Patterson

Strengths

• One of the most impressive athletes at the position in this draft class, traits and tools galore. Really nice blend of size, athleticism and hands.
• Track speed. He was the all-city 100-meter dash champion in Detroit coming out of Cass Tech high school.
• Body control and sideline awareness improved greatly from freshman to junior seasons.
• Catch radius is pretty impressive and he knows how to track the football.
• Footwork is a plus aspect of his game, does a good job of getting in and out of breaks working out of the slot.
• Has some RAC ability in the open field, though takes more strides than one would think given his athletic traits. Invites contact from smaller ballcarriers.
• Competitive player who puts the work in, as evidenced by improvements made to his game from high school to NFL Draft process.
• Brings extra value on special teams as a returner. Had a pair of punt return touchdowns at Michigan.
• A willing blocker and participant in the run game.

Weaknesses

• Never quite became a featured option at Michigan. Some of that on inconsistencies in own performances, injuries, and quarterback play that struggled at times. There was not one factor that outshined everything else in this regard.
• As good as he is in and out of his breaks, there’s still not quite the twitch or juice to his game in the shorter areas of the field. He had a lot of free releases in college coming out of the slot.
• Despite his big frame, did not show as much as you would have hoped to see from an outside receiver. NFL teams are questioning whether or not he has the ability to beat press coverages, but should be given more of a chance to do so at the next level.
• He takes some long strides to get going. He’s more athletic than he is explosive.

Overview

Slot Receiver Nfl Draft Ny Giants

One of the first things that gets brought up when Peoples-Jones is discussed is how he never quite fulfilled his potential at Michigan. A lot of people seem to take that as calling him a bust, but this is a skilled talent that still has his best football ahead of him. Coming out of high school, DPJ was a track star that played football. His freshman season at Michigan was filled with ups and downs, but he took off his second year with Jim McElwain as his position coach at wide receiver. Injuries and a new offense caused him to start slow this past season, but he still was able to fight through it.

This is a player that is going to stick in the league and it would not be a surprise to see him as a better pro than a college player. At the very least, this might be a guy that you can run some gadget plays for in addition to being a good returner, a la Cordarrelle Patterson. Until he proves he can beat press coverage, it might be a case where he is a big slot receiver at the next level. His ceiling depends on the system he winds up in and the player development program, but might be a player like Marvin Jones of the Detroit Lions as a high-end No. 2 wide receiver.

The Seattle Seahawks made their seventh, and for now final, pick in the 2020 NFL draft at the tail end of the sixth round, selecting Florida slot receiver Freddie Swain.

Swain fits what coach Pete Carroll likes in his slot receivers, with exceptional size (six-foot) and length (30 5/8 inch arms) as well as a 4.46 time in the 40-yard dash.

Nfl Draft 2020

The athleticism is the big selling point here, as the rest of his profile is a bit shaky. Swain has not shown much discipline as a route-runner, often making predictable moves that don’t get him open. He also lacks the physicality to challenge for contested catches, something he will need to improve upon if he wants to be a target for Russell Wilson.

As is usually the case, Swain will also be considered for a role on the special teams – having returned 39 punts for 308 yards and a touchdown during his time with the Gators.

Tyler Lockett, DK Metcalf, Phillip Dorsett, David Moore and John Ursua represent Seattle’s receiving corps at the moment, and Swain will have to become a proficient route runner very quickly, or else make himself indispensable as a punt returner to avoid finding himself on the practice squad for the 2020 season.