Breshad Perriman came out of highschool with a reported 4.4 40 yard dash, and now comes out of college with a reported 4.27 from his Pro Day. A raw prospect, his athleticism is tantalizing but how much development does he need to become a functional part of an NFL team?

College Career

Perriman was a two star prospect when he came to UCF after coming over from Arabia Mountain high school where he also was a track athlete. He made it onto the field as a true freshman with minimal impact but in his sophmore season he was able to put together a strong season with current Jaguars QB Blake Bortles at the helm. After Bortles departure for the NFL, the QB position for UCF became a lot less skilled but Perriman’s production still improved. He would hit the 1000 yard mark in his junior season, which hadn’t been done since Mike Sim’s Walker in 2006 for UCF, capped off with a huge Bowl game performance after a last second hail mary catch the week prior to get there. Still, his production looked more like a reflection of his athletic talents than his skill- but that doesn’t mean he can’t be the next potential freak athlete turned elite receiver.

Measurables

*Pro Day

Stats and Awards

 Scouting Report

• Fast. Quick burst, great long speed. Able to get around players and run past them, turn short catches into large gains.
• Quick to transition from receiver to runner. Has huge potential as a yards after catch threat.
• Strong vertical release, will threaten the DBs space off the line before going into the route.
• Will reach out with hands for the ball consistently but uses palms and clapping often. Pulls ball into body to gain control.
• Shows good hand fighting down the field, consistently swipes DBs hands before they can get on him.
• Takes good angles when run blocking. Leans heavily when engaging, but forces the player to actually beat him.
• Has decent route depth when running towards a distanced DB, baits them before breaking.
• Rushed route runner, gives away routes by turning body too early before breaks. Doesn’t sell the vertical effectively on many routes.
• Shows some understanding for what he’s meant to do on routes, but not patient (or confident?) enough to time it well.
• Doesn’t track the ball well on deep routes. Will overrun trajectory of the ball and attempt to catch the ball after it passes the DB.
• Doesn’t create separation with his arms when playing for a contested throw.
• Poorly times leaps on deep balls. Jumps early.
• Doesn’t sink hips into breaks.
• Very raw, undeveloped player.

Film Study

For Perriman, I watched three games from across UCF’s season that all exhibited very similar traits and skills, painting a decent impression of who Perriman is and showing some potential of what he could become.

• 8/30/15 vs Penn State
• 12/4/15 @ East Carolina
• 12/26/15 vs North Carolina State

Hands

Whenever a new project receiver enters the NFL the first question is always about the most basic of wide receivers skills. “Can he catch?” or, to be more specific “Can he catch with his hands?” The answer is a resounding “kind of.”

Perriman’s a natural for sticking out his hands. He wants to reach for the ball and pluck it, but for him its a lot less like pulling the ball out of the air and more of clapping his hands onto the ball.

There’s a good amount of plays where Perriman’s hands look unorganized and uncoordinated. Here you can see Perriman trying to pull the ball against his helmet as the ball comes down on him, instead of stretching his arms out and letting them fall in.

The lack of consistent hand technique puts Perriman into a place where you’ll see a good amount of this, using his body to gain control of the ball. Although this ball is obviously thrown a little behind, you can see Perriman’s hands are way wide apart as the ball comes in, and he’s opting to pull this one into his body. The play below shows the same preference.

It’s important to make the distinction though that Perriman’s hands do still come out. He’s not purposely waiting for the ball in these plays, he’s using his hands to guide them to his body. He still makes an aggressive attempt to get the ball at an early point and sometimes manages to reel the ball in with no help from his chest. Perriman’s hands need guidance but they’re not a handicap.

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