Arizona Cardinals: 5 NFL Draft prospects to watch from the SEC
By Cody Potanko
A.J Brown – WR, Ole Miss
We turn our attention to Mississippi State home-town native A.J. Brown turned rival-leader at Ole Miss at wide receiver. As a mismatch in the slot in 2018, Brown led the conference in receiving yards with 1,307 yards on second in receptions with 84. He also had six touchdowns.
He was used primarily as a JuJu Smith-Schuster like slot-mismatch at 6-foot and 226-pounds. Per Pro Football Focus, the former Ole Miss Rebel was 12th in slot receptions with 59 and 13th in slot yards with 800. He finished his college career with 2,972 yards on 188 receptions and 19 touchdowns.
His route running is rather impressive jab steps, as he will be a cornerbacks nightmare with his puppeteering skills and extensive route-tree. After the catch, Brown isn’t too explosive, but he’s creative and hard tackle. Per PFF, he had 1,425 of his yards in college after the catch.
But Brown is more than a slot receiver. I think he could play on the outside as he has naturally strong hands, a physical style of play and has decent, but not great size. He also did well at the combine; his results include a 4.49 second 40-yard-dash, 120-inch broad jump, and 36.5-inch vertical.
Final verdict: For as good as Brown could be on the outside, he’s human. He’s been mostly regulated to the slot because he needs to get better beating press. His 13 college drops, per PFF, are also frustrating. But, if he falls to No. 33, the Cardinals shouldn’t blink to make him the pick.