One of the most discussed wide receivers in the 2014 draft class is Jordan Matthews. There is a certain amount of excitement already built into this player. He is the cousin of Hall of Famer receiver Jerry Rice and he had an awesome bowl 
game despite having one of the worst backup quarterbacks in all of college football throwing him the pigskin. I reviewed three of his 2013 games: Houston (bowl game before mentioned), South Carolina, and Ole Miss. Because some of his quarterback play was so atrocious in 2013, it was also important to see how he played with a better quarterback, Jordan Rodger’s (Aaron’s little brother and Jacksonville backup), so I watched two of his 2012 games against NC State and Wake Forest.
When you first look at him, Matthews is a physical specimen. He is 6’ 2” 212 lbs., but plays larger than that. The receiver ran a good 40 time of 4.46 that surprised many of his critics as most expected him to be in the 4.60 range. He was the first player ever to ask for tape of his opponents when he got invited to the Senior Bowl. It’s his work ethic and competitive nature that will have to separate the wide out from the other talented receivers in his class.
Matthews played in a very run heavy Vanderbilt offense and certainly knows how to be an asset in the running game. The wide out attacks his defender quickly, squares his shoulders, and uses leg drive to knock them back, away from the run. He is a versatile player as he lined up on the outside, in the slot, and occasionally right beside the offensive tackle. Matthews seemed to struggle a bit to get off the line in the tight end position. He needs to be a part of the regular game flow though as he seems to suffer from concentration lapses when he isn’t thrown to for a while. Another one of his bad habits is that he plays up or down to his level of competition. Consistency is what made his cousin the greatest receiver of all-time, so Matthews needs to increase his intensity if he wants to be great.
The receiver is not the most fluid of athletes as he looks a little stiff in the hips, but he was willing to run reverses to take advantage of his quickness and leg strength. Vanderbilt used him on some bubble screens which let him use his speed and explosiveness to jet down the sideline taking the shortest route to the end zone. He read his blockers well, especially a fellow wide out that took out two defenders on his way to the end zone against Houston. Matthews sells every route the same way and has a good initial burst off the line. He uses a combination of hands and quick feet to get a free release. The receiver sets up the defensive backs with double moves to create separation down the field.
He has plenty of straight-line speed, but is somewhat lacking as to play speed, because he is a long strider and it takes him some time to accelerate fully. Matthews fully extends his body to catch the ball, and on those rare occasions that the quarterback found him in stride, he torched the defense. The wide out tracks the ball well in the air and made a lot of nice bucket catches near the sideline where only he could make the play. He knows where he is on the field at all times as the young receiver makes sure he drags both feet to make the catch.
This strong receiver is willing to make receptions in the middle of the field, knowing he is setting himself up to take a few shots and delivers a few. Matthews doesn’t need to create a lot of separation as he uses his body to shield the smaller defensive backs from the ball and skies higher to make the reception even in tight coverage. Don’t try to arm tackle him as the wide out has good leg strength and drive that helps him break arm tackles.
His catch radius is impressive as he adjusts to poorly thrown passes by contorting his body around. High passes or low throws are usually within reach of his big mitts. He certainly looked like a better NFL prospect with Rodgers throwing him the ball as he got hit in stride more often and the passes thrown his way were more crisp and on target. Just look at his stats from his senior year (112 catches for 1,477 yards and seven touchdowns) vs. his junior year (94 catches for 1323 yards and eight touchdowns), Matthews did more with the ball with less chances.
Matthews is willing to get physical as he slaps defenders away from his body or he uses a nice stiff-arm with the ball in his hands. He follows blockers well with his downfield vision which he uses it to take the best angles. It usually took two or three defenders to bring him down once he reaches his full stride.
I have my doubts that Matthews will be a WR1 at the next level, but I do see him being closer to a WR2 much like Buffalo’s Mike Williams (formerly of Tampa), just minus the off-field issues. He is in my top ten rookie wide receivers, but he is not offense proof, so it intrigues me with what NFL team he ends up playing for before final judgment is made.
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