My last 2015 pre-draft scouting report is on the late round wide receiving prospect, Dres Anderson. This Utah Ute is the son of former NFL wide out Flipper Anderson and had his college career unfortunately cut short by a knee injury in October 2014. I reviewed three of his available games against Arizona State, UCLA, and Stanford to get a clearer feel for what skills and attributes he brings to the next level. These are my observations:
WR Dres Anderson, Utah, 6′ 1″ 187 lbs.
Cons: The first thing that jumps out on the screen is his skinny legs, while appearing quite fast in his college tape, Anderson doesn’t appear to have much leg strength. He had issues breaking tackles and seems to lack the physicality needed to play on the line of scrimmage. The receiver might be best suited to play in the slot where he can get a free release or at least have the room to create space since he has little wiggle to his game. There were a few times that he lost focus to where he was on the field or where the ball was. On top of that, Anderson has a bad habit of knocking the ball in the air when he didn’t catch it cleanly. Sure this gives him an opportunity to secure the ball, but it also gives his defender that same chance. His ability to make a spectacular one-handed catch and then a bobble on the next play could drive a head coach crazy. He ran a limited route tree with good straight-line speed, but lacks lateral quickness. While he showed effort as a run blocker, Anderson mostly got in his opponent’s way. The receiver is a bit too excitable on the field, which could lead to penalties for taunting, etc.
Pros: This is a smart young man who had all academic honors; he lined up both on the outside and in the slot (where I expect he will get used in the NFL). Anderson excelled at crossing routes, bubble screens, go-routes, and hooks, but didn’t run other patterns often. On deeper patterns, the wide out tracked the ball well in the air and made adjustments to the pigskin by contorting his body. He can make contested passes in traffic and does his most damage catching the ball in stride. Anderson has a nose for the end zone and will do whatever it takes to get there. When he gets used as a kick returner, the young playmaker reads his blockers well while using good foot speed to find his burst in the open field. The receiver sets up the defense with jump cuts and stutter steps, showing off his explosiveness.
Overall thoughts: I compare Anderson to a poor man’s and less injury risk Ohio State’s Devin Smith. If the wide out gets an opportunity to sign with an NFL team , he might not see the field until 2016, so he could be a candidate for leagues that use a taxi squad and reward points for return yardage.
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