Noah Brown 2017 NFL Draft Profile

Noah Brown 2017 NFL Draft Profile

Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer continually emphasizes having a recruiting presence in the Tri-State area, an underrated hotbed of high school talent. It’s from there that the Buckeyes landed Noah Brown. The Flanders, NJ native came to Columbus as a highly touted four-star recruit, rated as the number nine athlete in the country by Rivals.com.

As a true freshman, Brown appeared in 13 games during the Buckeyes national championship run even though he didn’t figure prominently into the offense from a stats standpoint. The following year, he made major strides during preseason and figured to become a key contributor. Then he suffered a devastating broken leg the week before the season opener and missed the entire 2015 season.

A year later, Brown came into his own even if his raw numbers weren’t eye-popping. Though he finished with just 402 receiving yards, his seven touchdown grabs were tied for the best mark on the team with Curtis Samuel, himself a prospect in this year’s draft. And he averaged 12.6 yards per catch which was second among Buckeye receivers who had a minimum of 20 receptions.

Of course, his highlight reel moment came in week three against Oklahoma. He caught four touchdown passes including one which most football fans are familiar with.

Strengths

big-bodied receiver with play strength that matches his size;

confident pass catcher who plucks the ball out of the air with soft hands;

able to mix it up with opposing defensive backs and come down with the ball;

can victimize defenders in soft man with cutback at top of route;

extremely efficient finding seams in zone coverage;

possesses a skill set that could make him a dangerous vertical threat with work;

hard-nosed, physical blocker who isn’t afraid to lay a thumping hit in run support;

plays with intensity and a competitive zeal coaches love.

Weaknesses

only figured prominently in Ohio State’s offense for a single season;

didn’t see a particularly high volume of targets;

change of direction in route running could have more bite;

struggles to disengage and achieve separation in press man;

not the most adept at timing his jump when high pointing balls;

bit of a durability concern after missing an entire season due to a major leg injury.

NFL Comparison: Quincy Enunwa

Teams With Need at Position: Arizona Cardinals, Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans

Projection: seventh round

Bottom Line

Brown certainly has the feel of an unfinished product given his lone year of consistent production in Columbus. That’s not necessarily a bad thing if he puts in the work and develops the elements of his game that need polishing. Nevertheless, he remains a late round project who will likely start his career as a depth piece. In time, he can grow into a more prominent contributor if his ability to run crisper routes improves and he further hones his craft as a possession receiver.

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