Dante Pettis 2018 NFL Draft Profile

Dante Pettis 2018 NFL Draft Profile

There are athletic families, and then there is the Pettis family. You could look to his cousin, Austin Pettis, the receiving record holder at Boise State who then spent four years in the NFL. If that isn’t enough, you could look to his father Gary Pettis. He played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball, winning five gold gloves and stealing 354 bases. It should be no surprise that Dante Pettis himself turned into a dangerous receiver and game-changing punt returner.

Pettis made a rather good name for himself at Washington, able to distinguish himself as a pro-caliber talent in his own right. As a junior, he had 15 receiving touchdowns, creating quite the formidable pair with current Cincinnati Bengals receiver John Ross. He was no slouch his senior year either, still turning in a team-leading 63 receptions with defenses’ sole focus turning to him given that Ross graduated. Also a threat in the return game, Pettis set an NCAA record with nine punt return touchdowns, breaking the record that was held by Wes Welker and Antonio Perkins.

Strengths

Exceptional route runner, running crisp well-timed routes

Not limited to one spot on the field, running all routes from outside or slot

Quick out of his breaks, showing good hips and acceleration

Doesn’t sit and wait for the ball, going to get it when underthrown or as a jump ball

Trustworthy in traffic, showcasing strong hands and toughness in a crowd

Dangerous in return game, making first man miss and getting to full speed quickly

Weaknesses

Top speed is a concern, may not be able to separate on NFL talent at corner

Inconsistent senior year, struggled at times as sole threat for passing game

Physical cornerbacks can agitate him, needs to gain strength to increase effectiveness

Lack of top end speed will tip off his underneath route occasionally

Struggles with positioning when he has a corner beat, letting him back into the play

NFL Comparison: Marvin Jones Jr.

Projection: Early second round

Bottom Line

The pro day and combine results for Pettis are going to be extremely important, more than they will for most receivers. If he can show that he has decent speed, and the ability to separate and get open, he will be knocking on the door Thursday night as a potential end of first round pick. However, with a poor showing in the 40-yard dash, or bad numbers in agility drills, he could slide all the way to day three. A likely case for Pettis is he ends up a slot receiver and dangerous return man, solidifying in a very solid, long-tenured career as a reliable receiver.