Jauan Jennings Overview
Position: Wide Receiver
Height: 6’-3”
Weight: 215 pounds
School: Tennessee
NFL Combine Performance Data
40-Yard Dash: 4.72 seconds
Vertical Jump: 29.0”
Broad Jump: 119.0”
Jauan Jennings 2020 NFL Draft Profile
Jauan Jennings’ long career at Tennessee is finally coming to a close as he enters the 2020 NFL Draft. The redshirt senior had perhaps the best season of his collegiate career in 2019, recording 59 receptions on 92 targets for 969 yards and eight touchdowns. According to Pro Football Focus, Jennings appeared in 500 snaps throughout the season, 412 of which came from the slot.
Jennings initially entered the college football ranks as a four-star prospect out of Tennessee. A dual-threat quarterback in high school, Jennings spent the first two calendar years of his collegiate career transitioning from quarterback to a full-time receiver. Jennings played just 17 snaps at receiver during the 2017 season, recording three receptions on six targets for 17 yards and no touchdowns. Jauan Jennings became a full-time receiver in 2018, playing 381 offensive snaps. During his time on the field, the then-redshirt junior recorded 30 receptions on 44 targets for 438 yards and three touchdowns.
Strengths
- Big bodied receiver that excels in contested catch situations;
- Hard to bring down in the open field;
- Keeps his balance through contact;
- Able to use his size to create separation on double move and out-breaking routes;
- Solid catch radius.
Weaknesses
- One of the slowest receivers in the draft – can’t stretch the field vertically;
- Cannot consistently get open against press coverage;
- Despite his size, he’ll probably spend his career exclusively in the slot;
- Doesn’t have ideal lateral quickness for the slot position;
- Slow out of breaks and can be derailed by contact during route.
NFL Comparison: Geremy Davis
Teams With Need at Position: Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Las Vegas Raiders, New England Patriots, New York Jets
Projection: 6th round
Bottom Line on Jauan Jennings
Jauan Jennings has a very specific skill set that doesn’t translate to the NFL at a noteworthy rate. The Tennessee product is above-average in contested catch situations, but you never want that to be somebody’s calling card. Contested catch guys typically win by being bigger and stronger than everyone else, but that physical advantage typically goes away in the NFL, so prospects need to have something else up their sleeve to succeed at the next level.
Jennings does not have that “something else”. The Tennessee product is one of the slowest guys in the draft and offers nothing as a big-play threat. Despite his size, he struggles to beat press coverage and can be easily knocked off his route. He’s great at breaking tackles, but that’s only a valuable trait if you get the ball in his hands in the first place. Jennings’ raw size alone justified a training camp invite, but his underwhelming athletic profile means he probably won’t do much of anything at the NFL level.
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