Luther Burden III NFL Draft Overview
Position: Wide Receiver
Height: 5’-11”
Weight: 205 Pounds
School: Missouri
2025 NFL Draft: Luther Burden III Scouting Report
Luther Burden III is a former five-star high school athlete from St. Louis who spurned the likes of Georgia and Alabama, to stay close by at Missouri University. He is a true junior who has been a well-known name in college football for the past two years. In his sophomore season in 2023, he caught 86 passes for 1,212 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. He earned first-team All-SEC honors and second-team All-America honors in 2023.
Yet, in 2024, his numbers dipped quite a bit, as the Missouri offense struggled moving the ball. He finished 2024 with 61 catches, 676 receiving yards, and six touchdowns, adding 115 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Burden III is also a dangerous punt returner, averaging over ten yards per attempt throughout his college career.
Strengths
- Great run-after-the-catch ability with elusiveness and vision
- Great contact balance, routinely breaks tackles
- Explosive player with great stop-and-start ability
- Sudden hips can shake defenders off mid-route
- True deep speed and explosiveness
- Experience lining up as a running back to create matchup advantages
Weaknesses
- Could use a little more polish in his route-running
- Limited experience playing outside the hashes
- Did not run the most expansive route tree at Missouri
NFL Comparison: D.J. Moore
Teams With Need at Position: New England Patriots, Carolina Panthers, Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Chargers, Denver Broncos, Washington Commanders
Projection: Round 1
Bottom Line on Luther Burden III
Luther Burden III is in the conversation for the best receiver in the 2025 NFL Draft because of his ability with the ball in his hands. He has a tremendous blend of speed, explosiveness, contact balance, and elusiveness to consistently create big plays in the open field. His ability to turn into a dangerous runner with the ball was crucial to Missouri’s success. Thus, the team mostly deployed him in the slot, having him run many screens and shorter routes. He is also heavily used in motion across the formation and even sometimes lined up in the backfield to create mismatches.
Because of his role in the team, he did not get the chance to run a variety of routes, which will be a question in the NFL. As for the routes he did run, he could stand to make crisper and more sudden turns on breaking routes. However, he has shown he can shake defenders off with his change of direction on certain routes. So, there is no reason to think he cannot develop into a very good route runner in the NFL after a bit of time.
Overall, Burden’s ability with the ball in his hands, explosiveness, and speed make him a fit in any offense. However, it may be ideal that he starts his career mostly lining up in the slot where he has the most comfort. The Washington Commanders would be a perfect spot for Burden III as a dynamic slot receiver and overall weapon for the offense who can be moved all around the formation.
Main Photo: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images
