Alshon Jeffery Player Profile - SHAS

This is my version of an Alshon Jeffery Player Profile. Tom has already posted his view but when we are looking at these elite players, it is sometimes good to see multiple opinions.

Jeffery is one of the highest rated players in the 2012 NFL draft. He compares favorily to A.J. Green in size and skill set. He could prove to be one of the key pieces to a potential BCS contender in South Carolina.

Alshon Jeffery, WR, South Carolina

Height: 6’4″

Weight: 233

Class: Junior

Player Bio:

Jeffery came into South Carolina with big expectations and he lived up to them in his Freshman year. He was named a First-team Freshman All American after completing one of the best seasons by a freshman ever at SC. He finished with 46 catches for 763 yards and had 6 touchdowns. The last eight games of the season was when he really caught fire. He averaged 88.4 yards per game and 5.1 catches a game over that course and started to show his immense potential. He continued to dominate the SEC in his sophomore season. He was a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, was first-team All America, unanimous first-team All SEC, and set the single season school record in receptions (88) and receiving yards (1,517). He led the SEC in receiving yards per game (108.4), outdoing A.J. Green and Julio Jones. His best game of the year came vs. Auburn when he had 8 catches, 192 yards, and 2 touchdowns. He currently ranks eighth in career receptions at SC (134) and fourth in career yards (2,280) after just two seasons. He has had 11 100-yard games which ties Sidney Rice‘s school record.

Work Ethic:

By all accounts, Jeffery has as good of work ethic as one could imagine. He apparently stays after practice each day to work on his receiving routes and his speed.

Projected Draft Status: Top 10 Pick

• Jeffery’s combination of size, strength, hands, route running, and work ethic should ensure his spot in the top 10. If he has a great season and the draft falls the right way, he could be a top 3 pick.

Other Potential 1st Round Wide Receivers

Justin Blackmon (Oklahoma State)… Michael Floyd (Notre Dame)… Mohammed Sanu (Rutgers)… Jeff Fuller (Texas A&M)… Ryan Broyles (Oklahoma)

• Blackmon should be a top 10 to 15 picks with good seasons. Floyd has top 5 talent but character concerns could cause him to fall possibly out of the 1st round all together. Sanu and Fuller are both borderline 1st rounders that need strong seasons to cement their spots. Broyles is a great prospect that should be a top 20 to 25 pick.

Career Stats:

• 134 receptions, 2280 receiving yards, 17.0 yards per catch, 15 TD’s

Video Highlights:

Highlight #1: Alshon Jeffery vs. Alabama (2010): This was one of Jeffery’s best games of the 2010 season.

Highlight #2: Alshon Jeffery’s entire sophomore season: This is a 15 minute highlight film with the best of Jeffery’s sophomore season. It is quite incredible and worth watching.

Player Comparison: Calvin Johnson, WR, Detroit Lions

• People who thought Green compared to Johnson will be in heaven with Jeffery. Jeffery is bigger, faster, and has better hands than Green did in college. Jeffery figures to be the best Redzone threat in the league along with one of the best deep threats.

Final Thoughts

• Jeffery is probably the 2nd best player in the 2012 draft. He has no major flaws and is absolutely spotless character wise.
• Jeffery is a combination of Calvin Johnson’s size and Andre Johnson’s talent. He will be a top 3 WR in this league.
• He can make any QB look good. His leaping ability, speed, hands, and route running make it so all the QB has to do is put the ball near him and he will get it.
• There will be people who question his top end speed because he only will run around a 4.5 at the combine but when you watch film, it is clear that he has game changing speed.
• Besides Luck, there is no prospect I would want more in this draft than Jeffery. Every other prospect has a weakness or in some cases, many weaknesses but Jeffery excels in every facet of the game and also has spotless character.