:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/4924565/156915694.0.jpg)
Ah, wide receiver. It's been a thorn in the Rams' draft season's side for quite some time now.
In the five drafts prior to this last draft in which Jeff Fisher and Les Snead took two receivers in Brian Quick and Chris Givens, the Rams took seven receivers:
- Derek Stanley (2007: 7th round, 39th pick)
- Donnie Avery (2008: 2nd round, 2nd pick)
- Keenan Burton (2008: 4th round, 29th pick)
- Brooks Foster (2009: 5th round, 24th pick)
- Mardy Gilyard (2010: 4th round, 1st pick)
- Austin Pettis (2011: 3rd round, 14th pick)
- Greg Salas (2011: 4th round, 15th pick)
Yikes. Not exactly an inspiring set of selections...but we are where we are. Should the Rams opt to grab another WR, it'd be interesting to see if they go for a bigger option who can work the intermediate ranges of the field, the kind of WR they're hoping Brian Quick to turn into, or if they go for the athletic gamebreaker type, smaller but faster and prone to YAC explosions (NOTE: Should your significant other inform you that she or he is about to have a yack explosion, do not assume they are talking about football).
To help steer that kind of decision, I've added some skill codes to each prospect so those of you who are less familiar with the names below get a sense of what each prospect's specialty is. Here's the code legend:
SP = top end speed
AC = acceleration
H = hands
BC = body control
R = route running
ATH = athleticism
S = size
So here's my top 15 wide receivers for the 2013 NFL Draft as of today*:
| # | Name | School | Yr | Skills |
| 1 |
Keenan Allen |
Cal | Jr. | H, BC, S |
| 2 | Justin Hunter | Tennessee | Jr. | R, ATH, S |
| 3 | Tavon Austin | West Virginia | Sr. | AC, ATH, SP |
| 4 | Robert Woods | Southern California | Jr. | BC, R |
| 5 | Terrance Williams | Baylor | RS Sr. | SP, S |
| 6 | Da'Rick Rogers | Tennessee Tech | Jr. | ATH, S, H |
| 7 | Kenny Stills | Oklahoma | Jr. | R, H |
| 8 | DeAndre Hopkins | Clemson | Jr. | ATH, BC, SP |
| 9 | Quinton Patton | Louisiana Tech | RS Sr. | BC, H |
| 10 | Marquess Wilson | Washington St. (dismissed) | Jr. | BC, H, SP, S, AC |
| 11 | Cordarrelle Patterson | Tennessee | Jr. | ATH, BC, SP, S |
| 12 | Markus Wheaton | Oregon St. | Sr. | AC, ATH, SP, H, BC |
| 13 | Josh Boyce | TCU | RS Jr. | R, BC |
| 14 | Ace Sanders | South Carolina | Jr. | S, AC, ATH |
| 15 | Aaron Dobson | Marshall | Sr. | S, BC, H |
* The only small school WR prospect I've seen bandied about relatively highly is Elon's Aaron Mellette. Sorry, I don't watch a ton of Elon football...
Surprised that guys like West Virginia's Stedman Bailey, Texas A&M's Ryan Swope or Arkansas' Cobi Hamilton didn't make my board? Any other names you've got in your top 15?
ICYMI, here's my previous big board on the offensive tackle class.