4.12 WR Jaelon Darden, TB

[Royal Hawaiian Opihi]

“Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, ‘We have found him, of whom the scribes in the law, and the scouts did write, WR Jaelon Darden of the University of North Texas.’ And Nathanael said unto him, ‘Can there any good thing come out of the University of North Texas?’ Philip saith unto him, ‘Come and see.’”
(John 1:45-46, KJV with slight alterations)

I know. I’ve already drafted 5 other WRs in this 2021 rookie draft. Why not pick up an RB prospect or TE… or heck, even a kicker?!? Because I’d like to introduce you to the best WR that nobody’s heard of in this draft: JAELON DARDEN.

He’s on the smaller side for an NFL player (5’9”, 174lbs…. and I am, by the way, 5’9”). Yet, Darden is one of the most explosive playmakers (especially in open space) in all of college ball. The dude is just flat out FAST.

The Buccaneers traded up with Seattle to select Darden in the 4th round this year. And yes, there’s a logjam of talented WRs on the roster for him to surpass in order to see playing time. But he’s got an inside track with special teams. And it’s just going to be fun to see how create Bruce Arians gets in using his talent (I hear Liam Neesom’s voice saying, ‘But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you.’). And if he somehow becomes a favorite of Tom Brady’s… then… well, there’s no telling what this rookie season will be like.

Oh yah, and by the way… did you hear that this week his offensive coordinator, Byron Leftwich, compared him to another current Buc when he came into the league: Antonio Brown. Leftwich was AB’s teammate, and remembers very clearly what he was like that rookie season. He sees a lot of similarities in Darden.

Will he produce like AB? That’s still to be seen. But I encourage you to do yourself a favor. Take the 13 min. required to watch his highlight reel… and enjoy.


Welcome to the Opihi, Jaelon. We look forward to cheering for you for years to come.

[Preds]

This guy heard of him and almost took him but passed because of his diminutive size (even though I was almost positive you'd snag him if I passed).

FWIW, he's NOT 5' 9" unless you're including his cleats! In fact I've seen measurables that have him at 5' 7 5/8".

I loved the Bucs commitment to him by trading up and snagging him in the 4th and that almost tilted the scales for me to take him, but again, the diminutive size scared me off. He's an interesting and very talented prospect who has some great WRs and a world class QB to soak in the knowledge from. As a semi-Bucs fan (the Bucs are my NFC team but I just can't root for Brady) I hope he reaches his potential.

[Royal Hawaiian Opihi]

Ok, Skippy. Glad you’re the height police. You keep focusing on how tall he isn’t… I’ll watch him carve out his mark in the NFL.

[Preds]

Originally Posted by royal hawaiian opihi

ok, skippy. Glad you’re the height police. You keep focusing on how tall he isn’t… i’ll watch him carve out his mark in the nfl.