Alabama lost two of their strongest offensive weapons to the 2020 NFL draft in Henry Ruggs III and Jerry Jeudy. The Las Vegas Raiders and Denver Broncos, respectively, have a lot riding on the former Alabama receivers.
Both Ruggs and Jeudy are expected to have big impacts on their teams in their first season.
Cynthia Frelund of NFL.com ranked her top ten rookie receivers that she believes could be the most productive for the 2020 NFL season.
The full list:
- CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys
- Henry Ruggs III, Las vegas Raiders
- Michael Pittman Jr., Indianapolis Colts
- Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings
- Jerry Jeudy, Denver Broncos
- Denzel Mims, New York Jets
- Brandon Aiyuk, San Francisco 49ers
- Laviska Shenault Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars
- Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals
- Jalen Reagor, Philadelphia Eagles
Ruggs and Jeudy both make the top-5, but Frelund also offers her explanation as to why the players are ranked in this order.
On Henry Ruggs III:
“Ruggs could have more fantasy upside with the Raiders than Lamb does with the Cowboys, but there could also be a lot more potential downside with Ruggs than with many of the receivers ranked lower on this list,” said Frelund. “Ruggs lined up wide in 80 percent of his Alabama snaps and last season earned 10.5 yards after the catch per reception (third-most in the SEC among those with 30-plus targets, per PFF). Ruggs is a riskier pick, because while his physical attributes (he’s fast, if you haven’t heard) project for a lot of opportunity and have driven success in past offenses run by Raiders coach Jon Gruden, other key high-value metrics, like route-running aptitude (computer vision shows he hasn’t run the full route tree as often or as precisely as other receivers in this class), are unknown and therefore introduce fantasy risk. Preseason performance will likely help refine Ruggs’ projection more than it will for any other rookie wideout. Ruggs is currently my No. 42 WR overall.”
On Jerry Jeudy:
“Projecting a rookie wide receiver who will be working with a second-year pro at quarterback (Drew Lock) on a team that has invested heavily at the running back position presents some challenges,” says Frelund. “Jeudy’s Alabama resume showed alignment versatility. Computer vision route-running tracking shows his route-running and precision to be high. PFF shows Jeudy gained the fifth-most receiving yards on deep targets in the SEC last season (320). It seems that Jeudy’s ability to line up and be used anywhere is what will help him earn in fantasy, as the Broncos’ top receiver, Courtland Sutton, accounted for the highest percentage of the team’s air yards in 2019 (42.9%, per NGS). Jeudy’s ranking is currently No. 48 in my model.”
Frelund has high praise for both receivers, highlights their strengths as athletes and points out what makes them so unique.
Roll Tide Wire will be keeping you updated on Ruggs and Jeudy as they get closer to entering their first season in the NFL!