From the practice field to the preseason, Malik Heath continues to make the most of his opportunities. The undrafted wide receiver out of Ole Miss has done nothing but make plays as a member of the Green Bay Packers and could be on his way to securing a spot on the 53-man roster.
It started with consistent flashes against Green Bay’s corners in practice. Then, it carried over into the first preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals when Heath caught three passes for 36 yards and added a highlight reel block for good measure.
Malik Heath! Let's go!!
Love this type of effort and intensity from a young WR! That's how you make a roster pic.twitter.com/eCacWoA2Km
— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) August 12, 2023
Now, after putting together another solid performance against the New England Patriots in Week 2 of the preseason, Heath is feeling more confident as his momentum builds.
“I get open for sure,” Heath said with a huge smile after the New England game. “They can’t cover me.”
Heath wasn’t entirely wrong, as the Patriots secondary had a tough time containing him on his way to a team-high 75 receiving yards on five receptions on Saturday. However, a box score fails to tell the whole story of what Green Bay’s rookie UDFA at receiver did on the field.
So, we are reviewing Heath’s catches against New England in this week’s film room.
Let’s dive in.
The first catch from Heath was on a short in-breaker from the slot. We see him make a vertical push up the field to force the corner into a backpedal before cutting inside and looking for the ball. After Heath makes the catch, however, he continues to finish the play. Using good awareness, Heath senses the corner closing in and changes direction to elude the tackle and pick up more yards. You love to see this type of competitive toughness and athleticism from a receiver to stay on his feet and fight for additional yards after the catch.
On this rep, Heath is at the top of the video running a corner route against cover 3 coverage. He starts the route by stemming inside to potentially indicate that he might be running another in-breaker. However, once he gets to 10 yards, we see him use a shoulder fake before planting his right foot to make an explosive break toward the sideline. Meanwhile, the Patriots’ corner is in poor position to react, as he’s already given up too much leverage. Heath then makes a leaping grab through contact and shows good concentration to get both feet down in bounds. Overall, everything from the detailed route to the contested catch was fantastic by Heath.
The slant route is one of the most common routes in football for its ability to generate quick-hitting completions. In Heath’s version, we again see how his build-up speed can back off certain coverages, allowing him to take advantage underneath. The depth and timing of this route are perfect.
One of the more exciting plays from this game was this catch over the middle by Heath. At the bottom of the video, he starts by shrugging off minimal contact from the corner and runs a dig. Once he makes his break at the top of the route, there is a slight soft spot in New England’s zone coverage behind the linebacker. This ball probably shouldn’t have been thrown, but Heath shows good toughness to go up and high point the catch knowing contact is imminent. He then bounces right up without a helmet after the 25-yard pickup.
Heath’s last catch was on another slant that unfortunately resulted in the game-ending injury to Patriots corner Isaiah Bolden. Out of respect for him, I am not going to show the play.
Conclusion
It’s hard to project what Heath could bring to Green Bay’s offense this season, considering he’s mostly played against backups. However, he’s done more than some of the team’s recent draft picks who have faced the same level of competition.
I think Heath offers solid route running, good ball skills, and physicality as a blocker. He may not have a ton of production during his rookie year and will likely spend the bulk of his time on special teams, but he’s more than deserving of a spot on the 53.