With Keelan Cole, Dede Westbrook, and Chris Conley all set to be free agents, adding help at receiver should be a priority for the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason, especially with all three possessing the ability to get vertical. One prospect who could help them with that is Iowa receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette, who the team has interest in and has/will meet virtually, per Justin Melo of the Draft Network.
#Iowa WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette will bring exciting vertical skills to the next level, while also serving as an electric KR/PR. He'll be a good pro
Smith-Marsette has met/will meet virtually w/ #Saints, #Rams, #Jets, #Jaguars, #Bengals, #Raiders, #Washington & #Bills to name a few
— Justin M (@JustinM_NFL) March 9, 2021
Smith-Marsette fits the mold of an Urban Meyer receiver as he can stretch the field, hurt teams out of the backfield, and serve as a returner. In four seasons with the Hawkeyes, he finished his career with 110 career catches for 1,615 yards (good for a 14.7-yard average) and 14 touchdowns. In terms of rushing yards, he was able to garner 274 yards for four touchdowns on the ground.
As a special-teamer, Smith-Marsette registered 57 kickoff returns for 1,520 yards and two touchdowns. Those are numbers that could especially be interesting for the Jags as Cole, who is also a special teams returner, has potentially played his last down as a Jag. However, with solid ball tracking skills and explosive play ability, Smith-Marsette is a similar player who could develop into a big-time contributor with the right coaching.
At 6-foot-1, 175-pounds, Smith-Marsette has good height but will need to add some muscle to withstand the punishment of the NFL. Smith-Marsette’s stock has varied as some like Pro Football Network’s Tony Pauline has him projected as a third-round pick. Others have him coming off the board as a fifth to sixth-rounder, so maybe somewhere in the middle of those projections (fourth round) is where he will go.