Tag: Antonio Gandy-Golden

8 small-school prospects for the Eagles to consider in the 2020 NFL Draft

8 small-school prospects that could interest the Philadelphia Eagles in 2020 NFL Draft

The Philadelphia Eagles are no strangers to targeting small school players in the NFL draft and the results have been positive recently.

The Eagles used the 2016 Senior Bowl to analyze Carson Wentz and the results have been fairly positive since Howie Roseman used the No. 2 pick on the former North Dakota State star.

There have been plenty of small-school gems drafted over the years and with the Eagles in need of some retooling, here are 8 sleeper prospects who could interest the Birds.

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1.Antonio Gandy-Golden, WR, Liberty

The 6-4, 215-pound stud put on a show in Mobile at the Senior Bowl and firmly put himself on the map as a player in the NFL draft.

Gandy-Golden has all the tools and 4.5 40-yard times that could catapult him up, draft boards.
Last season, Gandy-Golden racked up 79 catches for 1,396 yards and 10 touchdowns.

He excels at boxing out defenders and catching the ball at its highest point.

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One WR for the Patriots in each round of the 2020 NFL Draft

From Justin Jefferson to Kalija Lipscomb.

The New England Patriots added receiver N’Keal Harry in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft, but that shouldn’t stop them from making another significant investment in the position in 2020. Bill Belichick need only peer at his depth chart to see that Mohamed Sanu’s contract expires after 2020 and Julian Edelman’s deal expires after 2021.

Harry may take a big step forward in 2020, but his rookie season wasn’t filled with production, with 12 catches for 105 yards and two touchdowns. Jakobi Meyers and Gunner Olszewski look promising despite joining the Patriots as undrafted free agents. But it’s clear the Patriots could — and perhaps should — acquire more young talent in a draft that’s touted to be deep at the receiver position.

So here’s a rundown of receivers the Patriots could target in each round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Round 1: Justin Jefferson, LSU

He’s a big, versatile receiver who may appeal to the Patriots in the same way that Harry did. But while Harry had a flair for the catching and leaping abilities, Jefferson does a nice job with separation through savvy route running. He wasn’t viewed as an elite athlete, but his combine performance proved otherwise. In fact, it was so impressive that it might have put him in a position to go before New England picks at 23rd overall. The one knock with Jefferson was that he wasn’t the top wideout in his offense. Because of that, he wasn’t always drawing the top cornerback on a team’s depth chart.

There are so many good receivers who may land in the first round. Baylor’s Denzel Mims, Clemson’s Tee Higgins and ASU’s Brandon Aiyuk may also be in the mix at this spot.

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2020 NFL draft: Antonio Gandy-Golden scouting report

Everything NFL draft fans need to know about Liberty wide receiver prospect Antonio Gandy-Golden

Antonio Gandy-Golden | WR | Liberty

Elevator Pitch

Gandy-Golden was productive for his last two seasons at a small school. At Liberty, he produced back-to-back 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns seasons for the Flames. He is a big wide receiver prospect who can be a jump-ball and red zone threat for a team that could potentially develop into more of a complete prospect.

Vitals

Height | 6-4

Weight | 223

Class | Senior

College Stats

College Bio

Combine Profile

Strengths

First thing that stands out about Gandy-Golden is his his size. At 6’4″ with 31 3/4″ arms, he is a long wide receiver prospect that can catch passes outside of his frame. Climbing the ladder poses no problem for him. He is also known to make the circus catch with one hand when corners are draped all over him. Catch radius is another big trait that scouts will absolutely love. Shows good body control when airborne.

His 2019 tape is much better in terms of his ability to catch the ball, despite the fact that his numbers in 2018 were better. Does show some down the field speed on deep routes. Just throw the ball near him and he likely will come down with the ball. Great target for jump balls and back shoulder fades in the end zone.

Weaknesses

He is somewhat a one trick pony at this point in his football career. Deep routes and jump balls are the name of his game. AGG’s route tree development leaves a lot to be desired. He won a lot against lesser opponents with his ability to out jump and muscle smaller defenders. He will struggle with the NFL’s physical cornerbacks.

Along with needing to develop as a route runner, Gandy-Golden needs to work on his release at the line. Despite his size, he will likely struggle with press coverage knocking him off his route. Contested catches at Liberty were much of a problem but with cornerbacks in the NFL that remains to be seen. He struggled when Liberty played Auburn.

Projection: Day 3

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Saints pick a safety in Dane Brugler’s updated mock draft

The New Orleans Saints invested early in their secondary but waited on help at wide receiver in Dane Brugler’s latest 2020 NFL mock draft.

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The 2020 NFL Scouting Combine is in the books, and everyone is updated their mock drafts. We took a shot at our own take earlier this week, and the latest mock-up comes from The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, one of the most accurate experts in the business. Brugler projects the Saints to select Alabama Crimson Tide prospect Xavier McKinney, one of the best safeties in this year’s draft class. But he only sees that happening with a few important caveats:

If Vonn Bell leaves in free agency and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson stays in a nickel role, safety becomes a question mark for the Saints. McKinney will have spacing issues in coverage, but he limits mental mistakes, especially vs. the run as a downhill tackler.

McKinney measured out as a marginal athlete at the combine, timing the 40-yard dash in 4.63 seconds at 6-foot-0, 201 pounds. His best results came in the jumps, leaping 36 inches vertically and 122 inches broad, both good-but-not-great marks.

However, freakish athleticism isn’t really McKinney’s best bid for the NFL. He’s regarded as a heady player who is quick to learn from his errors, and is difficult to fool with complicated passing concepts. He was disruptive in two years as a starter at Alabama, creating plenty of splash plays. He was credited with 169 combined tackles (104 solo, 11.5 for loss of yards), 6 sacks, 15 passes defensed (5 interceptions), and 6 fumbles forced (1 recovered) in his final 28 games. That would go a long way towards replacing Vonn Bell’s impact plays.

Later on in the third round, Brugler connected the Saints to Liberty wide receiver Antonio Gandy-Golden. Gandy-Golden was the 13th wide receiver to be selected in the top three rounds in Brugler’s mock draft, ahead of UCF’s Gabriel Davis, South Carolina’s Bryan Edwards, and Florida’s Van Jefferson.

Gandy-Golden is a huge target (6-foot-4, 223 pounds) who lacked speed and flexibility in athletic testing at the combine, performing best in the broad jump (127 inches). He still starred at Liberty with 150 receptions for 2,433 yards and 20 touchdown grabs — in just 24 games over two years. The jump in quality of competition from Liberty’s schedule to the NFL would be tremendous, but there might not be many better options if the Saints wait so long to address the position.

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Vikings select WR Antonio Gandy-Golden in 2nd round of mock draft

Gandy-Golden has been productive over the last two seasons, combining for 150 catches for 2,433 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Whether Stefon Diggs plays with the Vikings or not in 2020, Minnesota is in need of some depth at wide receiver.

In his latest mock over at NFL.com, Chad Reuter has the Vikings addressing the position in the second round by selecting Liberty wide receiver Antonio Gandy-Golden.

Gandy-Golden has been productive over the last two seasons, combining for 150 catches for 2,433 yards and 20 touchdowns.

The question, however, is how much competition does one exactly face at Liberty?

Gandy-Golden is listed at 6-4, 220 pounds, so he’s a big dude.

At this point, there are a lot of directions the Vikings could go in — especially with their early picks. Defensive backs are a must. You could talk me into a defensive lineman or an offensive lineman.

Rick Spielman and Co. have their hands full.

2020 Senior Bowl: 7 small school prospects for the Eagles to watch

Antonio Gandy-Golden among 7 small-school prospects to watch at the 2020 Senior Bowl

The Senior Bowl is the place where future NFL legends make a name for themselves and for so many small school prospects over the years, Mobile has been a coming-out party.

The Philadelphia Eagles used the 2016 Senior Bowl as a measuring stick analyzing Carson Wentz and the results have been fairly positive since Howie Roseman used the No. 2 pick on the former small school signal-caller.

Saturday’s contest will be the proving ground for several future stars and we’ve presented 7 small school prospects for the Eagles to watch on Saturday.

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1.Antonio Gandy-Golden, Liberty

The 6-4, 215-pound stud put on a show in Mobile and firmly put himself on the map as a player to watch as we progress towards the NFL draft.

Gandy-Golden has all the tools and 4.5 40-yard times that could catapult him up, draft boards.
Last season, Gandy-Golden racked up 79 catches for 1,396 yards and 10 touchdowns.

He excels at boxing out defenders and catching the ball at its highest point.

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Senior Bowl report: 3 Day 3 standouts who could be targeted by the Jags

The players at the Senior Bowl wrapped up their third practice Thursday in front of the Jacksonville Jaguars and the league’s other 31 teams. Despite bad weather, both squads put together a solid day of practice indoors and a lot of coverage came …

The players at the Senior Bowl wrapped up their third practice Thursday in front of the Jacksonville Jaguars and the league’s other 31 teams. Despite bad weather, both squads put together a solid day of practice indoors and a lot of coverage came out of Thursday’s session, which marked the last practice.

When considering all of the Jags’ needs heading into the 2020 season, here are some players who stood out Day 3 that the Jags could eventually target:

(AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Josh Jones, OT, Houston

We mentioned Josh Jones before the Senior Bowl kicked off as a player for Jags fans to watch because there were mix reviews on him, however, his performance in Mobile has made a lot of people believers. My comrade at Bleav Podcast Network, Tony Pauline, was iffy on him as a tackle but Jones showed he can handle his own on the outside.

Jones finished his week strong in Mobile and Day 3 was his strongest. As seen above he was basically a wall all day, dominating North Carolina’s Jason Strowbridge and others on his team.

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Bills met with WR Antonio Gandy-Golden at Senior Bowl

Buffalo Bills meet with Liberty WR Antonio Gandy-Golden at the 2020 Senior Bowl.

The Buffalo Bills are continuing to do their due diligence at the 2020 Senior Bowl and have met with wide receiver Antonio Gandy-Golden, a league source told Bills Wire.

While not from a powerhouse school, perhaps, Gandy-Golden has what observers of the Bills want: size as a playmaker.

At 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, could Gandy-Golden be the answer the the Bills’ height problem at wide receiver? Buffalo saw very productive seasons from John Brown and Cole Beasley at the position, but those two don’t have what you cannot teach, size.

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13 potential Bills prospects to watch at the 2020 Senior Bowl

Buffalo Bills prospects to watch at the 2020 Senior Bowl.

The Senior Bowl is upon us, which means the beginning of the draft season. Plenty of first and second day draft picks end up taking part in the festivities.

Josh Allen, anyone?

In 2019, 10 first-round picks took part in the game and since his tenure as Buffalo’s head coach, Sean McDermott has taken a liking to seniors due to their extra year of maturity and experience. There’s a good chance the Bills dip back into the Senior Bowl pool in 2020 with nine total draft picks currently slated to them at the upcoming draft.

With that, here are 13 Senior Bowl prospects to monitor for the Bills at the event as practices begin on Tuesday ahead of Saturday’s game:

Clemson Tigers offensive lineman John Simpson (74). Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

OL John Simpson, Clemson

The Bills might have an opening for starting spot on their offensive line via Quinton Spain. He’s a free agent and where he struggled according to Pro Football Focus’ metrics were as a run blocker. Clemson’s John Simpson is described as a powerful blocker who could improve a bit as a pass blocker at the next level.

Simpson is currently projected as a mid-round pick that could use a big week at the Senior Bowl. Playing at a powerhouse school and using football to pull himself out of a tough upbringing. That could attract the Bills to him. Simpson can play both guard position, but only lined up at left guard in 2019.

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5 NFL Draft prospects to watch for Lions fans in CFB Week 13

Five players Lions fans should watch in college week 13, including Zack Moss and Antonio Gandy-Golden

The college football season is wrapping up quickly. Just a couple of weeks are left on the Saturday slate, just a few more chances to get a leg up on the scouting for the 2020 NFL Draft.

Here are five players on display in Saturday’s games that should interest the Detroit Lions when draft season rolls around. Not every one of these is a top-shelf prospect. Remember, there are seven rounds and the Lions are in need of a lot of help…

Shaun Wade, CB, Ohio State

He’s only a redshirt sophomore but there are whispers Wade will declare early. And the twitchy 6-1 corner would look very good in Honolulu Blue.

Wade plays almost exclusively in the slot, which is unusual for a longer CB with his athleticism and speed. But it makes him a great fit for Detroit, which can use help inside given the recent play from Justin Coleman and the complete lack of depth behind him.

Two big feathers in Wade’s cap that you can check out when his Buckeyes face off against Penn State in the de facto Big Ten East title game (12 p.m. ET, FOX): he tackles like a strong safety and he communicates very well with his fellow DBs in transitions.

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