Courtland Sutton – A First Round Talent?
Courtland Sutton has widely been touted as one of the best wide receivers in this year’s NFL Draft. There is no questioning his talent. Sutton, 6’3″, 218 lbs, was tremendously successful at SMU. In 2015, Sutton caught 49 receptions for 862 yards and 9 touchdowns. In 2016, Sutton hauled in 76 passes, for 1,246 yards, and 10 touchdowns. In his final season with the Mustangs, he caught 68 passes, for 1085 receiving yards, and 12 touchdowns. The big-bodied receiver thrived during his college years and is ready to take his talents to the next level. Although there is no debate about his talent, a question about his NFL future still remains. Is he worth a first round pick?
Courtland Sutton’s Strong Points
Courtland Sutton has many strengths that make him a solid prospect. First and foremost, Sutton is built well for a wide receiver. Although he is not overly tall at 6’3″, he is big bodied and has great core strength. Sutton uses his body size and strength to make catches, and gain seperation from defenders. He is especially good on the sideline, toe-tapping catches. Sutton also uses his body to block well for runners, a skill not found much in other receivers. Sutton is also a very good route runner and runs the full tree very well. His route running skills enable him to get open with relative ease. Often times, it seems he just isn’t being covered. Finally, Sutton is very good at making defenders miss tackles. He can also break tackles very well and fights for extra yards almost every play. Despite all of these strong points, Sutton is not a perfect prospect.
Courtland Sutton’s Weak Points
Courtland Sutton is a strong wide receiver prospect for the NFL, but he does have weaknesses. One of the biggest issues with Sutton is his lack of speed. Sutton’s game speed is particularly slow when compared to other receivers in this class. At the NFL Combine, he ran a 4.54-second 40-yard dash. Sutton also has issues with tracking the football and predicting where the ball is going. Often times, he starts fine on a track but ends up too far from where he should be. This is part of Sutton’s lack of ability to catch the ball deep. He also has issues catching in traffic and is often beat by the defensive backs in traffic. It seemed apparent to me that Sutton relied only on his ability to get open. He was only reliable when not covered. In the NFL, that’s not going to pass.
Impressions
There is no question that Courtland Sutton is one of the better wide receiver prospects in this year’s draft, and has a lot of talent. However, I do think he is overrated, and should not be a first-round prospect. There are just too many concerns, especially with catching the football, for a club to select him as a first-round pick. Sutton is the fifth best receiver in this class, behind Calvin Ridley, Christian Kirk, D.J. Moore, and DJ Chark. I do not think that the Ravens will draft Courtland Sutton. He would not be adding anything extra to the roster, as he is a similar type of receiver to that of Michael Crabtree. The Ravens are also looking to add Dez Bryant to the roster. If they do, that Sutton would officially be off the Ravens radar.
The Verdict
When rating Courtland Sutton, I gave him a 6.9/10.0 grade. Although he will likely be selected in the first round, I believe his best value comes in the third. Again, Courtland Sutton is an overrated prospect. He may turn out to be a fine wide receiver in the NFL with the right coaching staff around him, but in all honesty, the Ravens are not that staff. Baltimore cannot afford to select another drop-prone wide receiver from the AAC. The last time they did, Breshad Perriman became one of the biggest Ravens draft busts in history. In short, don’t look for Ozzie Newsome to be selecting Courtland Sutton come draft night. He just isn’t worth it for the Baltimore Ravens.
