Oldfaithful
Hall of Famer
2018 Scouting Report: DJ Moore, Maryland, WR
This is a series of articles about players I have been personally scouting. Since I have no life I enjoy watching the tapes of several prospects. Would I consider myself an expert or a guru? Nope. I’m not applying for jobs with other teams. Would I say I’ve had more hits than misses? Yes, especially over the past three years. But that does not make my authority “final”. These articles are solely my opinion. Feel free to agree or disagree!
Calvin Ridley is my #1 WR prospect, and the safest prospect in this entire draft skill position wise other than Saquan Barkely. DJ Moore is my FAVORITE WR prospect in this draft. Moore is not the low ceiling high floor type, but I feel as if he does not have a lot of bust potential either. Moore is a weapon we could use.
Pros: I have already stated that Moore is the best WR after the catch in this entire class. Well if you want a definitive play of DJ Moore, there is nothing better than this.
DJ Moore does not play at 4.4 he ran. He’s more of a 4.5 guy. That’s not a knock on him though as that’s still above average speed for a WR. Especially a WR who is 210 pounds. His combination of above average size for a WR, and above average speed, combined with his running back like vision and running back like ability to set up his cuts, as well as elite long speed makes him one of the toughest players to bring down in the entire class. DJ Moore is explosive, but he does not have that initial burst that makes Odell Beckham Jr so dangerous. What he does have though is elite quickness and long speed. Want proof? Here it is.
It does not look like DJ Moore is killing people with his speed. Until you look at everyone around him. His acceleration is merely average for a WR, but once he gets to his top long speed, he’s nearly impossible to catch in the open field. If a corner tries to someone, there’s a pretty good chance that Moore will have 10-20 pounds on the guy and will either knock him down, or just shed the tackle.
Sure hands? Moore has those two. While the rest of the Maryland football team is trash, he is well coached, as Moore routinely can make adjustments to poorly thrown balls. He’s not amazing at contested catches, but he gets the job done.
Cons: His route running is adequate, but it does need some significant tweaking. There were times where he just couldn’t separate. This is fixable at the NFL level so it’s not enough for me to significantly knock the guy. What does concern me is that despite his fourth time being high, he is not amazing at the deep ball. He excels in the middle of the field and on comeback routes, but he is not amazing at making adjustments deep. His ability to adjust entirely depends on his ability to see the ball coming to him at all time. Even then, my other concern for him is minor. He has “Barry Sanders Syndrome”. He tries too hard to make something out of nothing sometimes(because the Maryland football team is horrible he oftentimes does not get the chance to succeed). This results in unnecessary losses.
Pro Comparison: Miles Austin, WR. Some will call blasphemy. I’ll tell you to remember that Austin was one of the more explosive wideouts in the league during his prime when he was healthy. Had injuries not derailed his career, he would have likely made more pro bowls and had formed a formidable wide receiver tandem with Dez. Austin was explosive after the catch, and while he had better burst, it was his long speed that was ultimately more threatening than his acceleration. Austin was also adept at adjusting to throws and was generally reliable. If Moore’s route running becomes polished he will become a very good #1 option in a passing game.
Grade: Mid to late first rounder.
Overall: Moore is my favorite prospect. He is the best WR after the catch in the draft and has some good hands and is a solid route runner for a typical college prospect. He has a very high ceiling, but also a decent floor. I think the worst case scenario for him is that he is a high end #2 WR, which would be very useful in Baltimore. He’s a home grown prospect in our own backyard. It would be a significant shame if we did not take him in a trade back to the late first. I would not be objected to him at 16 either. He could be the explosive #1 the team has been looking for the past ten years.
This is a series of articles about players I have been personally scouting. Since I have no life I enjoy watching the tapes of several prospects. Would I consider myself an expert or a guru? Nope. I’m not applying for jobs with other teams. Would I say I’ve had more hits than misses? Yes, especially over the past three years. But that does not make my authority “final”. These articles are solely my opinion. Feel free to agree or disagree!
Calvin Ridley is my #1 WR prospect, and the safest prospect in this entire draft skill position wise other than Saquan Barkely. DJ Moore is my FAVORITE WR prospect in this draft. Moore is not the low ceiling high floor type, but I feel as if he does not have a lot of bust potential either. Moore is a weapon we could use.
Pros: I have already stated that Moore is the best WR after the catch in this entire class. Well if you want a definitive play of DJ Moore, there is nothing better than this.
DJ Moore does not play at 4.4 he ran. He’s more of a 4.5 guy. That’s not a knock on him though as that’s still above average speed for a WR. Especially a WR who is 210 pounds. His combination of above average size for a WR, and above average speed, combined with his running back like vision and running back like ability to set up his cuts, as well as elite long speed makes him one of the toughest players to bring down in the entire class. DJ Moore is explosive, but he does not have that initial burst that makes Odell Beckham Jr so dangerous. What he does have though is elite quickness and long speed. Want proof? Here it is.
It does not look like DJ Moore is killing people with his speed. Until you look at everyone around him. His acceleration is merely average for a WR, but once he gets to his top long speed, he’s nearly impossible to catch in the open field. If a corner tries to someone, there’s a pretty good chance that Moore will have 10-20 pounds on the guy and will either knock him down, or just shed the tackle.
Sure hands? Moore has those two. While the rest of the Maryland football team is trash, he is well coached, as Moore routinely can make adjustments to poorly thrown balls. He’s not amazing at contested catches, but he gets the job done.
Cons: His route running is adequate, but it does need some significant tweaking. There were times where he just couldn’t separate. This is fixable at the NFL level so it’s not enough for me to significantly knock the guy. What does concern me is that despite his fourth time being high, he is not amazing at the deep ball. He excels in the middle of the field and on comeback routes, but he is not amazing at making adjustments deep. His ability to adjust entirely depends on his ability to see the ball coming to him at all time. Even then, my other concern for him is minor. He has “Barry Sanders Syndrome”. He tries too hard to make something out of nothing sometimes(because the Maryland football team is horrible he oftentimes does not get the chance to succeed). This results in unnecessary losses.
Pro Comparison: Miles Austin, WR. Some will call blasphemy. I’ll tell you to remember that Austin was one of the more explosive wideouts in the league during his prime when he was healthy. Had injuries not derailed his career, he would have likely made more pro bowls and had formed a formidable wide receiver tandem with Dez. Austin was explosive after the catch, and while he had better burst, it was his long speed that was ultimately more threatening than his acceleration. Austin was also adept at adjusting to throws and was generally reliable. If Moore’s route running becomes polished he will become a very good #1 option in a passing game.
Grade: Mid to late first rounder.
Overall: Moore is my favorite prospect. He is the best WR after the catch in the draft and has some good hands and is a solid route runner for a typical college prospect. He has a very high ceiling, but also a decent floor. I think the worst case scenario for him is that he is a high end #2 WR, which would be very useful in Baltimore. He’s a home grown prospect in our own backyard. It would be a significant shame if we did not take him in a trade back to the late first. I would not be objected to him at 16 either. He could be the explosive #1 the team has been looking for the past ten years.