Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

[Fletch]

Something just hit me while looking at something regarding Spiller that made me think of Watkins. Interestingly both players come from the same program, had the same coach, played in the same or similar offensive system, and Watkins more so than Spiller played in a conference with only two notably good teams, one of which was Clemson, their own team.

Watkins is fast, we know that, it's been timed. It's also been said that this is the primary reason for his success at Clemson.

Well if this is the case, then how come he ranked only 139th last season in yards-per-catch in the NCAA? I mean shouldn't a player that's so blazing fast have been ranked much higher and performed better as such. Keep in mind that many of the players ranked ahead of him were freshmen, sophs, and other juniors. 15 were TE's.

My feelings have been the same prior to the Draft even having taken place, something's not lining up between what's being said and the facts, among which are a gimmick system.

And before some of you say in defense that he caught a lot of his passes near or behind the line-of-scrimmage, think that through.

I felt the same way before we even drafted Watkins and thought that he was highly overrated, just like Spiller. Given the similarities ...

[Albany,n.y.]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

[QUOTE=Fletch;3959229]

Well if this is the case, then how come he ranked only 139th last season in yards-per-catch in the NCAA? I mean shouldn't a player that's so blazing fast have been ranked much higher and performed better as such. Keep in mind that many of the players ranked ahead of him were freshmen, sophs, and other juniors. 15 were TE's.
QUOTE]
1st off, I have no idea what type of offense they ran and what kind of offense the other 138 receivers ahead of him were in either, but...
It all depends on what type of offense a player is in. In an offense like the old Oakland Raiders, WRs yards per catch will be higher than an offense that is designed to move the ball down the field in smaller chunks & eat up the clock that way or through the ground & pound strategy. Every offense is different. The fastest receiver in the world will not lead the nation in YPC if the QB can't throw long & accurate. If the O-line can't give the QB time, no long bombs. If a player is catching TDs in the red zone, his YPC stats go down.

This is another reason I hate using stats for player evaluations. I'll say it again-if stats were so important in football, the coaches would never be watching film, they'd just hand out stat sheets at the meetings. Football is too complex to use stats as anything but a really rough guide. Unless you saw the films of Watkins and the other 138 receivers games, it's impossible to explain why one receiver has a better YPC than another one. If you studied all the films instead of a black & white stat, you may have your answer. I'm sure Whaley & the Bills management saw a lot of Watkins on video before their final evaluation that he is a special player.

[THATHURMANATOR]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

YUCK

[k-oneputt]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

His game is more then just speed. He runs hard after a catch and is tough to tackle. I've seen him numerous times lower his head and run over d-backs like he was a running back. He actually remind me of Andre Reed some. Watch the highlights of last years Ohio St. game.

[Pinkerton Security]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

This is just a disturbingly negative post. Firstly - Watkins is fast, but he doesn't have the timed speed like CJ did - he plays very fast though and is great in the open field.\

And secondly, CJ Spiller is one of the top 5 playmakers in the NFL when healthy. I know he does get hurt but CJ isnt overrated, we need to utilize him properly and if we do, we saw how effective he can be - he averaged 6 yards per carry in 2012.

Check out this article for a more reasonable breakdown of Watkins qualities and flaws:

http://www.rotoworld.com/articles/cfb/46006/349/peshek-top-4-wr-metrics

[k-oneputt]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Watkins is exactly the type of wr our overrated qb needs since accuracy and reading defenses isn't his strong points.

[Night Train]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Watkins caught a ton of bubble screens. They were almost like running plays with the Clemson QB Taj Boyd immediately tossing the ball sideways to Watkins.

He's built like a RB. The major reason he was drafted was to help Manuel, who will only launch so many long balls until he finds a thingy called accuracy.


Pure speed ? We may have 3 of the top 10 guys in the NFL in Goodwin, Spiller and Watkins.

Raw stats tell a story with only 20 % of the content.

[Dr. Who]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Watkins caught a ton of bubble screens. They were almost like running plays with the Clemson QB Taj Boyd immediately tossing the ball sideways to Watkins.

He's built like a RB. The major reason he was drafted was to help Manuel, who will only launch so many long balls until he finds a thingy called accuracy.


Pure speed ? We may have 3 of the top 10 guys in the NFL in Goodwin, Spiller and Watkins.

Raw stats tell a story with only 20 % of the content.

Pretty sure Tom Brady or Peyton Manning would be happy to have Watkins on their team. Drafting an elite talent is always a good thing. Some time before the draft, Meril Hoge was raving about Watkins' skill set. He has superlative hands and body control and runs like an angry running back with the ball.

Why all this should make him a flashy product of a system without abilities that transfer to the NFL game is beyond me. It's also disturbing that folks want to make the selection a way to continue to denigrate Manuel. I hope EJ turns out well, because the contempt thrown his way is certainly nothing for Buffalo Bills fans to be proud of.

[ParanoidAndroid]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

How many receptions did those other receivers have? If I catch 10 passes and one of them goes for 70 yards, my average is going to be really good, right?

[EDS]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Watkins is exactly the type of wr our overrated qb needs since accuracy and reading defenses isn't his strong points.

Watkins can only help, but I think Manuel would benefit the most from a receiver who is tall and has good leaping ability, and thus a very large catch radius. In some respects, Mike Evans may be a better fit with Manuel than Watkins.

[k-oneputt]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Watkins can only help, but I think Manuel would benefit the most from a receiver who is tall and has good leaping ability, and thus a very large catch radius. In some respects, Mike Evans may be a better fit with Manuel than Watkins.

I disagree. Watkins also has a large catch radius and if you watched him in college you already know this. Evans has a larger catch radius but I think Watkns is the better receiver with more skills.
I'm sure Watkins will be running many of the short {get the ball in his hands}patterns he ran at Clemson, which only helps EJ all the more since they are easier throws and reads.

[justasportsfan]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

I'm sure Watkins will be running many of the short {get the ball in his hands}patterns he ran at Clemson, which only helps EJ all the more since they are easier throws and reads.

I just hope EJ improves on his short yard accuracy or Watkins will be diving for 5 yards bombs.

[stuckincincy]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Something just hit me while looking at something regarding Spiller that made me think of Watkins. Interestingly both players come from the same program, had the same coach, played in the same or similar offensive system, and Watkins more so than Spiller played in a conference with only two notably good teams, one of which was Clemson, their own team.

Watkins is fast, we know that, it's been timed. It's also been said that this is the primary reason for his success at Clemson.

Well if this is the case, then how come he ranked only 139th last season in yards-per-catch in the NCAA? I mean shouldn't a player that's so blazing fast have been ranked much higher and performed better as such. Keep in mind that many of the players ranked ahead of him were freshmen, sophs, and other juniors. 15 were TE's.

My feelings have been the same prior to the Draft even having taken place, something's not lining up between what's being said and the facts, among which are a gimmick system.

And before some of you say in defense that he caught a lot of his passes near or behind the line-of-scrimmage, think that through.

I felt the same way before we even drafted Watkins and thought that he was highly overrated, just like Spiller. Given the similarities ...

Well..Watkins was highly sought after - he carried most scout/pundit/teams ratings as the top WR throughout almost all the run-up to the draft. I wouldn't be concerned about his speed. He and Woods should make problems for opposing defenses.

Evidently, Woods didn't have a single credited drop last season - impressive.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000360613/article/picking-the-winners-and-losers-of-minicamp-season

[Night Train]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

Watkins can only help, but I think Manuel would benefit the most from a receiver who is tall and has good leaping ability, and thus a very large catch radius. In some respects, Mike Evans may be a better fit with Manuel than Watkins.

We have Evans in Mike Williams (comes down with the ball in a crowd)... the athletic Watkins, the route runner and 3rd down go to guy in Woods and the deep burner in Goodwin. No two are remotely the same and the 2 Doug's brought all 4 of them on board in the last 14 months, sending the locker room Diva and his trick groin packing.

I'm rooting for Manuel but with those 4 and depth at RB, he should improve or he's going to be watching someone else QB the team.

Put in the work.

[YardRat]

Re: Watkins' Speed Helps Him Dust Everyone, Right?

I've always seen Watkins as more of a possession guy than a burner. Lots of catches, keep the chains moving, with the ability to occasionally turn a short/medium route into a long gainer or a TD.