2023 NFL Draft: Jalin Hyatt - Tennessee Wide Receiver

      

Jalin Hyatt - Tennessee

Strengths:

1. Quickness - He is light on his feet. Hyatt can change direction multiple times effectively over the course of a few steps.

2. Deep Ball - Route adjustments, speed, and subtle moves to gain separation are all strengths of Hyatt. He has good ball skills and will never get caught from behind. He simply is the best deep threat in this class.

3. Release - No drop step or false step usually. He can come off of the line quickly in any direction with little wasted movement. He does not always elect to do so, but the ability is clearly there.

Weaknesses:

1. Fighting through Contact - He frequently gets bullied at the line and through the duration of shorter routes verses press.

2. One-on-one Situations - Hyatt can run around someone slower than he is, but his ability to make someone miss with the ball in his hands is surprisingly lacking. He has very little contact balance, frequently getting tripped up or arm tackled. He should be able to use his speed and absurdly quick feet to break some ankles, but it is rarely seen throughout his tape.

3. Stutters - When stuttering to change direction laterally, he tends to step an unnecessary amount. When performing a 180, he also tends to take far too many steps, thus decreasing efficiency on the route and giving defenders time to get on him. If he works with a good wide receiver coach on his footwork, specifically his tendency to stutter too often, then he will be even more deadly on the shorter and intermediate routes.

Grade: Mid-Late Second

Despite being an elite deep threat with game-breaking speed, Hyatt is a slot receiver who has not shown the ability to win at the line.

Pro Comparison: Henry Ruggs

Ruggs was stronger and slightly more refined, but Hyatt has quicker feet.

Film Notes:

Georgia (11/05/2022): 6-63-0

Good route inside after stutter. Hesitation steps were intentional. Poor line contact. Maximized separation into soft zone, not as good after catch. Decent cuts inside, but burst does not impress. Decent block attempt for size, but cannot lock up. Pulled away from defender on deep route to the outside. Great linear acceleration off of the line. Not great at working through contact. Good blocking technique. Can change direction abruptly in consecutive quick steps. Pivots quickly, which is effective verses off coverage. Not much ability to stay up through contact. Can play from slot and outside, but looks more comfortable working the slot.

Kentucky (10/29/2022): 5-138-2

Not the best RAC. Does not pick up extra yards after contact. Blown coverage on deep touchdown as a result of miscommunication stemming from play design. He is quick down the sideline, but the route was nothing special. Very quick pivots. Good mid route acceleration. Great at finding the hole underneath. Quick feet on stutters. Missed block inline that did not end up mattering. Can pivot quickly from full speed. Open for the touchdown for the same reason as earlier. Good feel for mid route moves based on what the defense gives him. Too many steps to decelerate, slowing down the route and decreasing separation at the catch point. Gets wrapped up easily in open space. Defense cannot stop this very simple route that has given Hyatt almost all of his production this game.

Pittsburgh (09/10/2022): 11-73-0

Very slow routes throughout the first quarter. Not reliably pulling away on crossing routes. Good single step route adjustment over the middle. Good job locating ball in the air when he turned his head. Good deep catch, but did not keep foot in bounds. Not too physical after the catch. Used mostly in a gadget role this game, which is not his strong suit. Too many steps on comeback. Simply cannot break tackles or get by the first defender who gets a hand on him. Better footwork on comeback. Good separation from safety. Looks like he is warming up throughout the game. Gets to the sideline quickly from the slot in two-minute-drill.

2022 Highlights:

No one catches him, which makes sense with 4.29 speed out of high school. He can take the corner and win against most defenders. Deep ball skills are very good. Good deep route adjustments. Not much strength displayed on any play as expected. Most highlights are him getting separation deep, which is also expected. Note: I went back and casually watched more of his tape. It seems that I selected some of his worst games throughout the season. I raised his grade significantly from the mid-third I initially gave after just watching the three previous games.

Attributes (Grade/10):

Separation	Short	6.5
	Medium	8
	Deep	9.5

Short: Usually finds the hole under the linebackers in zone, but gives up on the play frequently when he cannot. He is not good at creating immediate separation against press. His quick feet make him a threat to corners trying to shadow him, but he needs to work a bit on his lateral release and physicality. If this grade was against zone only, it would be closer to an 8/10.

Medium: After the first couple of yards, Hyatt can pull away from nearly anyone, especially from linebackers across the middle who simply lack the speed to stay on him. He has a moderate route tree, and can gain separation into man as well as zone. He needs to work on extending the play when his quarterback gets outside the pocket.

Deep: Excellent deep separation from the slot. He can also gain separation out wide down the field, but that is typically seen when there is a second boundary wide receiver pulling the outside corner. Hyatt's speed is next level, and he knows how to gain separation on any defender down the sideline. He has great deep ball tracking skills and subtle route movements that leave him wide open at times.

Release	Stance	10
	Acceleration	8
	Hip Control	6

Stance: Almost never any unnecessary steps. Great starting position as well.

Acceleration: This should be a 10/10, but he is slower coming off of some routes then others. His lateral acceleration is also not what it could be. While 8/10 is good, Hyatt should be more explosive off of the line than he is.

Hip Control: Hip control is likely the reason his lateral acceleration is not as good as it should be, as well as why his open field running is not electric if he cannot just run by a defender. He does not drop hips reliably when changing direction, pivoting, or coming off of the line laterally. He takes too many steps when pivoting from full speed, which is also a habit that could be rectified with better hip control. If he can work on hip fluidity, which an athlete of his size and caliber should, then he should develop a consistently explosive release in any direction.

Hands	Catch Reliability	8.5
	Catch Radius	7
	Contested Catch	7.5

Catch Reliability: No drop issues in games observed, but catch rate is 6.9% on the season. This is not bad, but his 5 drops on 89 targets indicate that his catch reliability should not quite be considered elite.

Catch Radius: He can catch the ball away from his body, but does not have a large frame. His athleticism increases his effective catch radius, but he typically has been fast enough to where he does not need to showcase this ability. More reps on film would help with confidence in this grade.

Contested Catch: His ball skills make him surprisingly effective at contested catches. He is not strong and may struggle more when against better competition, but he displayed good ball skills through contact on tape for his size.

RAC	Athleticism	9
	Agility	7
	Contact Balance	2

Athleticism: Hyatt ran a 4.29 out of high school, and is incredibly electric at times, but he does not always play like a freaky athlete. This score based on tape should be lower

Agility: A grade of 7/10 is giving Hyatt the benefit of the doubt. He should be up around a 9/10 based on attributes alone, but his tape hardly elicits a 7/10. This should go up significantly when he gains a bit of strength and experience over his first couple of seasons in the NFL.

Contact Balance: While he has a couple of reps where he stays up after contact, including on an impressive touchdown run, Hyatt typically cannot maintain his footing through any sort of contact.

Blocking	Technique	8
	Willingness	9

Technique: Hyatt actually has good blocking technique despite his size. He has reps where he gets both hands on the inside of his opponents shoulder pads, locking them in place for a short time.

Willingness: For someone who lacks physicality on the outside, Hyatt is always willing to get his hands dirty. NFL teams are going to like his ability and willingness to block despite his size.

Coverage	Press	5
	Off	9

Press: He is gone if he gets a step on his man, but he typically gets bullied throughout the route and at the line. His skillset is much better utilized when given cushion, whether that be soft coverage or zone.

Off: Hyatt can take advantage of space on his route due to his quickness and unmatched speed. He is good at finding the hole in zone, and has an outstanding double move.

Full Report:

While his grade may seem harsh, his skillset is not indicative of a typical first round possession receiver. He will likely play from the slot only, and is not great after the catch if there are still guys to beat. He understands how to work zone coverage quite well, but struggles with contact in man. He will get absolutely bullied at the line by NFL outside corners in press coverage, limiting his role at the next level. If he works on his ability in open space and gains some leg strength to help with contact balance, then he may find more success in the NFL as a smart route runner from the slot who is a danger from the backfield as well. As it stands, he is an effective slot wide receiver who should not be considered until day two. That said, his speed is freaky. If he gains a step on a defender, no one is catching up to him. His open field runs are mostly him out-sprinting defenders, and that trait will not change when he enters the NFL. He is an incredible deep threat from the slot with great mid route acceleration and subtle movements on top of his blazing speed. This alone may catapult him into the first round, as he has the potential of being one of the more explosive weapons in all of the NFL. Most reports at this point in time have him graded as such, but he needs to show that he is a more complete wide receiver before being categorized with the titans of this class.

NFL Projection:

Hyatt will likely go at the end of the first or early in the second round. He will not have as much success on the outside in his rookie season, but flash with a couple of long touchdowns from the slot. He will not be a target hog, but will open up the defense with downfield speed that must be addressed.