A big and strong outside weapon for Wake Forest the last few seasons, wide receiver A.T. Perry will look to bring his immense production into the next level as he enters the 2023 NFL Draft.
Here is everything you need to know about the explosive Demon Deacon:
Vitals
Height: 6-3
Weight: 198
Class: R-Senior
40 Time: 4.47
Strengths
Built like a prototypical boundary receiver, A.T. Perry has been ultra-productive over the course of the last two seasons for Wake Forest, where he operated as their number one receiver. During that span, Perry has put up some ridiculous numbers. He hauled in 152 catches for 2,389 yards and logged an incredible 26 touchdowns.
Perry possesses excellent speed for his size, plus arm length, and electric feet that made him a nightmare to guard for the majority of corners he faced. Perry is able to work through press coverage against corners whose size does not match up, as he is able to slap away hands and work his feet across the press before striding upfield. Once Perry gets going on a long route, he chips away at the cushion of the defensive back and can naturally expand his cushion with an elite-level catch radius.
It is very difficult to force Perry to the boundary or disrupt him in his route with hands, as he naturally fights through contact to the second level, and can eventually get away from backs who try to maintain contact with him.
In his route running, Perry shows a variety of speed levels, able to hit a second gear at a moment’s notice deeper into his route. He accelerates properly to maintain momentum with deep balls. He can quickly detach from deep coverage and go up and get the football. After the catch, Perry can use his size and suddenness to turn an in-breaking route up the field, and he is difficult to get on the floor should the defender not be able to match his size or quickness.
Weaknesses
Perry has struggled quite a bit with drops, and has a clear issue with concentration drops, leading to a high number of them over his last two seasons (17). He will need to work on reading the football better, and maintaining focus through the catch if he wants to not be a liability at the next level. Coaches will not put up with a ton of drops in the NFL.
There is some concern when he is matched up against bigger corners, as he can be jammed at the line by them, and latched onto deeper into the routes. He lacks the burst to escape corners just as speedy as him. Perry also fails to break away from off-man coverage, leading to a lot of contested balls. He should look to add some bulk at the next level to compete with bigger corners better, and make his life easier with contested catches.
Projection
A.T. Perry is a receiver that possesses immense upside with his prototypical build, ramping speed, and elite arm length. He made dominating the competition look easy at Wake Forest, and showed a fantastic skillset that is very likely to translate into the NFL. Perry will need to work on his concentration drops, as well as add some muscle to avoid getting pushed around by the corners in the league who can match up with him physically. Teams will be eager to take a swing on Perry, who could eventually develop into a classic ‘X’ receiver in the league, and be a repeat 1,000 yard receiver for years to come.
Projection: Late Second Round
