The 2021 Biletnikoff Award winner is next up on our scouting report series. Former All-American wide receiver, Jordan Addison, is universally considered one of the top pass-catchers in the 2023 NFL draft.
The Maryland native started his career at Pittsburgh, where he produced a total of 160 catches for 2,259 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns over his two years as a Panther.
After his legendary 2021 campaign culminated, the talented wideout decided to leave Pittsburgh to join head coach Lincoln Riley and quarterback Caleb Williams at USC.
Despite missing a few games with a leg injury in 2022, Addison was still named to the All-Pac 12 team after totaling 875 receiving yards and eight touchdowns on 59 receptions.
As always, this article is going to provide an educated opinion on the pros and cons of taking a chance on a shifty but small pass-catcher such as Addison.
Before we get started, a quick reminder that all of the grades and individual rankings that are included are my own opinions after spending the last few months studying each of these individuals.
The perennial All-Conference receiver is widely considered a top-five prospect at his position, so let’s go ahead and find out why
Measurables
- Height: 5’11’’
- Weight: 173 pounds
- Hand Size: 8 ¾
- Arm length: 30 7/8
- 40-time: 4.49
- Relative Athletic Score: 5.88
College Accolades
- Biletnikoff Award winner (2021)
- Consensus All-American (2021)
- First-Team All-ACC (2021)
- First-Team All-Pac 12 (2022)
2022 Stats
- Receptions: 59
- Receiving yards: 875
- Yards per reception: 14.8
- Yards per route run: 2.78
- Drop rate: 3.3 percent
- Deep catches: Nine (370 yards)
- Screen catches: 23 (144 yards)
Grades, Projections and Rankings
- Overall grade: 79.2 (second round)
- Ceiling projection: Mid-first
- Floor projection: Early second
- Position rank: No. 5
- Consensus rank: No. 3
Reasons to Buy In
- Proved he can still produce at a high level on the outside after predominantly operating out of the slot at Pitt — 75 percent of his snaps came on the outside, as opposed to the 26 percent in 2021 and 2022.
- Route-running savant who can run the entire route tree the second he arrives — will only continue to improve as a pro.
- Savvy with his release packages and at the top of his routes.
- Can win on all three levels, possessing the quick feet and fluid hips to break off his routes whenever he pleases with minimal telegraphing involved.
- His ability to be manipulative throughout the route stem helps to create extra separation to overcompensate for his size.
- Excels once the ball is in his hands — slippery runner after the catch who is both quick and agile in space.
- Does a good job of stacking defensive backs on vertical routes.
Areas of Concern
- Another smaller wide receiver who could get bullied by physical and/or stronger defenders who are going to challenge him at the line of scrimmage.
- Timing can occasionally be disrupted when facing handsy/aggressive defensive backs.
- Despite a noticeable improvement last season, his 23 drops since 2020 is undeniably worrisome.
- Struggles at the catch point in tight coverage — only won on 22.2 percent of his contested catches last season.
- Possesses an underwhelming athletic profile for someone his size.
- Won’t offer much in the run-blocking department due to his suspect play strength that doesn’t have much room for improvement.
- Most of his targets were manufactured in 2022 — 23 of his 59 catches came on screens.
Fit with the Titans
To be perfectly honest, Addison is somewhat of a confusing prospect to figure out.
When you watch him on tape, he looks like a dynamic athlete who is capable of making the opposition look silly on any given rep. Yet, when you look at his athletic profile, it hardly matches what you see on tape.
According to his Relative Athletic Score, Addison would barely be considered an above-average athlete. However, game tape is usually the ultimate deciding factor and he has some of the best in this entire class.
Despite his limited athleticism, the USC product is one of the best three-level route runners in the draft.
His attention to detail should allow him to overcompensate for a lot of his physical limitations.
Addison is especially manipulative in the way he attacks the leverage of defensive backs so he can get them to commit to one thing before suddenly breaking off toward the open grass.
He is one of the most natural at making everything look the same with minimal telegraphing in his game.
The former Pitt Panther pairs his savviness with terrific body control that allows him to make acrobatic catches with relative ease.
You can also line him up anywhere on the football field and he is going to be a viable threat. Last season alone, he accounted for 422 snaps out wide, 102 snaps in the slot, along with nine snaps out of the backfield.
The former Blitnikoff Award winner has consistently shown that he can thrive anywhere as long as he is properly fed, something that has been a priority everywhere he’s been.
Approximately 42 percent of last season’s touches (27-of-63) were manufactured targets that got him the ball in space as quickly as possible.
You certainly can’t blame the Panthers or Trojans for that approach. Addison is a true playmaker in the quick game who can break off a big play any time he touches the ball.
Lastly, after accounting for 21 drops over his final two seasons in Pittsburgh, he brought that number down to just two in 2022.
If the Maryland native wants to be a dominant pass-catcher at the next level, he’s going to have to continue that positive trend going forward.
Addison may not have the highest ceiling in the class, but barring injury, his overall game makes him one of the safer receiver prospects in all likelihood.
His addition to the Titans would certainly be welcomed. However, he would be more of an ideal trade-back target in my personal opinion. There is a slim chance, however, that the All-American wideout could slide to Round 2 when it’s all said and done.
If that is the case, the Titans should jump all over that opportunity as long as they don’t go wide receiver in Round 1.
Check out more scouting reports from Shaun Calderon!
