I've seen Jordan Watkins in game action eight times this season. There are a lot of misconceptions about what type of prospect Louisville is getting with him so I want to set the record straight.
First, he is not a slot receiver for Butler. The Bears use him in a wide variety of functions depending on what the defense is doing. He does most of his damage at the Z receiver position. The Z is the flanker who lines up to the strong side of the formation and can go in motion. The X receiver is on the week side of the formation and is typically positioned on the line of scrimmage and therefore cannot go in motion. Butler runs a lot of different looks on offense out of the spread like twins so sometimes both can go in motion if they are "off" the line of scrimmage. They also put Watkins at running back and wildcat. Watkins is Butler's best player so they move him around which makes sense, you don't want him written down as one position on the opposing coach's grease board.
Right now the expectation is for Watkins to play as the Z receiver with Fitzpatrick playing the X. Braden Smith and Dexter Rentz will play the Y or slot. I'm not sure what Nick Malito will play, probably a combination of both Z and X given that he's a big kid with speed and can handle the responsibilities of both positions.
I'm not to say Louisville won't move Watkins around the formation, they will, but his skill set is best suited for the Z. This is because Watkins is more of a speed builder than a sudden burst, short area quickness type of athlete. Slot receivers tend to be sudden and change directions in the phone both. Watkins does a better job when he has a cushion to eat up and get vertical or stick his foot in the ground and change direction without losing his top end speed.
His true value is taking the top off of a defense not operating underneath of it. He lacks the wiggle to make defenders miss in the open field nor does he posses the acceleration/deceleration capabilities to effectively escape angles. He's not a bad route runner, he can run the tree no doubt, but his skill set is just better suited to run the Z tree than do what a Y does. If he does line up in the Y it will most likely be in a verts situation where he's running routes from the top of the tree.
He's sure handed and I can't remember him dropping a ball I thought he should have caught, whether in a game or in a camp. Actually his willingness to compete for bad balls is one of his best attributes next to his straight-line speed.
What Louisville is getting is a fast wide receiver with decent size who can take the top off of defenses and someone who should excel in a vertical play action offense like Louisville's. He can also get to the edge off of jet sweeps as long as the line seals the edge. I don't anticipate seeing him used underneath or in the screen game too often.
First, he is not a slot receiver for Butler. The Bears use him in a wide variety of functions depending on what the defense is doing. He does most of his damage at the Z receiver position. The Z is the flanker who lines up to the strong side of the formation and can go in motion. The X receiver is on the week side of the formation and is typically positioned on the line of scrimmage and therefore cannot go in motion. Butler runs a lot of different looks on offense out of the spread like twins so sometimes both can go in motion if they are "off" the line of scrimmage. They also put Watkins at running back and wildcat. Watkins is Butler's best player so they move him around which makes sense, you don't want him written down as one position on the opposing coach's grease board.
Right now the expectation is for Watkins to play as the Z receiver with Fitzpatrick playing the X. Braden Smith and Dexter Rentz will play the Y or slot. I'm not sure what Nick Malito will play, probably a combination of both Z and X given that he's a big kid with speed and can handle the responsibilities of both positions.
I'm not to say Louisville won't move Watkins around the formation, they will, but his skill set is best suited for the Z. This is because Watkins is more of a speed builder than a sudden burst, short area quickness type of athlete. Slot receivers tend to be sudden and change directions in the phone both. Watkins does a better job when he has a cushion to eat up and get vertical or stick his foot in the ground and change direction without losing his top end speed.
His true value is taking the top off of a defense not operating underneath of it. He lacks the wiggle to make defenders miss in the open field nor does he posses the acceleration/deceleration capabilities to effectively escape angles. He's not a bad route runner, he can run the tree no doubt, but his skill set is just better suited to run the Z tree than do what a Y does. If he does line up in the Y it will most likely be in a verts situation where he's running routes from the top of the tree.
He's sure handed and I can't remember him dropping a ball I thought he should have caught, whether in a game or in a camp. Actually his willingness to compete for bad balls is one of his best attributes next to his straight-line speed.
What Louisville is getting is a fast wide receiver with decent size who can take the top off of defenses and someone who should excel in a vertical play action offense like Louisville's. He can also get to the edge off of jet sweeps as long as the line seals the edge. I don't anticipate seeing him used underneath or in the screen game too often.
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