Every year there is an alpha in the wide receiver class, and this year Garrett Wilson is that alpha. It is hard to find flaws in his game without being too nit-picky; Wilson is a well-rounded receiver prospect who tore up the Big Ten in his final year at THE Ohio State. Wilson is as clean of a prospect as I have seen in a long time; he is wildly talented, and I believe he will thrive no matter which team he gets drafted by. At Ohio State, he got better year after year and I still believe he can get a whole lot better. Last year, the Bengals hit a grand slam by drafting Ja’Marr Chase fifth overall; he was one of the main reasons why they were able to make it all the way to the Super Bowl. I could see teams wanting to replicate the Bengals’ recipe by taking a shot on Wilson very early in this year’s draft.

Wilson is pretty damn close to being a perfect wide receiver prospect. His ability to scrap yards together after the catch, be aggressive when the ball is in the air, and gain separation when running routes will set him up to be a team’s number one receiver from day one. Wilson has an elite release package that constantly gets defensive backs reaching at the snap. It is like he is getting a head start on his route despite being the faster player. A head start plus pure speed results in separation, something that Wilson is extremely talented at gaining. His ability to control how fast he moves in and out of cuts and misdirect corners at the top of his routes makes him nearly impossible to guard. When the ball is in the air, Wilson’s alpha dog mentality comes out. He fights his way through contact and zeroes in on the ball. While Wilson does have elite concentration, the best part of his game is what he does once the ball is in his hands. He has a unique ability to make defenders miss by cutting to the right or left then redirecting upfield immediately afterward. He can be used on reverses and pop passes; he has vision like a running back. Wilson understands angles and how to gain ground; that is part of why he is so good at releasing off the line. In the Redzone, Wilson’s alpha dog mentality comes out; he is phenomenal at catching fade routes and back-shoulder passes. While he is only listed at six feet tall, he plays much bigger. Wilson is going to be a number one receiver from day one in the league; he is going to be really, really good.

With really good prospects, you almost have to start nit-picking to find areas for improvement. The one big thing that he needs to get better at is exploding off the line. He is usually one of the last people to move after the ball is snapped; this can easily be coached out of him, so I am not too concerned. He also would have the occasional drop here and there, including a crucial one against Oregon. While his release package is phenomenal, sometimes he can get caught up trying to do too much. This ends up in him taking too much time to get off the line and throwing off the timing of a play. All of that is coachable, which is why I am not very concerned about Wilson flaming out in the NFL.

Garrett Wilson runs a 4.38, is a phenomenal route-runner, and plays bigger than he is. There is also a lot of untapped potentials; he can get better at using his hands to slap defenders off of him in order to gain separation. Wilson will continue getting better and better with the more experience that he gets. Wilson is so unique, I had a hard time finding a pro comparison for him, but if I had to pick one player, I would say Brandon Aiyuk. Wilson is an elite prospect that should be a top ten pick come draft day; I believe he would instantly be the number one receiver for the Browns, Falcons, and Packers.