Scouting Report

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2020 was the year of the unknown, most people weren’t even sure if there was going to be a college football season last year, but thankfully there was. With all of the uncertainty, Wake Forest WR Sage Surratt chose to opt out of playing his senior season. I don’t blame him for making the call, but it could ultimately hurt his draft stock. In 2019, Surratt was one of the best receivers in college football and now after a year of not seeing him scouts may have forgot about him a little bit. When on the field, Surratt dominated. My favorite matchup of his was against Asante Samuel Jr. at Florida State. It was really a back and forth matchup, Surratt racked up 170 yards, but Samuel got him back as well. That had to be one of the most entertaining head to heads of college football in 2019.

What separates Surratt from the rest of the receivers in this draft is his frame. He’s a 6’3 big body receiver, and he plays like it. He is extremely physical and does a great job at using his hands to gain separation at the top of his routes. His strength is apparent and his hands are sticky especially when in tight coverage. On top of his big frame, he has long arms which creates a large catch radius which is favorable for any quarterback. Surratt’s speed is solid especially for his size and he is a long strider. He is a pure X receiver that thrives in 50/50 ball situations. In the run game, Surratt is a physical blocker and in the red zone he makes 50/50 balls look like 60/40 balls. His size overwhelms defensive backs and causes them to get physical which draws penalties. Surratt might just be the best big body receiver in this draft!

So the first reason why Surratt is going to fall in the draft is because people haven’t seen much of him since 2019. Scouts may have forgotten about him and he has fallen under the radar! This is partially why he could be one of the biggest steals in the draft! A problem that showed up a few times on film, that can be coached out of him is being overly aggressive. He may use his hands too much which causes offensive pass interference calls. There were also times on run plays that he looked like he put 0 effort in. NFL teams are going to want their receivers making every play look the same at the snap to keep the element of surprise, but this is yet another thing that can be coached out of him. Surratt also wasn’t known for his separation skills, but that is because he plays to his strengths which is literally his strength. His lack of separation isn’t that concerning because of how strong he is.

As I mentioned earlier, Surratt can be a steal this year. He has the potential to be a legitimate number one receiver in the NFL, but he will most likely fall in the draft because he didn’t play in 2020. Surratt reminds me a lot of Courtland Sutton, he’s a true alpha. The Ravens and Raiders both desperately need that type of play maker and the Chiefs could target him at the end of the third round to be the number two receiver to Tyreek Hill. Both Hill and Mecole Hardman are smaller receivers, so the addition of Surratt could play a huge role in Kansas City’s offense!