Junior | 6’0″ 188 lbs | Austin, Texas | 7/22/2000

Garrett Wilson is a dynamic slot receiver with great body control and the ability to create after the catch but lacks consistent hands and the ability to win in contested catch situations.

Overview:

Garrett Wilson came to Ohio State as a highly touted 5-star recruit. In his freshman season, he served as the team’s fourth receiver, normally playing out wide and as the primary punt returner. In 2020 he became the team’s second option behind Chris Olave but played about three-quarters of his snaps in the slot. Wilson ran mostly crossing routes and had most of his success in the short to intermediate parts of the field. He was occasionally used on gadget-type plays like jets and sweeps. Wilson comes from an athletic family as his father, Kenny, played in the NBA and his brother Donovan was a running back for Bowling Green State University.

Strengths:

– Shows great body control being able to catch passes on the sideline, over his shoulder, or even catch passes when on the ground.
– Has great contact balance when running after the catch, uses a strong stiff arm to get yards after contact.
– Shows excellent change of direction ability both when making cuts in his routes and when evading defenders.
– Has the experience and skillset to be a good punt returner.
– Is able to separate on his release with his quick feet and strong head fakes.
– Good at locating the ball in the air and positioning himself to catch off-target passes.
– Is capable of making hands catches, even away from his body.
– As a route runner, he knows how to work himself open on scramble drills and as the awareness to know when to sit in a hole in the zone.
– Gets really good separation off his breaks with great agility and body fakes.
– Has the speed to be a threat against slower NFL corners.

Areas To Improve:

– Lapses in concentration lead to some bad drops.
– Height and frame are below average at the NFL level.
– Never looked comfortable in contested catch opportunities, struggle to battle for position.
– Lacks the strength needed to block consistently at the next level.

Injury Concerns:

– Suffered a back injury his senior year of High School. Missed four games.

Projection:

If Wilson can prove in his junior season that he can avoid drops and make contested catches, he has the skill to be taken in the beginning half of the first round. Due to his great body control in the air, it makes sense to project that he can improve his ball skills in contested catches. If he doesn’t struggle at the catch point, he will project as a second receiving option in year one with the ability to play both on the inside and outside. Conversely, if he can’t improve those skills, he could be in quite the pickle.

Wilson doesn’t have the long speed to scare faster corners deep and may be forced to win in the NFL solely off quickness and deception in his routes. It’s not a death knell but it will limit him in how he’s able to be used. He also needs to prove he has the strength to keep quality corners off him in press coverage. If he’s unable to do that, he will be limited as a slot receiver at the next level. He’ll have plenty of chances to prove himself throughout the season as he will likely have matches against top CBs like Cam Taylor-Britt of Nebraska and Tariq Castro Fields of Penn State. If Wilson improves, look for him to be one of the first receivers taken in the first round; barring unforeseen and unfortunate circumstances, he shouldn’t escape the second round, assuming he declares.

Purchase your 2020 XTB NFL Draft Guide here