Giardi: Strong WR class could bolster a room Vrabel already likes

‘If only Jeremiah Smith were in this draft.’

I’ve heard that from at least two teams in the top 10 this year about the Ohio State wide receiver. Unfortunately, Smith isn’t draft eligible until 2027. Based on how he’s performed in each of his first two seasons with the Buckeyes, that kid might be the best draft prospect at the position in many moons, and while it’s a ways away, would have my vote as the best player in college football at the moment.

Alas, for those teams, and for everyone else, this year’s class doesn’t possess a show-stopping pass catcher. But don’t mistake that for this being a weak group. It’s deep; there are a handful of guys who could make significant impacts at the next level. But not every player will work for every system. In fact, I’d say this crop might be even more team/scheme-specific than any in recent memory.

TIER ONE: Carnell Tate, Ohio State (6’2”, 192); Denzel Boston, Washington (6’4” 212); Makai Lemon (5’11”, 192), USC; Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State (6’2”, 203)

Full disclosure: Tyson is the best player in this lot. But a litany of injuries (ACL, collarbone, and lingering hamstring) could have him slide further down the board in round one than his talent says he should. He’s a borderline craftsman with his route running and smoother than butterscotch pudding (You like what you like. I like what I like. Don’t judge). 

Tyson eats up man coverage (well-schooled by ASU WR coach Hines Ward) and can succeed inside or out. Will catch the ball over the middle, but doesn’t seem to like contact all that much.

Tate is likely the first to go off the board as another in a long line of Buckeye wideouts. Definitely plays faster than the 4.53 40, and he is very efficient with his movements. Knows how to stack the defenders and runs crisp routes. Smart and detailed with his approach and execution. 

Boston didn’t run the 40 at the combine or at Washington’s pro day, saying he did so on the advice of his agent. You know why? Because he’s not fast or an elite athlete. But he does have an elite skill - no one in the draft gets the ball as Boston does. He’s got excellent hands, and when the ball is in the air, if he can get to it, it is almost always his. Red-zone weapon.

If you’re following this process, you know Lemon has drawn comparisons to Amon-Ra St. Brown. That’s both good and bad because St. Brown was a day three pick. Obviously, that evaluation was off, but is that profile - not the biggest nor the fastest - worthy of a top-15 pick, which is where Lemon seems destined to go?

He’s got small hands (8 3.4”) but damn good ball skills, and a thickness to his body (and not thick like my head or midsection) that’s allowed him to survive and thrive coming out of the slot. Not much after the catch, but man, does Lemon catch everything. He’s a different kind of cat (see his combine podium interview), but no one is worried about his love for the game

TIER TWO: Chris Brazzell, Tennessee (6’4”, 198); KC Concepcion, Texas A&M (6’0”, 196)

Hard not to look at Brazzell and think, “Could he be Tee Higgins? Could he be something more?” At least, that’s how I view him. And I’m not alone.

“You see the speed (4.37 40) and think he’s just one of those burners who can only go vertical,” one scout told me. “You’d be wrong. He is an excellent route runner and has a great feel for how a defender is playing him.”

“I love how he sets guys up with his release and then how he runs routes,” a wide receiver coach texted. “He can make it all look the same, and that’s not easy to defend.”

Brazzell isn’t perfect. If he were, he’d be in my tier one. He’s lean, and while he will try to fight through contact, he will have issues with more physical corners until he gets a little stronger. That lack of strength is evident when Brazzell is challenged at the catch point. He also doesn’t love the shallow stuff, especially underneath linebackers or a safety diving down.

One of the twitchiest pass catchers of the bunch, Concepcion creates separation with his quick release, 0 to 60 acceleration, and razor-sharp cuts. Once the ball is in his hands, he runs hard and with surprising physicality (as seen in his punt returns as well). However, that willingness goes out the window when he doesn’t have the ball or when Concepcion is asked to put his body in the danger zone (i.e., over the middle). He has 20 career drops, 15 over the last two seasons. 

“Not a refined route runner,” one exec told me. “But with the ball in his hands, he’s a playmaker. No dancing. Just turn it up and go. If a coach can convince him to work the middle of the field, he could eat on crossing routes. But he’s not there right now.”

There are also some maturity questions about Concepcion. Between that and a cleanup procedure on his knee mid-March, he’s already taken a lot of top 30 visits for teams to update their medicals and ask questions.

TIER THREE: Omar Cooper, Indiana (6’0”, 199); Germie Bernard, Alabama (6’1”, 206)

Let’s just call this tier what it is: my favorite. Legitimately 2 of my top-10 draft crushes in 2026. Neither player will be a superstar (at least, I don’t think so). But in the right place, they should both thrive.

I’ll start with Cooper, who authored the most ridiculous and clutch catch of the 2025 college football season for the National Champion Hoosiers (a sentence I never thought I’d write). The league liked him more than teammate Elijah Sarratt before the season began, and that’s not a knock on Sarratt. Cooper is physical. He is tough. He has good hands. Will be a better blocker (because they’ll get on his ass about it and he can do it). Played mostly inside this past year, but can work outside as well.

Again, that’s not a #1, or maybe even a #2, but what Cooper lacks in high-end athleticism (he ran faster than the tape shows), he makes up for by seeing the game well and helping out his quarterback.

The biggest issue for him is his athleticism. Cooper has to work hard to create space for himself. 

“When Indiana needed a play, he was the guy,” texted one scout. “But if he’s going to thrive at this level, he’ll need to win more 50-50 balls at the beginning (of his career), in addition to being schemed-up. But he definitely has the want-to. I think he’ll be reliable.”

If you follow me on socials, you’ve known my feelings for Bernard for at least a month. But it goes well beyond that. Even more than Cooper, Bernard was involved when the Crimson Tide had to have it. Considering the level of competition and the number of big games over the last couple of years, that’s saying something. 

“(Ty) Simpson (Alabama QB) had one guy he believed in. That was Bernard,” according to an assistant coach. “That makes you dive deeper into what the kid is all about.”

When I did that, I saw toughness, smarts, excellent run-after-catch, and good hands. This dude has no fear of plucking a ball with two hands and exposing his rib cage. Probably happened one too many times for his liking, but Bernard never wavered. Having big hands helps (9 7/8”).

You want a receiver to chew up zones? Bernard is your guy. He’s been dinged some for his athleticism, but his 10-yard split (1.52) is hardly concerning. No, he won’t be a vertical threat, but if he’s being used right, he shouldn’t have to be. Let Kyle Williams and company run dudes off, and Bernard work the holes underneath. Needs to vary his release package, but can win outside on comebacks and intermediate routes.

TIER FOUR: Bryce Lance, North Dakota State (6’3.5”, 206); Deion Burks, Oklahoma (5’9.5”, 182); Zachariah Branch, Georgia (5’9”, 177)

This tier is oozing with athleticism, though the production hasn’t always matched that.

If the Lance name and school affiliation look familiar, it’s because Bryce is Trey’s younger brother (former 1st round QB now backing up in LA with the Chargers). Bryce is a freak (4.34 40, 41.5” vert,  11’1” broad jump, and 7.0 3-cone) who has really come on as a receiver, going for a 1,000-plus in each of the last two seasons.

Lance is a boundary receiver who tracks the ball well and will use that size to his advantage, high-pointing the football or just bodying defenders. He absolutely needs to improve as a route runner and isn’t super agile, so improvement in the former will be critical.

“I don’t like how he lets the ball get into his body when he comes back to the throw (think curls and stops), but he’s still learning,” one scout added. “There’s a lot to work with here. Talented player.”

Burks should be the very definition of a vertical slot with that 4.3 40 speed. And yet, he didn’t win much that way (though some of that falls on QB John Mateer). Burks isn’t a very nuanced route runner, and most of his best work comes from being fed underneath or as a ball carrier (jet sweeps and the like). There are enough tools here to make you think good coaching and hard work could elevate his play. In an ideal world, he’d be an early-day three pick. With this draft? Mid-2nd wouldn’t surprise.

Branch was a 5-star college recruit who chose USC before transferring when it became clear Lemon would be the go-to guy. He caught more passes in one season with the Bulldogs (81) than he did in two with the Trojans (77). Branch is, in a word, explosive and is one of those guys who can turn nothing into a whole lot of something. But he is so light, and you wonder how that will play over the course of a 17-game season. 

“Slot-only,” one evaluator told me. “But he works his ass off, and wants to be great. His size probably won’t let that happen, but I could see him getting a handful of touches a game and impacting the offense that way.”

Another guy whose route running needs work.

OTHERS OF NOTE: Malachi Fields, Notre Dame (6’4.5”, 218); Ted Hurst, Georgia State (6’4”, 206); De’Zhaun Stribling, Ole Miss (6’2”, 207); Antonio Williams, Clemson (5’11”, 187); Chris Bell, Louisville (6'2", 222); Skyler Bell, UConn (6’, 192)

Fields is a prototypical X and will use that big frame to push corners around. Also, a boss in contested catch situations. I don’t love his foot quickness or route running. 

Hurst blew folks away at the Senior Bowl and again at the combine. He’s raw, coming from a lower level of competition, so how quickly will that translate against NFL talent and NFL schemes? If you told me 3 years from now, he’s a stud, I wouldn’t be shocked. If you told me Hurst never got it, my reaction would be the same. 

Stribling is fast but not quick. Will stick his nose in there as a blocker and is good at it. He has good body control and attacks the football. Just not very nuanced as a route runner, and can be moved (and you can’t let that happen at that size).

Williams was one of the top guys coming into the season. And like with the rest of his team at Clemson, it just didn’t happen for him/them at that level. Still, you can see good route running/feel, and it gives me a little Stefon Diggs vibe in that regard (he’s not as quick as Diggs, and you can see that with how he gets in and out of breaks).

I really like both Bells. Chris is coming off a torn ACL, which likely makes him a day-three pick. He’s an outside-only receiver who needs to do a better job against press. But he shows his number to the quarterback, and is a handful post-catch. Skyler was uber-productive at UConn and has inside/outside versatility. Gets on CBs quickly with his release and acceleration. His hands are inconsistent, and he also lets the ball get into his body too much.