Wide receiver may not be the biggest area of concern heading in to the 2011 season. However, some feel as though the receivers that are currently rostered in San Francisco still could stand to be upgraded.
Michael Crabtree was drafted in the 1st round two years ago, and has yet to live up to that 1st round status.
Some may argue that he hasn't had a quarterback to get him the ball, but if I recall correctly, I seem to remember plenty of passes ricocheting off of his hands or chest in to opposing defenders hands. NFL caliber? He still has potential. But if a receiver makes it in to the NFL he better be catching nearly everything thrown in the general vicinity. That's what the great ones do.
So with that, it still raises the question. Just how badly do the Niners need an upgrade? In personal view, I have seen enough from the current corps of receivers, and long to see more from guys like Kyle Williams and Dom Zeigler. I do think that bringing a version of the West-Coast offense back to San Francisco, that it will help all of the possession receivers like Morgan and Crabtree quite a bit.
But even though we appear to possibly have all we need, the position should not be overlooked because it seems to have a lot of depth in this years draft.
Below the jump we'll take a look at wide receiver from Maryland (Vernon Davis' alma mater) to see what he brings to the table...
With a combination of decent route running and natural speed, Smith more often than not gets the better of his opponent when in one-on-one coverage. He is the prototypical size for an NFL receiver at 6'1" and 205 LBS. In games, he has excellent leaping ability and can usually out leap his man to snag the sphere out of the air. However, once in space he lacks the ability to shake defenders. He is more of a straight line runner once he catches the ball. Besides that, he is the complete package and can change games with big play ability down the field.
For his 2010 highlights and touchdowns, click the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5A_6n_eoI2o
Here are his career stats at Maryland:
Stats Overview
Receiving
Rushing
Fumbles
YEAR
REC
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
ATT
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
FUM
LST
2008
24
336
14.0
44
2
1
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
2009
61
827
13.6
64
5
11
59
5.4
14
1
0
0
2010
67
1055
15.7
80
12
9
7
0.8
9
0
0
0
2010 Regular Season Game Log
Receiving
Rushing
Fumbles
DATE
OPP
RESULT
REC
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
ATT
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
FUM
LST
9/6
Navy
W 17-14
1
6
6.0
6
0
2
5
2.5
5
0
0
0
9/11
Morgan State
W 62-3
3
41
13.7
24
2
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
9/18
@West Virginia
L 31-17
3
149
49.7
80
2
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
9/25
Florida International
W 42-28
8
159
19.9
68
1
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
10/2
Duke
W 21-16
2
50
25.0
44
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
10/16
@Clemson
L 31-7
4
55
13.8
37
0
1
-4
-4.0
0
0
0
0
10/23
@Boston College
W 24-21
8
34
4.3
9
1
2
2
1.0
3
0
0
0
10/30
Wake Forest
W 62-14
5
66
13.2
35
1
1
9
9.0
9
0
0
0
11/6
@Miami (FL)
L 26-20
3
35
11.7
13
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
11/13
@Virginia
W 42-23
7
157
22.4
62
1
2
-2
-1.0
0
0
0
0
11/20
Florida State
L 30-16
7
69
9.9
33
0
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
11/27
North Carolina State
W 38-31
14
224
16.0
71
4
0
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
2010 Postseason Game Log
Receiving
Rushing
Fumbles
BOWL
OPP
RESULT
REC
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
ATT
YDS
AVG
LNG
TD
FUM
LST
MILITARY BOWL PRESENTED BY NORTHROP GRUMMAN
East Carolina
W 51-20
2
10
5.0
8
0
1
-3
-3.0
0
0
0
0
Summary: Overall I believe Smith will be a decent 3rd receiver on a teams roster. There is a nice chance that once he gets in to his 3rd or 4th years that he could slide up as a teams number two go-to. Beyond that, I am hard pressed to consider that he will ever be good enough to be a teams number one. But overall, he will most likely be drafted where most people have him slotted and will be well worth that pick.
PREDICTION: 2nd - 3rd Round. There's a very slight chance that Smith could be over-drafted in the 1st Round.