Tavon Austin Reminds me of Barry Sanders

[Urlacher54 0]

All aboard. Future YAC Machine. Because hes a short small quick WR a lot of people compare him to wes welker. I think he could be like a wes welker only better in space. Sort of like a percy harvin/wes welker/ and dare i say a barry sanders in open field.

 

Just look at how he cuts and changes directions without loosing any speed.

 

 

Future Fantasy Stud.

[madd futher mucker 36]

History is a great teacher. I say slow your roll a bit, Jack! I watched the same video on him as you did and even more. I remember getting all excited about a small cat-quick prospect a few years ago named Dexter McCluster.

 

I'm not saying you are totally off base here, but let's be realistic. How many NFL receivers can you name who are less than 175 pounds and who have had any significant fantasy impact over any meaningful timeframe?

 

My rankings will be out on RosterWatch next week and linked here. I have his teammate Stedman Bailey ranked higher than Tavon Austin.

 

stay tuned.

[Cstriker 2]

History is a great teacher. I say slow your roll a bit, Jack! I watched the same video on him as you did and even more. I remember getting all excited about a small cat-quick prospect a few years ago named Dexter McCluster.

 

I'm not saying you are totally off base here, but let's be realistic. How many NFL receivers can you name who are less than 175 pounds and who have had any significant fantasy impact over any meaningful timeframe?

 

My rankings will be out on RosterWatch next week and linked here. I have his teammate Stedman Bailey ranked higher than Tavon Austin.

 

stay tuned.

 

 

Only comparison i can come up with is Desean Jackson. And jackson's had very modest success in my opinion being the #1 receiver. How do you compare austin's ability to desean ?

[madd futher mucker 36]

There are really two pretty good comparisons to Austin, and he's a combination of both. His quickness and open field ability remind me far more of McCluster than of De Jax. So in addition to his return skills (from what I've seen are equal or maybe slightly better than McCluster, I project Austin to work from the slot very similar to McCluster mostly on short routes, mainly slants and screen passes. He will probably be put in motion quite often to make opposing defenses account for him and to get a clean release from the line. He will sometimes line up out of the backfield on backfield gadget plays that will get him freely into space.

 

He compares to De Jax in his ability to run fly patterns and double moves to get behind the defense.

 

Much of his success in the NFL in the NFL will depend on the creativity of the offensive coaching staff of the team that drafts him.

 

Both McCluster and Jackson have roughly the same build as Austin, and they are the only two I can think of that have had some sustaining NFL and fantasy success. But neither has been a true difference maker for any fantasy team I've ever had them on.

 

Austin has also been compared to Wes Welker and Steve Smith. Both are at least 10 pounds or more heavier and both have found perfect fits for their skillsets.

[RaiderHaters Revenge 3,566]

if hes like DJax, meh, if hes like Mccluster puke

[Portis26 0]

can't believe someone actually said this out loud, lol that's like saying I remind you of Peyton Manning because I can throw the ball through a tire hoop. lol

[madd futher mucker 36]

if hes like DJax, meh, if hes like Mccluster puke

 

He actually combines the best of both. McCluster was spectacularly quick coming out of Ole Miss. McCluster's problem will be Austin's problem in the NFL. His coaching staff couldn't exactly decide what he was. A tiny RB or a slot receiver. Whatever, McCluster's body could never stand up to the pounding of full time NFL usage. I ranked austin down for just these reasons. I actually have his West Virginia teammate Stedman Bailey ranked higher than Austin. It is very telling that strictly as a receiver, Bailey was the more productive of the two.

 

In watching his video, especially the game against Oklahoma (where they rushed him out of the Pistol option offense 21 times for over 330 yards) I can see why the OP made the Barry Sanders comparison. I watched Barry Sanders play in person twice in Green Bay, and numerous times on TV. When I viewed the Oklahoma game video of Austin, Sanders is immediately who i thought of.

 

But while Austin indeed does have Sanders-like moves, he in no way has Sanders-like functionality. Sanders was an inch and a half shorter (5' 7") but his playing weight was 200 pounds or a shade over. And that was back in the day when the biggest defensive linemen went about 260 lbs.

[mobb_deep 917]

can't believe someone actually said this out loud, lol that's like saying I remind you of Peyton Manning because I can throw the ball through a tire hoop. lol

 

I know right. I don't see the comparison to Barry? He's nowhere near as shifty/flexible in the hips as Barry. And that's what made Barry so special.

 

He's more like a poor mans Reggie Bush or Percy Harvin (aka McCluster).

[DrG 94]

A segue yes, but I see mccluster possibly getting a boost with Alex smith as qb as his check down skills are better than cassel's

[The Next Generation 10]

Jaws already said he was a stud and top 15 pick-worthy. And Greg Cosell loves him, too:

 

NFL Films' Greg Cosell questioned why West Virginia WR Tavon Austin isn't considered a top 10 selection. "Most explosive playmaker in draft," Cosell tweeted. "Can align anywhere. Matchup nightmare. Could be caught in transition phase in NFL. More of space game now. More multiple uses for players like Austin. Like Cobb in GB last season." Cosell added that Austin isn't just a slot receiver, "he is more than that." Mar 20 - 11:28 AM

[madd futher mucker 36]

It is called "creating buzz" before draft day and these guys are good at it . It's their job. If you took all of the guys that these talking heads are saying are top 20 talents and flew them to New York on draft day, they would not just fill a room, it would be an auditorium.

 

Does Austin have the TALENT to be a top 15 or 20 pick? Absolutely. I watched the same game video and highlight video that these guys did. He's a tremendously explosive talent, no question. I get the Barry Sanders comparisons.

 

But here's the problem. He weighs less that a buck seventy five. You have to get him consistently into space with the ball at least 10 times per game for him to be a fantasy stud. I remember the hype surrounding McCluster four years ago when he came out of Mississippi,too.

 

Jaws doesn't have to worry about building a game plan around him. Greg Cosell says he's more than just a slot receiver. I fully agree. He's a slot receiver plus a return guy plus a miniature running back occasionally running gadget plays out of the backfield.

 

Like most everyone else, I've been wrong many times before and I could be on Austin now as well. But I'm already pretty high on him. I really LIKE this kid. Here's a guy who could be very much an asset to his NFL team. That doesn't mean I would draft him in the top ten rookie picks for my dynasty team, though. I've gone down that road too many times before on these "little guys". I've just come to the conclusion that to have a sustaining NFL career and be fantasy relevant, he needs to be at least 10 lbs heavier to have much of a chance, no matter how talented he is. I'll be drafting a bigger fish in this fantasy sea.

 

Prove me wrong, Tavon.

[Cstriker 2]

 

Prove me wrong, Tavon.

 

Probably the stance i will take.