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Prospect Preview: Treylon Burks

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Position: Wide Recieiver

College: Arkansas

Height: 6’ 3”

Weight: 225 lbs

Age: 21

247 Rating: 0.9544 (4 Stars)

By: Nate Christian (@NateNFL)

The Rundown:

Treylon Burks is going to be a lot of people’s favorite prospect this year. The size, the speed, the production profile. There is so much to love about Burks and his potential. Is he all that and a bag of chips? Well… yeah, most likely. Could he be the next N’Keal Harry ($2,524,587)? Well… we always run that risk.

College Production:

A member of the 2019 SEC All-Freshman Team, Burks has produced at a high level every year since joining the Razorbacks. Impressively, he has improved year over year and finished 2021 as one of the best receivers in the nation. Over his three-year college career, he averaged over 16 yards per catch each year and was used in a variety of ways, logging 38 rushes over that time as well. The 2021 season saw the Razorbacks finish 9-4, their best finish since 2011, and one of the key contributors was Burks. As a Junior, he finished with 66 receptions, over 1,100 yards, and found the end zone 12 times (once on the ground). An impressive finish to a great college career.

Strengths:

  • Alpha Size- “You can’t teach size”, a great word of advice to NFL head coaches and scouts everywhere. When we look at some the most dominant receivers in the history of the NFL many of them won with great technique and athletic ability on top of impressive size (the top four leaders in career reception yards were all 6’ 2” or taller: Jerry Rice, Larry Fitzgerald, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss). Burks’ size sets him apart from many other receivers in this draft class and past classes, as he is able to use his size to win at the catch point. As an outside receiver, he is going to match-up well against NFL defenders and shouldn’t find much struggle with the transition to the next level.
  • Back-Shoulder King- Back shoulder catches catch our eyes as impressive feats of physicality and control. Burks has no problem making these tough catches and making defenders look small. His ability to use his length, thick frame, and strong hands to make contested catches is very impressive, and he’s bound to hit the SportsCenter Top 10 plays at least twice a season.
  • High Level Athlete- The size is impressive, we’ve gone over that multiple times now. But he is no lumbering giant out there on the football field. Burks is a player who is used on screens, sweeps, and even out of the backfield at times. Think about how Chase Claypool ($1,654,156) has been used with the Steelers so far, that’s what we saw with Burks at Arkansas. The speed and acceleration is there, the home run threat is there. Let’s hope an NFL coach is comfortable making Burks a focal point.

Weaknesses:

  • Strength After the Catch- I will not doubt Burks’ ability to be physically dominant, we see it often during contested catch situations, but once the ball is in his hands he doesn’t always keep it at that high level. When he’s running with the ball you would expect him to run people over and carry defenders along the sidelines for extra yards. While he’s not necessarily “soft”, he lacks that aggression after the catch that could really set him apart from other big receivers.
  • Run Blocking- Not sure what the reason is behind this one,. He has the frame to be a great run blocker and to really make an impact for his team on every down, but the effort and technique just doesn’t consistently come together in this facet of his game. Hopefully this will be one of the first coaching points for Burks in minicamp and we can see quick progression to get him on the field early and often.
  • Average Technique- As with many prospect who rely on physicality and athletic ability to win against their competition, Burks is not the most polished receiver as a prospect. He’s able to run a variety of routes but his cuts are often rounded, and he doesn’t breakdown low and smooth. Nothing bad here, but if he wants to be one of the best he will have to continue to improve in this area.

Things to Watch:

Burks is going to blow up the NFL Combine. Just get ready for it now. It’s going to happen. A 4.3 isn’t out of the question, and as a player who will come in at 6’ 3” and 225 pounds, it’s going to create a ton of hype. That’s about all there is to prepare for, the eventual explosion after the NFL Combine. It’s going to be great.

Projected Round/Contract:  

Being one of the top receivers in this draft class I believe that Burks is a lock for the first round this year and could be as high as Top-10 if a team loves his athletic traits enough. It seems that the media is not as high on Burks as Twitter scouts and fantasy football enthusiasts, but it’s only a matter of time before the two come together in consensus.

If Burks goes in the middle of the first round, I expect his contract to be somewhere close to $4,000,000 a year over four years, with that fifth-year option at the end of his rookie contract. With the type of production he could provide over his first couple years, this will be a great value.

Team Fits:  

A player like Burks is a rather “landing spot proof” player. He doesn’t need a specific system to excel, and his experience both in the slot and outside along the sideline gives him versatility for any offensive coordinator. But when looking at the 2022 NFL Draft, there are a couple teams in the middle of the first round that could use an X receiver like Burks.

With three picks in the middle of the first round, the Philadelphia Eagles could look at a first-round receiver for the third year in a row. While it is a need for the team they might look elsewhere before spending another valuable draft pick on a wideout. But if they do look Burks’ way with one of those picks it could be a great match. DeVonta Smith ($5,035,348) is a talented player, but he could be the technician to complement the power and physicality of a player like Burks. This pairing could lead to a great situation for Jalen Hurts ($1,506,292) to take another step forward if he is to be the future of the Eagles franchise.

Depending on the future of upcoming free agent Mike Williams ($15,680,000), the Chargers could be looking for a new outside receiver to pair with Keenan Allen ($20,025,000) and Justin Herbert ($6,644,688). Burks would be a great replacement for Williams and would be a dream landing spot for fantasy football players as he would be tied to one of the best young quarterbacks in the game. The Chargers have the 17th overall pick, and I would say there’s a decent chance for Burks to head to the City of Angels.

Make sure to follow Nate Christian over on Twitter at @NateNFL and check out all the work he is doing with the Dynasty Rewind (@DynastyRewind).

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