Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater

burningmetal · 05-22-2015, 08:06 AM

Originally Posted by jeanpierre

That's a better take on it; he doesn't have that "suddenness" that Coach Payton speaks, but he does manage to get separation and he seems to have good hands...

The size is definitely there as well...

You know Eric Dickerson was a long strider and he did okay in the league...

It's all about finding your way, being there every Sunday, and producing when your name is called so we'll see...

Being a long strider isn't the same as being slow. Dickerson was fast (Ran a 4.3). Prater runs a 4.7, or around there, which is quite slow. Jerry Rice had a bad 40 time (though he sure looked fast to me) but he was lightning quick, ran flawless routes and nobody ever had better hands than him.

Prater doesn't seem to have any of those qualities at this point, and I don't know how you just coach all that up. I honestly do think that putting on weight and being a tight end would be his only ticket. That's a real long shot, but who knows.

K Major · 05-22-2015, 10:21 AM

Originally Posted by burningmetal

Being a long strider isn't the same as being slow. Dickerson was fast (Ran a 4.3). Prater runs a 4.7, or around there, which is quite slow. Jerry Rice had a bad 40 time (though he sure looked fast to me) but he was lightning quick, ran flawless routes and nobody ever had better hands than him.

Prater doesn't seem to have any of those qualities at this point, and I don't know how you just coach all that up. I honestly do think that putting on weight and being a tight end would be his only ticket. That's a real long shot, but who knows.

Yep & just to follow up on this, Dickerson was a long strider because he was a rather tall RB and was super fast. I remember watching the ESPN 30-30 on Jerry Rice & Bill Walsh use to say all the time that when he studied film on Rice @ Miss Valley State, he had a 2nd gear like no WR he had ever seen in his days of football. I guess that would explain why we rarely saw him getting tackled from behind. Between 10-45 yards is where he did most of his damage

.

darksoul35 · 05-18-2015, 10:01 AM

Originally Posted by Cruize

Good young man. Has the size and hands. Looks horribly slow and stiff.

That is the question I was going to ask. If he is fast or not. I want speed from our wide recievers but Colston has been great for us. Hope he does well.

hagan714 · 05-18-2015, 12:29 AM

he can run Jimmy's' routes. the kid does an excellent job catching with his hands, solid body control and an excellent catch radius

looking forward to seeing Browner match up with him in camp

burningmetal · 05-18-2015, 04:45 AM

If I remember right, some people had him as the #1 WR prospect coming out of highschool. This is the first I've heard his name since. Forgot all about him. Obviously he was highly overrated, but maybe there is something in him the Saints can wake up.

When we've had success with UDFA's it's typically been guys who actually succeeded, but because of size or lack of competition or a combination along those lines, they went undrafted. I'm not too high on guys who just flat didn't do much of anything. But it doesn't hurt to look.

saintsfan1976 · 05-18-2015, 07:05 AM

Speed isn't everything but you must catch the ball...

Strengths

Size, size, size. If there's one attribute that is valued by NFL scouts simply off the eye test, it's size, and Prater has a lot of that. There aren't many 6'5" receivers out there, which makes him a difficult matchup for smaller defensive backs. There's a reason he was so highly sought after high school and why he showed the flashes he did with Northwestern.

Weaknesses

Getting the ball in Prater's area isn't the problem; the problem is whether he'll catch it or not and whether the defender gets there before him. He had his fair share of drops at NU but his most glaring deficiency is lack of foot speed and agility, which feeds into poor route-running. A 40-time of 4.75 is not promising at all, even for a possession receiver such as Prater. In the NFL, even the big receivers can move quickly, and Prater is just not at that point yet.

Overview

One of the most-used clichés in sports is that you can't teach size, which, even with its overuse, is inherently true. That's why Prater will likely find himself on an NFL's team roster this summer for a training camp and maybe even into the fall. The fact is that he's just not athletic enough, at least right now, to compete in an incredibly physical league in which even the bigger receivers, and defensive backs, can run sub-4.40 40-yard dashes. In high school and college, extreme size can trump deficient speed but it can't in the NFL, which is why it would be a surprise if Prater is selected in this year's draft.

His best chance to make a name for himself in the league though would be as a tight end/slot receiver hybrid. In fact, multiple NFL teams have told Prater that that is where they see him. If he could put on some weight to help handle the blocking duties of the position, he'd be a tough matchup for NFL linebackers over the middle of the field.

hagan714 · 05-18-2015, 08:19 AM

His best chance to make a name for himself in the league though would be as a tight end/slot receiver hybrid. In fact, multiple NFL teams have told Prater that that is where they see him. If he could put on some weight to help handle the blocking duties of the position, he'd be a tough matchup for NFL linebackers over the middle of the field.

yep i bet this is what the saints are thinking.

saintsfan1976 · 05-18-2015, 09:12 AM

Originally Posted by hagan714

yep i bet this is what the saints are thinking.

Good call. I'd like to see less of Colston in that role.

K Major · 05-18-2015, 12:38 PM

Unless he balls out of control in training camp, I would expect the Saints to develop him (practice squad) this year.

Rugby Saint II · 05-18-2015, 01:18 PM

He is another tantalizing prospect this year. He could turn into an NFL tight end with some good coaching. Josh Hill doesn't look much more flexible and produces on the field. These two could be a nice combo in a couple of years........or not.

05-22-2015, 08:06 AM	#1
burningmetal 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 3,923 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater Originally Posted by jeanpierre That's a better take on it; he doesn't have that "suddenness" that Coach Payton speaks, but he does manage to get separation and he seems to have good hands... The size is definitely there as well... You know Eric Dickerson was a long strider and he did okay in the league... It's all about finding your way, being there every Sunday, and producing when your name is called so we'll see... Being a long strider isn't the same as being slow. Dickerson was fast (Ran a 4.3). Prater runs a 4.7, or around there, which is quite slow. Jerry Rice had a bad 40 time (though he sure looked fast to me) but he was lightning quick, ran flawless routes and nobody ever had better hands than him. Prater doesn't seem to have any of those qualities at this point, and I don't know how you just coach all that up. I honestly do think that putting on weight and being a tight end would be his only ticket. That's a real long shot, but who knows.
	If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, the NFL would fine and suspend me.

05-22-2015, 10:21 AM	#2
K Major Site Donor 2019 Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Bedford, TX Posts: 24,738 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater Originally Posted by burningmetal Being a long strider isn't the same as being slow. Dickerson was fast (Ran a 4.3). Prater runs a 4.7, or around there, which is quite slow. Jerry Rice had a bad 40 time (though he sure looked fast to me) but he was lightning quick, ran flawless routes and nobody ever had better hands than him. Prater doesn't seem to have any of those qualities at this point, and I don't know how you just coach all that up. I honestly do think that putting on weight and being a tight end would be his only ticket. That's a real long shot, but who knows. Yep & just to follow up on this, Dickerson was a long strider because he was a rather tall RB and was super fast. I remember watching the ESPN 30-30 on Jerry Rice & Bill Walsh use to say all the time that when he studied film on Rice @ Miss Valley State, he had a 2nd gear like no WR he had ever seen in his days of football. I guess that would explain why we rarely saw him getting tackled from behind. Between 10-45 yards is where he did most of his damage .

05-18-2015, 10:01 AM	#3
darksoul35 1000 Posts + Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 1,044	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater Originally Posted by Cruize Good young man. Has the size and hands. Looks horribly slow and stiff. That is the question I was going to ask. If he is fast or not. I want speed from our wide recievers but Colston has been great for us. Hope he does well.
darksoul35 1000 Posts + Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 1,044

05-18-2015, 12:29 AM	#4
hagan714 LB Mentallity Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 15,870 Blog Entries: 68	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater he can run Jimmy's' routes. the kid does an excellent job catching with his hands, solid body control and an excellent catch radius looking forward to seeing Browner match up with him in camp darstep, brees84 and Saint in Aus like this.
	Last edited by hagan714; 05-18-2015 at 12:41 AM..

05-18-2015, 04:45 AM	#5
burningmetal 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 3,923 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater If I remember right, some people had him as the #1 WR prospect coming out of highschool. This is the first I've heard his name since. Forgot all about him. Obviously he was highly overrated, but maybe there is something in him the Saints can wake up. When we've had success with UDFA's it's typically been guys who actually succeeded, but because of size or lack of competition or a combination along those lines, they went undrafted. I'm not too high on guys who just flat didn't do much of anything. But it doesn't hurt to look. hagan714 and Rugby Saint II like this.
	If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, the NFL would fine and suspend me.

05-18-2015, 07:05 AM	#6
saintsfan1976 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Atlanta Posts: 10,972 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater Speed isn't everything but you must catch the ball... Strengths Size, size, size. If there's one attribute that is valued by NFL scouts simply off the eye test, it's size, and Prater has a lot of that. There aren't many 6'5" receivers out there, which makes him a difficult matchup for smaller defensive backs. There's a reason he was so highly sought after high school and why he showed the flashes he did with Northwestern. Weaknesses Getting the ball in Prater's area isn't the problem; the problem is whether he'll catch it or not and whether the defender gets there before him. He had his fair share of drops at NU but his most glaring deficiency is lack of foot speed and agility, which feeds into poor route-running. A 40-time of 4.75 is not promising at all, even for a possession receiver such as Prater. In the NFL, even the big receivers can move quickly, and Prater is just not at that point yet. Overview One of the most-used clichés in sports is that you can't teach size, which, even with its overuse, is inherently true. That's why Prater will likely find himself on an NFL's team roster this summer for a training camp and maybe even into the fall. The fact is that he's just not athletic enough, at least right now, to compete in an incredibly physical league in which even the bigger receivers, and defensive backs, can run sub-4.40 40-yard dashes. In high school and college, extreme size can trump deficient speed but it can't in the NFL, which is why it would be a surprise if Prater is selected in this year's draft. His best chance to make a name for himself in the league though would be as a tight end/slot receiver hybrid. In fact, multiple NFL teams have told Prater that that is where they see him. If he could put on some weight to help handle the blocking duties of the position, he'd be a tough matchup for NFL linebackers over the middle of the field.

05-18-2015, 08:19 AM	#7
hagan714 LB Mentallity Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 15,870 Blog Entries: 68	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater His best chance to make a name for himself in the league though would be as a tight end/slot receiver hybrid. In fact, multiple NFL teams have told Prater that that is where they see him. If he could put on some weight to help handle the blocking duties of the position, he'd be a tough matchup for NFL linebackers over the middle of the field. yep i bet this is what the saints are thinking. saintsfan1976, SmashMouth and brees84 like this.

05-18-2015, 09:12 AM	#8
saintsfan1976 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Atlanta Posts: 10,972 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater Originally Posted by hagan714 yep i bet this is what the saints are thinking. Good call. I'd like to see less of Colston in that role.

05-18-2015, 12:38 PM	#9
K Major Site Donor 2019 Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Bedford, TX Posts: 24,738 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater Unless he balls out of control in training camp, I would expect the Saints to develop him (practice squad) this year.

05-18-2015, 01:18 PM	#10
Rugby Saint II Bounty Money $$$ Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 5800 Airline Dr. Metairie, LA. Posts: 24,117	Re: Saints signing wide receiver Kyle Prater He is another tantalizing prospect this year. He could turn into an NFL tight end with some good coaching. Josh Hill doesn't look much more flexible and produces on the field. These two could be a nice combo in a couple of years........or not.

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