Jaylen Waddle NFL Draft Prospect Profile

Yahoo Sports’ lead draft analyst Eric Edholm shares his evaluation of the Alabama wide receiver.

Video Transcript

[YAHOO SPORTS THEME MUSIC PLAYING]

ERIC EDHOLM: Alabama wide receiver Jaylen Waddle has shown he's one of the premier playmakers in the country and, believe it or not, he actually had more receiving yards than Heisman winner Devonta Smith when Waddle got hurt early last season. Waddle suffered a broken ankle, but he came back for the National Title Game. And for the upside, he shows he has elite game-changing speed. There simply aren't corners in the NFL who can beat him in a footrace, not many at least. Whether it's on a catch, a run, or a punt return, Waddle's a threat to take it the distance every single time he touches the ball. On the downside, he's got a slim build and some durability questions that must be answered. Still, he's also not the most natural hands catcher we've scouted this year. For an NFL comp, we are going big. We're going with Tyreek Hill. Waddle may not have the same sort of thickness Hill does, that running back-type build, but we see the same game-changing speed that Hill brings to the Chiefs every single week in the NFL.