Round Two: Riley Ridley, WR, University of Georgia
Don’t let the haters out there tell you that Ridley isn’t a top receiver in this class because of “market shares”, etc.
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They often choose to actively ignore the fact that Georgia runs a pro-style, run first offense that features many future NFLer’s that all command a certain amount of targets within the offense.
The offense includes players like Deandre Swift, Elijah Holyfield, Isaac Nauta, Mecole Hardman, Terry Godwin, and Jeremiah Holloman; and yet, in most high leverage situations, the team often chose to go his way (including twice in a row with the SEC Championship on the line this past year).
Ridley is a very refined route runner and uses his skills in that department to gain separation from his defenders, often being so wide open you wonder what in the world the defense was doing. Ridley doesn’t have elite speed, but has enough to get by defenders on occasion. Ridley’s hands are solid and dependable, though sometimes he can suffer from concentration drops.
Ridley is an all-around talented receiver and will likely not slide past round two, maybe even sneaking into late round one. Ridley can win with his technique and refinement in his routes. Ridley would make an excellent addition to the Lions team.