Advanced numbers behind Day 2 wide receiver targets for the New York Jets

The 2020 NFL Draft class is deep at one of the New York Jets’ biggest positions of need, so which prospects could the team target in rounds two and three?

Tee Higgins, Clemson (Junior, 6’4, 205 pounds)

Positives:

• Extremely productive overall (3.67 yards per route run, 2nd-best among qualified FBS wide receivers)
• Fantastic deep production (15 catches for 565 yards on passes over 20 yards downfield, both ranked 8th in the nation, and 6 touchdowns, tied for 10th. 9th-best deep receiving grade at 94.5)
• Equally great intermediate production (tied for 4th in the nation with 6 receiving touchdowns from 10-19 yards downfield and ranked 13th with 92.1 receiving grade)
• Octopus length (34⅛” arms, 96th percentile among wide receivers)
• Uses that length to dominate in contested situations (11/20 contested passes caught, 55.0%)

Negatives:

• Not much production in the short game (on passes under 10 yards downfield, ranked 98th in receiving grade at 70.5 and 178th in passer rating when targeted at 92.6)

Denzel Mims, Baylor (Senior, 6’3, 207 pounds)

Positives:

• Intermediate beast (led the nation with 9 touchdowns in 10-19 yard range)
• Amazing knack for grabbing jump balls (tied for 2nd in the nation with 20 contested catches, those coming on 41 targets for a solid rate of 48.8%)
• Speed/size combo (4.38 forty, 90th percentile, at 207 pounds, 62nd percentile. That gives him a 96th percentile speed score, which combines weight and forty time)
• Excellent overall production (82nd percentile among qualified wide receivers with 2.36 yards per route run)

Negatives:

• Drops (12.9% drop rate over past two seasons with 18 drops against 121 receptions)
• Limited versatility (1 screen reception, 4 slot receptions)

Michael Pittman, USC (Senior, 6’4, 223 pounds)