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) Positives: Great elusiveness for size (14 missed tackles forced on 101 receptions) Top deep threat (18th in the nation with 493 receiving yards on catches over 20 yards downfield, also ranked 24th with 12 deep receptions and 27th with 5 touchdowns) Superbly reliable hands (2.8% career drop rate with 5 drops against 171 receptions) Negatives: Did not break out until senior season (over half of career receptions, yards, and touchdowns were accumulated in 2019) Laviska Shenault, Colorado (Junior, 6'1, 227 pounds) Positives: Elusiveness (34 broken tackles over past two seasons) Great contested catch ability (grabbed 14 of 22 contested balls over past two seasons) Hands (4.9% drop rate in 2019) Negatives: Limited intermediate and deep production in 2019 (caught 5/14 deep passes with 2 touchdowns and 9/16 intermediate passes with no touchdowns) Injuries (20 games played over past two seasons) Disappointing combine (22nd percentile with 4.58 forty and 20th percentile with 9-inch hands) Bryan Edwards, South Carolina (Senior, 6'3, 215 pounds) Positives: Soft hands (4.0% drop rate) Screen game weapon (6th with 36 screen receptions and 5th with 273 yards on those) Negatives: Brutal deep game (caught 4/17 deep passes and ranked 248th with a 73.3 receiving grade on those targets) Little production when not used on screens (35 non-screen receptions, just 3.5 per game) K.J. Hamler, Penn St. (Redshirt Sophomore, 5'9, 178 pounds) Positives: Top-notch from the slot (25th in the nation with 797 receiving yards out of the slot) Very good down the field for a slot man, especially one at his size (35th in the nation with 11 deep receptions and 27th with 5 touchdowns) Negatives: Terrible drop rate (17.6%, 12 drops with 56 catches) Limited contested catch ability (caught 4/11) Pigeonholed to slot (Lined up there for 92.0% of routes over past two seasons) Van Jefferson, Florida (Redshirt Senior, 6'2, 197 pounds) Positives: Excellent short game (130.0 passer rating when targeted under 10 yards downfield, 12th-best) Efficient when targeted deep (5/11 deep, 12/19 intermediate) Nice contested catch rate on small sample size (5/10) Negatives: Limited elusiveness (17 broken tackles on 174 career receptions) Lack of downfield impact (Outside of top-200 in receiving grade on both deep and intermediate targets) Age (will already be 24 before beginning of rookie season) Chase Claypool, Notre Dame (Senior, 6'4, 238 pounds) Positives: Intriguing elusiveness for his large frame (27 career broken tackles on 151 receptions) Absolute unit in contested situations (Tied for 17th in the nation 15 with contested grabs, those coming on 26 targets for an excellent 57.7% catch rate) Short-range weapon, especially in the red zone (Tied for 1st with 6 touchdown grabs under 10 yards downfield, while his 132.0 passer rating when targeted in the short range ranked 9th) Deep threat (tied for 4th with 16 deep catches and tied for 10th with 6 deep touchdowns, caught an incredible 16/30 deep targets) Unbelievable athleticism (4.42 forty, 83rd percentile, at 238 pounds, 98th percentile. 99th percentile speed score. Added 40.5-inch vertical, 93rd percentile) Negatives: Quiet in the intermediate range (7/21 caught with 0 touchdowns, ranking 320th with a 54.3 passer rating when targeted) Drops are a slight issue (9.6%) Tweener size (too small for tight end at the moment but may not have required quickness for wide receiver) Lynn Bowden, Kentucky (Junior, 5'11, 204 pounds) Positives: Gadget potential with extensive passing experience (played quarterback as an emergency option, throwing 74 passes, although he had a 60.8 passer rating on those) Tremendously elusive as a runner (48 broken tackles on 166 designed runs) Elusiveness translates to passing game (11 broken tackles on 30 receptions) Negatives: Extremely prone to drops (16.2% rate) Non-factor in the intermediate range (1/11 targets caught) Screen touches were not effective (4.5 yards per reception on 13 opportunities) Overall inefficient target (6.1 yards per target with 1 touchdown over 57 targets) Donovan Peoples-Jones, Michigan (Junior, 6'2, 212 pounds) Positives: Incredible athlete (99th percentile marks among wide receivers with both 44.5-inch vertical and 139-inch broad jump) Solid intermediate option (tied for 8th in the nation with 5 intermediate touchdown grabs) Negatives: Average overall production (1.73 yards per route run, 53rd percentile among wide receivers) Poor downfield threat (2/10 deep targets caught, ranked 367th with 60.5 deep receiving grade) Does not use athleticism to thrive in crowded scenarios (4/11 contested opportunities caught) No progression (career-high of 47.1 yards per game in 2018 sophomore season and dipped to 39.8 in 2019)