2023 NFL Draft Preview: Scouting report on USC wide receiver Jordan Addison

In terms of pass catchers there are question marks abound for the Seattle Seahawks. DK Metcalf is locked in as a long-term piece, however, outside of him nobody is guaranteed to be a part of the in 2024 and beyond. Noah Fant’s contract expires after the 2023 season, Tyler Lockett has been a longtime star for Seattle but he’s in his 30s and his 2024 cap number could make him a cut candidate, and Dee Eskridge has hardly played over his first two seasons.

As a result, Seattle is going to have to bring in at least one pass catcher early in the draft this season. Luckily there are multiple day one starting wide receivers in this year’s draft class. Throughout the offseason I will break down the wide receiver/tight end class, with this article being focused on USC’s Jordan Addison.

Strengths

• Off of the snap Addison has a fantastic rhythm step that allows him to consistently vary his releases as well as make it more difficult for corners to press him. When physical corners try to jam him at the line, Addison has the understanding to take a back step with his front foot and to swat the corners hands to prevent a strong jam.
• As a route runner Addison is extremely silky. Addison has fantastic footwork both off of the line of scrimmage and throughout the course of the route. His feet never get too tight to each other, and he is always on the balls of his feet rather than getting flatfooted. He does a great job of incorporating head movement and shoulder shimmies throughout the course of the route to prevent corners from sitting on anything and to potentially create more separation during the route.
• He works around zone defenders well; rather than simply going across the face of a linebacker he moves around them and then gets in behind them on intermediate and deep routes. He then has the football intelligence (FBI) to slow it down in the soft spots of the zone rather than continuing his route at the same speed.
• Addison has strong hands and comfortably makes hands catches rather than letting the ball travel into his body when it does not have to. He does not have any problem with concentration drops.
• With the ball in his hands Addison is a true threat to make something happen. He is a very sudden and twitchy athlete which allows him to cut with ease as well as stopping on a dime which makes defenders miss.
• Addison also has fantastic contact balance which allows him to bounce off tackles whilst maintaining his center of gravity opening up the possibility for significant yards after contact.
• He is a more than willing blocker who seeks out defenders. Despite his size he does well against physical defenders as he is able to maintain the block throughout the play. He also has the FBI to seal off defenders by working inside or outside of them depending on where the run is going.

Weaknesses

• Addison does not have that elite breakaway speed that some receivers have, and it shows on deep balls.
• When the play breaks down Addison needs to do a better job in the second route on the play in terms of trying to get open for his quarterback, by either working back from deep or going deep on short routes.
• He doesn’t have the size of a prototypical “X” receiver.

Floor/ceiling

Addison’s route running, fantastic release, strong hands, ability to make defenders miss and ability to get low in and out of his breaks gives him the ceiling of an All-Pro receiver, however his lack of breakaway speed and inconsistencies in the second route give him the floor of a solid starter.

Grade - Solid three-down starter - High to mid first

Grade explanation - Addison has just about everything you would want in a true number one receiver. He possesses the athleticism, hands, after the catch ability, silky route running and a solid release which is why I gave him the grade of a solid three-down starter. His frame is going to be used against him throughout the draft process and you will see him slide down some mocks and rankings because of it. However, it is not something I am concerned with because of all of the strong traits he possesses.

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