“(Harrison’s) not No. 1 to me,” said a veteran NFL receivers coach, whose team is in the market for another top receiver, and whom we’ll ID as
WR Coach 1. “Nabers is the No. 1 on my list and I think he is on a lot of people’s lists. He’s just different to me. I don’t think it’s anything toward Marvin, it’s just really that Nabers is
that good. His skills with the ball in his hands are really different. His acceleration is just different. His explosive is different. He tracks the ball really well. He’s a smaller guy but he can still play outside. He’s rare in a lot of ways. He’s got some
Ja’Marr Chase in him, some
DJ Moore skills. I hesitate to say this because
Tyreek Hill’s speed is just so different from anybody in the league, but Nabers has some of that kind of burst and just so explosive off the line of scrimmage.
“He’s as fast as the person chasing him. He’s gonna run away from whoever. If Deion was chasing him, he’d go 4.21 or whatever. He’s the best WR prospect since Chase and on tape, I think he’s even more impressive. This dude is different.”
Another long-time NFL assistant, who has coached receivers and been an NFL offensive coordinator, agreed that Nabers was the top receiver prospect.
“It’s Nabers and then there’s a gap,” said
Offensive Assistant 1. “He is the best wide receiver in the draft in a couple of years, maybe more. He is Tyreek Hill combined with both of those San Francisco guys (
Deebo Samuel and
Brandon Aiyuk). He is so explosive. He has a second gear. He can stop on a dime. He breaks tackles. You can’t jam him because he’s just too quick and if you miss at all, he’s gonna outrun you. He’s really competitive but he can be a pain in the ass. He’ll be the guy who’ll have something to say to the coordinator coming off the field. He’s got that edge to him where he doesn’t know when to let up. He doesn’t know that those guys are on his side.”
Scout 1: “Nabers is so much more explosive. I think he has more upside. I don’t know if I trust him like I trust Marvin. I trust Marvin to be disciplined.”
WR Coach 2: “We have Nabers as No. 1. He’s got all the ability in the world. He’s got Receiver No. 1 written all over him. He does have some stuff he’s got to clean up. Route running, which will come naturally with the right coach and group of receivers. So much upside. He just brings a different presence. His physicality. You see that on tape. He’s got that dawg in him.”
“Marvin is great too,” said
WR Coach 1. “You question just how fast he is. He can take the top off and he’s got elite ball skills and elite tracking. I don’t see 23 mph — that’s really,
really fast. He’s to me more of a glider, build-up speed type of guy. Which you would expect, because he is huge.”
Offensive Assistant 1: “Marvin is really good. Polished. If you’re looking to pick on something, he’s not gonna run by people. They’re gonna squat on him at the top of the break. He’s good. I just wished he did the testing. He comes across as casual a little bit.”
Scout 1: “I think Marvin is pretty damn explosive. Physically, he’s like a 6-3
CeeDee Lamb. He just doesn’t have that innate dog that Malik has.”
WR Coach 2: “Harrison is like a fluid, smooth receiver. He doesn’t have the same elite traits like Nabers. He can separate and catches the ball real well. I don’t think he wows you.”
Scout 1: “Rome is the safest guy of the receivers. He’s just not as talented as Malik or Harrison as far as getting consistent separation at an NFL level. I trust him a little more than those guys. As far as strength through the catch, he might be the best. He’s built right to last and run routes.”
WR Coach 1: “He’s great at tracking the ball; he’s rugged and has good run after the catch ability. Can play inside and out, and he’s so smart — like different type of smart. He can pick things up so easily and will adapt easily to the pro game because of the system and the concepts they had there, and that really shows up in his game.”
Offensive Assistant 1: “I like the grit and his lower body is really strong. But he’s not running by people or closing cushion like Nabers does.”
WR Coach 2: “I think you have a top two with Malik and Marvin, and then I think there’s Rome, who I don’t think is in that same tier as those two. Rome has the make-up to be really good but in my opinion he doesn’t have the elite traits like the other two. I question his top-end (speed). He doesn’t have that juice like Nabers. He’s more of a possession-type receiver. He’s a more polished route runner, but I don’t think he’s to the level of Marvin.”