We saw the return of MACtion late last week, and it was glorious. Plus, some of the best receivers in the conference played well to kick off their seasons, which is ideal for WR Watch. Without Alabama playing and bunch of games cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns, we had to dig a little deeper this week, and that's totally fine.
On the structure front for WR Watch, I decided it was essentially pointless to provide specific rankings of the wideouts prospects each week because everything is so fluid during the season from a scouting perspective. Instead, I'll simply include "stock up," "stock steady," or "stock down" after each receiver's name based on how well he played in the most recent contest.
Rashod Bateman, Minnesota: Stock Up
After back-to-back losses to start the year, Minnesota got back on track with a throttling of Illinois. Bateman continued his strong start to the season with his best performance to date --10 grabs, for 139 yards and a touchdown. The big target worked the chain-moving game well, and throughout the contest demonstrated dynamic YAC abilities. His touchdown was a short, lofted toss into the end zone. Bateman does everything well and has an NFL frame to play on the outside.
Chris Olave, Ohio State: Stock Steady
Olave only had five grabs for 64 yards against Rutgers, but two of those scores went for touchdowns. The first came on a rollout from Justin Fields and asked Olave to toe tap before going out of bounds. The second was a demonstration of Olave's speed -- and Fields' laser of an arm -- on a go route down the left sideline. Olave might not provide first-round caliber skills after the catch, but he's a sharp route runner and looks to have sub 4.5 speed.
Dyami Brown, North Carolina: Stock Down
Right when we think we're going to see the high-flying Tar Heels of a season ago, Mack Brown reminds everyone this club is all about its fantastic run-game duo of Javonte Williams and Michael Carter, both of whom have carried it over 100 times already this season.
In the 56-24 win over rival Duke, North Carolina ran it 47 times to just 27 Sam Howell passes. Anyway, Brown went for 26 yards on two catches after eclipsing the 100-yard mark a week ago. He's an up-and-down player. Big, vertical splash plays will occur because of his build-up speed and tremendous ball-tracking capabilities. But a high-volume wideout? Most likely not. Watch, next week he'll go off for 124 yards on five catches.
Antonio Nunn, Buffalo: Stock Up
It was a fine beginning to Nunn's senior year, a six-grab, 102-yard effort with a score in the Bulls' win over Northern Illinois. His touchdown was a tremendous display of nuance from a receiver, as Nunn reached over his head for the football at the last second to pluck it away from the defensive back in tight coverage. Later in the first half, Nunn deployed a nasty stiff arm on a defender on a simple out route that allowed him to generate major YAC. He's averaged over 15 yards per grab in his four-year stint at Buffalo and has a nice, complete game.
Kadarius Toney, Florida: Stock Down
For as twitchy and creative as Toney is as a route runner and with the fooball in his hands, he can overdo it at times, making multiple cuts when they're not really needed. That was the case against Georgia, and he dropped a pass from Kyle Trask. He finished the game with seven catches for just 42 yards. Now, the rain made for a slippery surface in Jacksonville, but Toney has to rein in his juking at times, especially during a game with those weather conditions.
D'Wayne Eskridge, Western Michigan: Stock Up
The fifth-year senior is gone in a flash, as evidenced by his 76-yard slant touchdown in the second half against Akron to begin the MAC season. He caught the ball in the middle of the field, continued running toward the sideline and had the speed to outrun pursuit angles down the field. He nearly did the same thing later in the game but was forced back to the inside on what was another big gain. Eskridge had three catches for 114 yards and two touchdowns to start the year. He's quick off the line and plays with no hesitation after the catch.
