Georgia Tech WRs Smelter and Waller?

Does anybody really know anything about these 2 guys?

I saw a tweet today saying how well Waller tracked a ball really well and caught away from his body. He is crazy huge. 6'6" 238 and ran a 4.46. He had poor production but I am not sure that is odd given they throw the ball an average of 15 times a game. He had his 2 best games the last 2 of the year against FSU and MSU. This was after Smelter got hurt. Since I assume he blocked a lot in college I wonder if he could grow into a really fast TE or just a huge bodied red zone target.

So Smelter is at the combine but not participating in any workouts because he suffered a torn ACL in the last game of the regular season. He is good size measuring in at 6'2" 226 with 11 inch hands. He has better stats than Waller. What is interesting is he only played 2 years of football in college. Sounds like he was a good baseball prospect but something happened to his shoulder. Maybe a low risk redshirt candidate?

Waller profile - http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/dar ... id=2552408
Smelter profile - http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/dea ... id=2552627

Are these guys worth taking a late round or UDFA flyer on?

Someone is going to draft Smelter...guy is too good. He'll probably be gone in 5th or 6th round, if his ACL checks out. 11 inch hands with production...is a steal.

I will say this, if a guy is 6'6" and runs a 4.46.....if he can catch the football, he'll make an NFL squad. That's faster than Matthews and 1" taller, and we saw what Matthews is capable of.

You don't even have to be able to run a route, just "run over there and turn around".

Beckham Green was wowing everyone with his size/speed and he's 6'5", 235 and ran a 4.49. Waller is larger and a bit faster, plus he probably still uses the frontal lobe in his brain.

Wow, amazing times for a 6'6 player. Even more impressive than his overall 40 was his 1.58 10-yard split. That's rare for a player with size.

Watching some of his tape, he looks like a dynamic route runner/deep threat on a triple-option team with a below average QB. He could turn out to be an even taller version of Martavis Bryant, who lived in the shadows of Sammy Watkins at Clemson but has been a real steal for the Stealers.

He had a horrible day in the catching drills with I think four drops . . . so like Bryant he may be available in the 5th Round or below.

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I've posted stuff about both of them on here. Smelter's my favourite guy in this draft and I've done that to death so I wont go there.

As for Waller. I don't see the dynamic route runner Hawknation refers to but I see a bit of Alshon Jeffery. We were never going to see him master a route tree at Tech though, Smelter's the more dynamic player and most of his catches were made up of hitches/comebacks, go-routes and posts. Similar to what you'll see from Waller after Smelter went down.

I've actually mentioned before that I wouldn't mind seeing him add a little bit of bulk and move to TE, because he doesn't look like the athlete on tape that he just proved to be. I guess he gives teams that option should he not succeed as a WR. He'd have the size and speed to be a nightmare over the middle.

I'd put his stock in the 5th as a project. No doubt some team will pick him earlier though, but he really shouldn't be going before Smelter.

SomersetHawk":pkoar48p said:

I've posted stuff about both of them on here. Smelter's my favourite guy in this draft and I've done that to death so I wont go there.

As for Waller. I don't see the dynamic route runner Hawknation refers to but I see a bit of Alshon Jeffery. We were never going to see him master a route tree at Tech though, Smelter's the more dynamic player and most of his catches were made up of hitches/comebacks, go-routes and posts. Similar to what you'll see from Waller after Smelter went down.

I've actually mentioned before that I wouldn't mind seeing him add a little bit of bulk and move to TE, because he doesn't look like the athlete on tape that he just proved to be. I guess he gives teams that option should he not succeed as a WR. He'd have the size and speed to be a nightmare over the middle.

I'd put his stock in the 5th as a project. No doubt some team will pick him earlier though, but he really shouldn't be going before Smelter.

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Only problem with the move to TE idea is that Waller looks like a horrible blocker on tape. Ironically, Waller seems to prefer to wall players off than physically block them. That is doubly strange coming from a receiver in a triple-option system, where receivers often learn more about downfield blocking than they do about actually running routes.

Coming from this system, I can understand why a receiver of his dynamic capabilities would hate football. He probably got torn a new one every day in practice for the way he was blocking. And 2/3 of the time, that's what he would be doing. The way he comes off the line is much slower on those designed runs.

Another intriguing prospect with drafting Waller in the late rounds would be the possibility of getting his teammate Smelter to sign as a free agent, like Baldwin following Sherman to the Hawks. Unfortunately for him, I doubt Smelter will be drafted with his low production and major knee surgery. If that is the case, drafting Waller could be like getting a twofer.

I've banged teh Waller drum for a short while now and on some of the tape I saw I didnt think his blocking was that bad.

I saw his drops on the Gauntlet and feared the worse but a lot say catching is coachable. His other physical traits are very intriguing. I wonder if he goes higher that many think.

UK_Seahawk":34scyj95 said:

I've banged teh Waller drum for a short while now and on some of the tape I saw I didnt think his blocking was that bad.

I saw his drops on the Gauntlet and feared the worse but a lot say catching is coachable. His other physical traits are very intriguing. I wonder if he goes higher that many think.

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I guess the projection is 5th round or later but like you said his measurable are too intriguing not to take a chance on this guy earlier. Heck we drafted Luke Wilson in the 5 th who was even less a mismatch monster than Waller.
Waller tried out as a WR but is more a fast TE. IMO The gauntlet isn't a great test for receivers who aren't familiar with catching and dropping balls immediately. It also doesn't test players ability to catch tall passes a situation where he would have an advantage. Teams targeting him in early rounds will have private workouts with him to test his hands.

Waller trying out as WR may think he is a Calvin Johnson type player but he projects more as a Jimmy Graham.
At 6'6 5/8" and 238lbs with 37 inch vertical then running a 40 in 4.46 sec. He dropped 2 passes in the gauntlet but last year he was one of only two receivers credited with 0 drops of catchable balls.
IMO he would be a good project even with a 3rd round pick. Catches tall passes and makes over the shoulder catches as seen in the combine. He has great length and was in a run heavy offense with a mobile 5' 11" quarterback Justin Thomas who rushed for 900 yards in 2014. Waller was expected to block at GT and strength/size should be a plus, however he only did 12 reps on the bench.