The 2018 NFL Draft Prospect series breaks down draft-eligible players, highlighting their college production as well as their NFL potential. Daily fantasy players should know about NFL rookies before they’ve played a down of professional football because they are among the most misvalued assets in all of DFS. People who know NFL rookies have a significant DFS edge. The draft will be held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, from April 26-28.
This piece is on Notre Dame wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown, who has declared early for the draft. For the total list of all players leaving school early, see our underclassmen tracker.
For more on all the other receivers in the class, see our 2018 NFL draft wide receiver rankings.
Updated as of Mar. 6.
Junior | 6’5″ and 214 Pounds | Born September 30, 1996 (Age: 21) | Projection: Rounds 2-3
Combine numbers: 40-yard: 4.48 sec | bench reps: 20 | 3-cone: DNP | 20-yard shuttle: DNP | vertical: DNP | broad: DNP
This draft has a number of project pass catchers who could be selected on Day 2, and St. Brown is probably the best of them. After playing on special teams for most of his first season and catching just one pass for eight yards, St. Brown broke out as a sophomore, serving as the No. 1 receiver to quarterback DeShone Kizer as he led the team with 58 receptions, 961 yards, and nine touchdowns receiving in 12 games. Among all major-program receivers, St. Brown was fifth with 2.69 yards per route run (Pro Football Focus). The Offensive Player of the Year for the Fighting Irish, St. Brown looked like a future first-rounder.
And then 2017 happened. With Brandon Wimbush at quarterback, the team shifted to more of a ground-based offense, and St. Brown’s production plummeted. He still led the team in the major receiving categories, but his 33 receptions, 515 yards, and four touchdowns were rather pitiful totals, and his market share metrics (22.1 percent of receiving yards; 20 percent of receiving touchdowns) weren’t much better. But even with the lackluster final-season production, St. Brown seems likely to attract NFL franchises. Fluent in English, German, and French, St. Brown is a knowledgeable and smart individual, and he has the frame and presumably genetic makeup to add useful bulk: His father was a two-time back-to-back Mr. Universe in 1981-82. A top-100 high-school recruit just three years ago, St. Brown demonstrated impressive speed and strength for his size at the combine. With his measurables and 2016 production, St. Brown will likely be drafted with a top-100 pick as a high-upside developmental player.
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Matthew Freedman is the Editor-in-Chief of FantasyLabs. He has a dog and sometimes a British accent. In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, he’s known only as The Labyrinthian.
Photo Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
