With Ernest Wilford and Ted Ginn Jr. seemingly locked into starting WR roles, I thought I’d try my hand at handicapping the battle for the 3rd receiver position. We have a number of options on the roster right now, but none of them really stand out. Obviously, as we progress through the preseason there may be someone that rises to the top, but I thought I’d try my hand at prognostication before that happens. Without further ado, here are the contenders: Davone Bess Measurables: 5’10 / 190 lbs / Rookie Strengths: Made plays all over the field during his collegiate career at Hawaii. Had an extremely productive career in the Warrior’s pass-happy system. My personal favorite out of the Warriors receiving core. Quick off the line of scrimmage. Weaknesses: Raw talent that will likely need a few years to develop (a la Wes Welker). Does not have a great top gear. May be a product of the Hawaii offense and nothing more. Odds of Starting: 12 to 1. Bess may see the field on special teams or late in the year. At this point he’s a project. Greg Camarillo Measurables: 6’1 / 190 lbs / 3 years Strengths: Fan favorite due to making the game-winning catch (and the only win of the season) against the Baltimore Ravens. Very good route runner. Seems to have decent hands as well. Weaknesses: Development has been slow. Baltimore game was his only significant contribution last year. Does not have the measurables you look for in a slot receiver. Odds of Starting: 8 to 1. Camarillo may see the field in 4 WR looks, but probably won’t be the 3rd. Jayson Foster Measurables: 5’7 / 170 lbs / Rookie Strengths: A human highlight reel that scored touchdowns rushing, passing, receiving, and on both kick and punt returns. Weaknesses: Did not play against top competition in college; unique skill set may not translate to the NFL. Offensive Coordinators will have difficulty finding a way to get him on the field. Extremely undersized for a WR. Odds of Starting: 20 to 1. I’m expecting Foster to get stashed on the Practice Squad, because he can simulate a variety of athletes during practice. Derek Hagan Measurables: 6’2 / 203 lbs / 2 years Strengths: Has the physical tools at his disposal – decent route running, and he looks the part of a WR. Has more playing experience than any other WR on the roster not named Wilford. Weaknesses: He seems to lose focus at certain points during games. This leads to dropped passes and sloppy in his route running. Odds of Starting: 5 to 2. Hagan is the favorite to start because the other choices are behind him in terms of development. This is an important year for him, as it will be his third year in the league – generally touted as the year WRs either break through or flunk out. David Kircus Measurables: 6’2 / 192 lbs / 3 years Strengths: Can come up with the spectacular catch at times. Plays hard when he is on the field. Weaknesses: No real experience playing or seeing the field. Will have to fight to overcome the “journeyman” label, as this is his 3rd team in his short career. Did not play in 2007. Odds of Starting: 25 to 1. I’ll actually be surprised if Kircus makes it out of camp. Selwyn Lymon Measurables: 6’4 / 216 lbs / Rookie Strengths: A track star in high school, Lymon is a great combination of size and speed. Has tools to work with, particularly in the red zone. Weaknesses: Immaturity. He’s been involved in a number of off-field incidents, most recently an underage DUI, which is why he went undrafted. Also only has 2 years of collegiate experience under his belt, so he will need to work to adjust to the NFL. Odds of Starting: 18 to 1. Lymon will have to grow up before he sees the field. I get the feeling he may be a Parcells target in training camp. Justin Wynn Measurables: 6’2 / 190 lbs / Rookie Strengths: Another solid combination of size and speed. Great leaping ability (46” vertical). High character guy that quit football in order to work two jobs to support his mother and siblings. Weaknesses: Has not played organized football since 2004, so he will likely be very rusty coming back. Never played against top competition. Odds of Starting: 25 to 1. Wynn is actually a high school teammate of Selwyn Lymon. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was brought in to help lead stability to Lymon’s personal life. One thing that is evident: We’re painfully thin at WR – if we were to have an injury to either Ginn or Wilford we’re suddenly left making a choice between Greg Camarillo or one of our undrafted FA rookies. Neither of these options excites me at all. There’s not much available in the free agent pool, either, unless you want to put Koren Robinson on the team. Because of this, I expect us to look at picking up a training camp cut sometime during the preseason. Based on all of this, I fully expect Derek Hagan to take the third WR spot, as there just isn’t much else behind him. It remains to be seen if he can make the most of that opportunity – the dude is talented, to be sure, but just can’t seem to handle the ball. He drops the easy ones and then turns around and makes spectacular catches, which is extremely frustrating. That’s not really what I want out of my slot guy – I’d like a sure handed, move the chains type, but with the lack of talent behind him Hagan is *gulp* our best option.
I always liked Oronde. He could certainly catch the ball ... problem was that he just had no speed. We could use someone like that on the team today.
Hagan is the odds on favorite at this point. The fact that he's been so inconsistent thus far has to be concerning for the coaching staff. If, and it's a big if he can come thru and be productive like he was in college, we could have a strong WR crew with several youngsters that could develop into better players. The problem is that Hagan has to come thru for a year or so to allow time for the younger guys to develop....
I think Hagan will be the third based on experience with Bess possibly getting it towards the end of the season.
I think Derek Hagan is going to get the job because he just jas a ton of experence. I wish David Kircus would get the job I just would like to see him do good. He could be like the next Wes Welker. Just because he gives it his all when he is out on the field.
i havent seen the kid play, can you expand on your thoughts as to how you came to the conclusion that hes an all out effort player.
Will do sir well first of all did you read the top when vengeful odin said this David Kircus Measurables: 6’2 / 192 lbs / 3 years Strengths: Can come up with the spectacular catch at times. Plays hard when he is on the field. There is one example if how I know. I also saw him play a little bit at Denver and Detriot. I also have a few Denver Bronco friends and they said it seemed like he gave it his all when he was out on the field
We should bring back Cleo, and start the Lemon-Lymon connection. That can't fail, right? I mean, come on, thats like sprite, and I love me some Sprite.
Ive got a feeling it'll end up ginn, wilford, hagan, camarillo and bess. With bess probably moving up in the lineup as time goes on.
I think Hagan willl probably get it although I like Camarillo, Foster and Kircus better... I'd love to see a crazy little bullet like Foster somehow make the team! I remember being impressed by Kircus in a game somewhere but I can't remember where it was?
I've changed my mind. Lamar Smith is staging a big comeback and he will return to glory as our third receiver. As well, elephants are flying. [seriously, though, Sparano recently said Wilford, Hagan and Ginn looked good as our receivers, along with Ricky and ronnie in the backfield. That could change, of course, but it shows where they stand right now.]
