New York Jets Draft Profile: WR Quinton Patton

Jan 21, 2013; Fairhope AL, USA; Senior Bowl south squad wide receiver Quinton Patton of Louisiana Tech (4) pulls in a pass during practice at Fairhope municipal stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

For anyone that has been following this blog lately, you know that we have been ramping up our coverage of the upcoming NFL draft. We have been putting out our own versions of the mock draft, evaluating other mock drafts, and, from time to time, profiling draftees that could be a good fit with the New York Jets.

So far, we have done a lot with defensive players, profiling guys like Ziggie Ansah, Sharrif Floyd, and Sheldon Richardson.

But what about the offense? This isn’t news, the Jets need offensive players. The offense was so anemic in 2012 there were times where you didn’t think the Jets would win other game. But where are these playmakers going to come from? It also isn’t news that this class is not the greatest ever. OK, not even close. So, what are the Jets to do?

Well, I went looking around at some mid-level draft possibilities, and I found one that I like. He is fast, and has excellent hands. This morning, we take a look at Quinton Patton, WR from Louisiana Tech.

MEASURABLES

Quinton Patton comes in at 6’0″, and 204 pounds. He ran an excellent 4.53 second forty yard dash at the NFL Combine. He has excellent explosion with his feet and lower body, evidences by a 118″ broad jump. Here are his college stats, courtesy of ESPN:

Here is some video, for anyone not familiar with Patton’s play:

PROS:The first thing that jumps out to me is Patton’s speed off of the line of scrimmage. His straight away speed is brilliant, but it’s more than that. If you watch this tape, every time you look up he has created space on the guy defending him. It takes just a couple of steps and he has room. He also has excellent hands, and he uses them well, making the catch away from his body. Quinton is also quite elusive, he makes people miss with the ball in his hands. He has an excellent head fake that frees him up on short/intermediate routes.

CONS:You never see Patton going against press coverage. He seems to get a free release on every snap, and that is NOT what he will see coming off an NFL line of scrimmage. It may not be a “con”, it’s just something we really don’t see any tape on, one way or the other. But I am nitpicking yet again, I like this guy.

If the Jets had an opportunity to draft this Quinton Patton in the middle rounds, they could do a lot worse.