With Size And Athleticism Could Miles Boykin Dominate For The Redskins?

Miles Boykin, WR
School: Notre Dame | Conference: Independents
College Experience: RS Junior | Age: 22?
Height / Weight: 6-4 / 228 lbs
Projected Draft Status: 3rd or 4th round
NFL Comparison: Devin Funchess

College Statistics

Player Overview

Miles Boykin was a 4-star recruit who had a lot of interest. He’s from New Lenox, Illinois which is close to Chicago, Mark Strotman a writer for NBC Chicago summed up the recruitment process well and how no one thought he would choose Notre Dame. His high school coach thought Missouri would be the choice. His mom thought Michigan State would close the deal. His brother though Michigan would get him. This was in part because Miles was no fan of the Irish growing up. Notre Dame got him on an official visit and the rest is history. Notre Dame has had some QB issues the last couple seasons by way of consistency and change. Notre Dame’s passing offense was putrid in 2017 but it was the first time Boykin was able to contribute in a semi-significant way considering the final passing totals. He played opposite Equanimeous St. Brown and got a few touchdown catches under his belt. This past season he broke out after Notre Dame made the switch to Ian Book at QB. Boykin has a really good season which helped the Irish get into the college playoff this past season. Boykin offers coveted size and athleticism at the position and figures to be a legit threat in the red zone for teams. Can he develop into more?

Strengths

• Excellent size, length, and athleticism for the position.
• Has strong hands and has a good habit of using his body and long arms to extend towards the ball to make the catch. Makes it extremely hard for the defender to get between him and the ball. Tracks the ball well in the air and can high point it. He’s a threat particularly in the redzone and on the boundary.
• Has great athleticism for his size and shows a little speed and quickness. Can get off the LOS smoothly and fight through coverage. Shows enough speed to get behind defenders.
• Effective and physical blocker, he puts his all into it and can flatten guys.
• Has the ability to make those circus catches that can change the momentum of games.

Weaknesses

• Needs to work on his concentration and technique throughout the catch process. Long arms are also a detriment as he’s had a couple of would be catches poked out as he went to secure the ball to his body.
• Looks to have ran pretty simplistic routes and I didn’t see much complexity. Routes look pretty rounded at this point in his career, something to work on.
• Agility and flexibility are limited. It limits his RAC ability if he has to slow down or stop and get going again.

Let’s see his work:

More Miles Boykin videos

How He Would Fit On The Redskins

Boykin certainly is an intriguing option in this draft. His size will set him apart from most of the WR class as he is about 12 lbs short from being the same size as some of the tight ends in this draft. His athleticism in addition to his size is a plus and while he certainly has some work to do before he can be considered a bonafide reliable pass catcher the potential is clear. If he can also work on some of the nuances of route running (short area quickness, flexibility, precision) as well as learn a couple new ones he can become a dangerous weapon for teams. His natural ability to attack the ball in the air including focus as he is catching it at its highest point is sure to ensure he gets some early redzone opportunities in his career. His penchant and effectiveness as a blocker should get him some extra playing time early as well. The Redskins need help at WR and while a lot of people have many opinions about what type of receiver that should be or who the receiver should be in my opinion the simplest answer to this problem for the Redskins just to add talent at the position. An obvious role may not present itself currently with the guys on the roster but if the Redskins are looking to the future to rebuild their WR core he could be an interesting and eventually a key piece as a possession receiver who is also a threat in the redzone.