Cody Thompson Is An Overlooked Talent Who Can Improve The Redskins WR Corps

Cody Thompson, WR
School: Toledo | Conference: Mid-American
College Experience: RS Senior | Age: 23
Height / Weight: 6-1 / 200 lbs
Projected Draft Status: 5th or 6th Round
NFL Comparison: Adam Thielen

College Statistics

Player Overview

Cody Thompson was just a 2-star prospect from Huron, Ohio when he accepted the lone scholarship offered to him by the Toledo Rockets. Few people knew that he would ultimately be one of the more prolific receivers in Toledo history. Thompson was on pace for 1,500 yards and 12 TDs during the 2017 season before a broken leg derailed that production. He was a force for Toledo playing with former NFL and now AAF QB Logan Woodside. Thompson came back from his injury this past season after he was awarded a medical redshirt but with inconsistency and quality issues at the QB position for Toledo along with the emergence of Diontae Johnson and Jon’vea Johnson left the WR’s getting equal shares of the pie more or less. Thompson is second in Toledo history for receiving yards in his career (3,312) and is first in school history in career touchdowns (30). Thompson may not have the elite agility or deep speed of his teammates but he has strong fundamentals and does just about everything well. It’s rumored that Thompson can reach a 38 inch vertical, get to 22 reps on the bench at 225, and they he is training to run a surprising 40 time. If he ticks those boxes and performs well at the combine he should see a significant boost afterward.

Strengths

• Good size, speed, athleticism and technique for position.
• Some might describe Thompson as a technician, his routes are very precise, fluid and efficient. He ran a variety of them at Toledo. He has a quick and clean release off the LOS enough speed, quickness, and agility to create separation when he changes direction.
• Hands are natural and strong, he catches just about everything thrown at him accurately. He also has excellent body control and can adjust his catch point as well has his body to make some impressive catches. Particularly impressive tracking the ball in the air on deep throws and in the end zone.
• Has some RAC ability after the catch because of great contact balance. He’s also a competitive blocker.

Weaknesses

• Doesn’t have superb athletic traits like deep break away speed or amazing agility. He should test fine compared to his peers but he likely won’t separate himself in this area. He was dominant in the Mid-American but how much of that will translate to the NFL?
• Almost a year and a half out from the broken leg he sustained in 2017 but medicals will be big for him at the combine.
• Acceleration is a question, he has good speed and quickness yes, but its more like he has one gear and is missing that next one that allows him to catch those slightly overthrown balls or breakaway from all the defenders.

Let’s see his work:

More Cody Thompson videos

How He Would Fit On The Redskins

Thompson can make some noise early on in his career as a 4th or 5th receiver but I think he has the potential in the right offense with the right QB to potentially become more. He’s got strong fundamentals at the position but has good athleticism as well. While he won’t run a 4.3 40 or have a 45 inch vert or run a 2 second 3-cone he certainly has enough to cause problems for NFL defenders. He also has the intangibles coaches look for. He’s been praised for his football IQ and ability to recognize and exploit coverages. Thompson is going to carve himself out a place on a roster because of his hands and his route running the big question is how far can his development go and on which team? The Redskins need help everywhere at WR and it would be smart to invest in guys like Thompson who have high floors. I would like to have Thompson on the roster I think he’s a great player but with no QB and big questions (in my mind) about the effectiveness of the Redskins current receivers coach I’m not sure he is the best fit here. Still the Redskins have shown they like guys like this on day 3 of the draft with players drafted like Ryan Grant and Trey Quinn. If Thompson does get drafted in that 5th-6th round range I could see the Redskins spending a pick on him.