Jayden Daniels vs Caleb Williams
Jay Felicio
Last Updated: 3/19/2024
Jalen McMillan burst onto the scene in 2022, leading the Pac 12 with 9 receiving touchdowns and putting up 1,098 receiving yards, third in the conference. Unfortunately, after a hot start to 2023, he suffered a left knee injury that forced him to miss games and hindered him all season. His production took a significant hit, and he fell in the pecking order for targets.
McMillan is a player who demonstrates extreme fluidity in his game, especially in his routes. He has a knack for weaponizing leverage while forcing defenders out of position with subtle moves and feasted out of the slot for the Huskies where he has the whole field at his disposal. When asked to deploy a hard-breaking route he leaves some to be desired, but he has some quality reps on film. Another area of his game that pops is his speed, he has shown the ability to leave defenders behind him when they get caught flat-footed. We also see it within his routes as he can link maneuvers together without losing speed and manipulate his speed to create open space.
At the catch point, he has soft hands and attacks the ball with his hands more often than not. He also displays a natural ability to understand how to highpoint the ball with ferocity, which he pairs with good hand-eye coordination. We have also seen him display good body control but does leave some to be desired when forced to catch outside his frame. He has also had some drop issues throughout his career, but I am not overly worried that this will continue into the pros.
After the catch, he lacks elusiveness and doesn’t force many missed tackles. He tends to lean on his speed and quickness in the open field to pick up some after the catch, but he is not winning any YAC awards soon. He has been deployed in the run game as well and has had success getting the edge and showing decent vision with the ball in his hands.
- Fluidity
- Speed
- Elusivity after the catch
- Suddenness
- Physicality
- All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention (2022)
- All-Pac-12 First Team (Pro Football Network) (2022)
- All-Pac-12 Second Team (Pro Football Focus) (2022)
- All-Pac-12 Third Team (Phil Steele) (2022)
- 40-yard dash: 4.45s
- 10-yard split: 1.52s
- Vertical: 39”
- Broad Jump: 10’4”
- Three-cone: 6.88s
- Shuttle: 4.03s
- Bench: TBD
- Z receiver
Jalen McMillan will be very landing spot dependent, as his role will have to align with his skill set perfectly for him to become a consistent fantasy asset. He is best suited for a slot role or a Move Z receiver who can gain an advantage from pre-snap motion or off-coverage. Now, he has produced big numbers already, so we know the ceiling is there, but there is a wide variance in his outcomes.
