Quentin Johnston Scouting Report

Written by Leo Sells

There are multiple teams that have a big need for a wide receiver on draft night, but how many good ones are there really this year? There’s an obvious premium on the position, but would it be better to get a proven veteran in free agency or try to hit on a prospect in the draft? Today, I’ll try to get closer to finding an answer to that question by taking a look at perhaps the most interesting receiver prospect this year in Quentin Johnston:

Quentin Johnston Draft Profile

College: TCU

Age: 21

Position: Wide Receiver

Height/Weight: 6’4″/215 lbs

Draft Projection: Early-Mid First Round

Johnston is a player unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. He measures in at around 6’4″/215 lbs, but what’s really impressive is that he projects to run close to a 4.4 40-yard dash. That mix of size and speed has enamored the NFL draft community, and Johnston is now getting a lot of real top-ten hype as a result. It helps that his team, the TCU Horned Frogs, made a Cinderella run to the National Championship this year with sizable contributions from him as a receiver.

His athleticism is undeniably off the charts and unlike anything we’ve seen in recent history, but that can be just as scary as it is exciting. There are a lot of question marks surrounding his durability, scheme fit, and refinement as a player. Many are also unsure that he will be able to contribute on day one wherever he lands, and that could lead to his stock falling. It’s impossible to predict exactly how good he will be, but we can take a look at the positives and negatives in his game to try to make an educated guess.

Positives

• Possesses a rare mix of size and speed
• Multiple years of solid production in college
• Does well tracking the ball over his shoulder down the field
• Has stellar RAC ability – can turn a short catch into a large gain
• Has long arms that give him an insane catch radius
• Effective at making people miss and breaking tackles

Negatives

• Needs to work on high-pointing the ball; he’s underwhelming at it for a guy of his size
• Lanky build can lead to a bit of clumsiness at times
• Tends to catch the ball with his chest rather than attacking it with his hands – can lead to drops and makes it easier for defender to break up the catch
• Played with a limited route tree at TCU
• Shut down in National Championship game – fluke or tougher competition?
• Isn’t particularly impressive as a route runner

The Verdict

There’s a lot to like and a lot to dislike about Quentin Johnston, but ultimately, I’m lower on him than consensus. Let me start with this: I really do understand why people like him. I don’t have him as a top-two receiver in this class, but I will say that he certainly has the highest athletic ceiling of any wideout in the draft. He just doesn’t have me sold. There’s too many flaws in his game, and the athleticism is nice but not enough to redeem all that for me. I’d like to give a pro comparison for him, but he’s a very rare prospect, and there’s almost nobody at his size that played like him. Maybe Kevin White, but even that seems like a reach.

The best way to classify Johnston this year is as a true ‘boom-or-bust’ prospect. Either his athleticism will take over and he will refine his game enough to become an elite player, or his athleticism will prove to be his only redeeming factor and he won’t be able to overcome the deficiencies in other areas of his game. I wouldn’t be comfortable taking him with a top-10 or even top-15 pick in the draft this year, and I have him sitting behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Jordan Addison currently. He’s a player that could make me eat my words down the road, but I’m just not buying into the hype right now.

Grade: Late First Round

Pro Comparison: Taller Brandon Aiyuk

Team Fits: Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions, Carolina Panthers