STRENGTHS
Malik is a physical receiver who takes pride in his run-after-the-catch skills. He is a good route runner and has the acrobatic talent to adjust to the ball in the air and the strong hands to make the contested catch. Malik has the speed, suddenness, and size to play any one of the receiver positions in any down and distance situation. He is a matchup nightmare in the red zone because of his suddenness and unique ability to make himself available to his quarterback when a play breaks down, and this is a talent and skill that only the franchise receivers seem to have. He is tough to bring down and this along with his large catch radius, burst to the ball when running his routes, and suddenness makes Malik one of the top receivers in this draft.
CONCERNS
Malik is faster after he catches the ball than he is running some of his routes. He will have to become more consistent with his speed or the quarterback will have a lot of missed throws to him unless they have great arm talent to overcome this minor flaw in his game. He also seems to run his deep routes in the slot and his short routes (stop routes, crossing routes, etc.) when lined up on the outside. That might be just the way they used him or it might be because of a lack of consistency in the speed he uses, running his routes.
BOTTOM LINE: 1.47
I feel the best skill set Malik has, which a lot of other top receivers in this draft do not have, is his ability to make himself available to his quarterback, when the play breaks down. He senses when to go deep, work into a space, or go back to the quarterback without being directed. Most coaches will tell the receivers, depending on the arm strength of the quarterback, to go deep or go back to the QB when a play breaks down. Malik sees what is happening, evaluates what the QB needs at that time, and makes himself available. It could be going deep, or it could be stopping in a zone, or simply, going back to the QB. This is a signal that Malik understands the quarterback position and how it needs to interact with the receiver position. He has an excellent feel for the game and that is what separates him, along with his athletic talent from the other top receivers in the draft.
