STRENGTHS
Xavier reminds me a lot of the former Colts, Hall of Fame wide receiver the original Marvin Harrison. He has the speed and quickness to get open deep at any time in a game. He is an excellent Special Teams player, returning punts. Xavier has a smooth stride that makes it easy for him to catch the ball deep. He can line up out wide or in the slot with the ability to make a big impact play at both positions. Xavier’s quickness allows him to separate, and be open easily, on any route he runs. His quickness and deep speed make it easy for him to gain yardage after the catch because tackling him is like trying to catch a fly out of the air with just your hand. He will run all the routes and is fearless going over the middle on crossing routes and if his quarterback can hit him in stride then as quick as the flick of a cigarette lighter, he will be in the end zone.
CONCERNS
Xavier has a slight build that makes it very hard to add bulk too without it affecting his speed and quickness. Despite his talent to be an impact player his lack of bulk will make it hard for a team to use him as a starting receiver. There are times in a game when it looks like Xavier gets bored and uninterested if he knows the ball is not coming his way. It’s obvious that the game comes easy to him and if he is not challenged mentally his mind tends to wander. Xavier is not great at blocking but he does give the effort, just not consistently. Xavier does have some drops on passes he should catch but then again if he is paired up with a quarterback who lacks velocity throwing the ball, this will happen because his mind, hands, and body are going much faster than the ball is getting to him.
BOTTOM LINE: 2.17
There is a ton of pent-up talent in this kid for sure. In the Alabama game, you could see that even when he was double-teamed he was open, and with a better-throwing quarterback, Xavier would have torched that defense for big-time yards instead of just 75 yards and 1 TD. At the next level, his lack of bulk will be an issue but his talent to impact will not be. If Xavier can mentally and physically handle being pushed off routes, mauled at the line of scrimmage, and doubled teamed all the time on deep routes, there is no doubt that he can impact. He is a special teams nightmare returning punts and this skill set alone puts him in the impact player column of a team’s evaluations. Remember, Xavier is not just a deep-threat receiver. Don’t forget the players in games trying to tackle him in the open field without fly paper attached to their hands. Xavier doesn’t break tackles…He just makes it impossible to make the tackle. Once again, Xavier doesn’t have to be a starting player to be an impact player, you just need a quarterback with a strong arm and who throws with some velocity to get him the ball.
