Here’s another NFL analyst joining the A.T. Perry fan club. The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner likes the New Orleans Saints’ sixth-round pick as a rookie who could immediately impact his new team, highlighting the former Wake Forest standout along with other rookies who can outplay their slot as Day 3 picks in the 2023 draft:
Remember what we said earlier about long speed? Perry measured in at his pro day at 6-3, 202 with 33 3/14 inch arms, after running a 4.47 at the combine. He also broad jumped more than 11 feet. Perry, whose 28 career touchdown catches tied with Calvin Johnson’s for seventh most in ACC history, could use a bit more speed, but he’s fast enough and big enough to make an impact.
In each of his final two college seasons, Perry posted at least 70 catches and broke 1,000 yards. He was a lot more than a big guy who caught jump balls (although he did some of that, too). A very agile receiver (6.81-second three-cone), Perry can be good against man or zone. And though he’s not going to blow the top off any defense, he has starting X-receiver potential.
Even if Michael Thomas is back for the Saints, Perry can help early, all while also learning from a stellar veteran receiver.
Perry may not see many snaps early on if Thomas is healthy and managing a full workload himself. He’s been compared to Marques Colston by many fans (and by Colston himself in terms of their physical play style), but they filled very different roles on offense. Perry lined up as the X-receiver at split end almost exclusively at Wake Forest, which is where Thomas normally plays for New Orleans, with fewer than 10% of his career routes starting from the slot (which is where Colston made a living).
So if the Saints envision Perry as a big slot receiver like Coslton, they’ll need to coach him up and work with him as he picks up that part of the playbook. Odds are he’ll be competing to back up Thomas along with guys like Bryan Edwards, Shaquan Davis, Tre’Quan Smith, and Keith Kirkwood as a rookie. He certainly has the talent to win that competition and get on the field early on, but it’s not as clear a path to playing-time as you’d first expect.
