A lot of NFL experts thought the New Orleans Saints landed a steal in A.T. Perry, swooping in to pick the big-bodied Wake Forest receiver in the sixth round of the 2023 draft — take a look around and you’ll see many rankings had him graded as a third- or fourth-round pick. Ask Perry and he’ll tell you he isn’t sure why he fell below expectations on draft day, but he’s landed in a great spot to succeed. Just ask Marques Colston, who has more in common with Perry than you’d expect.
But why was Perry so highly regarded before the draft? What can he add to the receiving corps that they’ve been missing? Here’s a quick look at some scouting reports from prominent draft experts who studied Perry’s game tape:
Dane Brugler, The Athletic
STRENGTHS: Outstanding height and arm length … agile-footed route runner who could teach a master class on pacing … runs routes to proper depth with efficient footwork to snap comebacks/stop routes … has a knack for finding the void in zone coverage … effectively uses his body and pterodactyl wingspan on vertical patterns … tracks the ball well … strong hands through contact with the hand-eye concentration to pull in erratic throws … flashes some fluidity after the catch to shake a tackle here or there … only one penalty as a senior (false start) … double-digit touchdown grabs each of the past two seasons — his 28 receiving touchdowns are a school record and tied him with Calvin Johnson for seventh-most in ACC history.
WEAKNESSES: Decent build-up speed but wish he had more of a finishing gear … lean-framed with marginal play strength … can be muscled off his route path, allowing corners to maintain their phase … leggy out of his breaks, especially on double moves … has a bad habit of tipping his route at the break point, helping
corners drive on throws … not an elusive ball carrier (averaged only 2.2 YAC per catch in 2022) … feels ghosts and has a bad habit of unnecessarily leaping for the ball, especially along the sideline … his drops were usually a result of his eyes being late to locate and the ball getting on him too quickly … below-average sustain strength and want-to as a blocker … doesn’t offer special teams value.SUMMARY: A three-year starter at Wake Forest, Perry was the X wide receiver in head coach Dave Clawson’s slow-mesh vertical offense, lining up on the outside on 91.2 percent of his snaps. He was Sam Hartman’s go-to target the past two seasons and became just the third player in school history to reach 2,500 receiving yards in a career. A thinly built, long-limbed receiver, Perry lacks ideal play strength, which will be more noticeable vs. NFL press, but he is a smooth strider and shouldn’t have any trouble expanding his route tree. He has above-average body control to snap out of his routes or adjust to the football on fades, outs etc. Overall, Perry doesn’t have elite speed, and I worry about his ability to make plays through contact at the next level, but he is a polished route runner with above-average tempo and ball skills to consistently give his quarterback a target. He offers outside starting potential in the NFL.
(Source)
Damian Parson, The Draft Network
A.T. Perry was a three-star high school recruit out of Palm Beach County, Florida. He was an all-around athlete, participating in basketball, football, and track & field. Perry was the all-country long jump champion. Athleticism runs in the family gene pool; his mother ran track at Arizona State. Perry did not become a consistent contributor and impact player until the 2021 season. He finished 2021 and 2022 as either the leading or second-leading receiver on the team.
Perry has the prototypical X-receiver height and catch radius. He has the physical tools to be a high-point weapon at the NFL level. Perry uses that basketball background and catch radius to make plays on the football while in flight. When tasked to attack vertically into the third level of the defense, he tracks the football well. He does not panic and looks the football into his frame to secure it. I like the body control Perry possesses to adjust to poorly-thrown passes. As a route-runner, his best work comes against off-man or zone coverages. He understands how to stem and manipulate defenders in those coverages. Perry uses a variety of speeds and tempos with his routes to lull defenders to sleep before working past them. Perry is more of a long strider than an explosive deep-speed option. With free access to grass, he can attack cushions and space freely. The best routes for Perry are slants, in-breakers, crossers, 9 routes, and posts.
I would like to see Perry attack the ball with his complete catch radius/length at its highest point. Too many times he will go up and wait for the ball to drop into his frame. Perry does not face a ton of press coverage and this has limited the growth of his release package. He could benefit from winning in the contact window with quickness to put himself in a better position to stack and win vertically. Despite having the arm length/wingspan advantage, Perry struggles to play through contact early in routes. If DBs can get their hands on him early, they will completely disrupt the timing between Perry and the quarterback. He is more of a buildup speed receiver. His speed is not immediate or sudden to quickly threaten defenders down the field. He does not showcase much desire to attack DBs to wall them off and create running lanes on the perimeter.
Overall, Perry projects best as a possession receiver. Perry can align outside, in the slot, and in bunch/stacked set. There is potential for him to be a reliable 50/50 contested-catch receiver. I envision him being a WR4 on a depth chart early in his career with the chance to work his way up.
(Source)
Lance Zierlein, NFL.com
Long wideout with quick feet and erratic hands who falls neatly into the category of higher-ceiling, lower-floor prospect. Perry has been highly targeted and highly productive over the last two seasons. He’s crafty but physical in the early stages of the route and flashes the ability to become a more dangerous route runner with additional work. He has the tools to work all three levels of the field, but his drops and ordinary ball skills sap some of the excitement surrounding his massive wingspan. Perry’s inconsistencies can be frustrating, but his talent and traits make him worthy of a Day 2 selection as a potential WR2/3.
(Source)
Derrik Klassen, Bleacher Report
A.T. Perry is a towering vertical threat with the athletic tools to blossom into a complete X receiver.
Perry will make his money down the field in the NFL. At 6’3″ and 195 pounds, he sports a long, lean frame that enables him to stride out with huge steps and blow by opposing defensive backs late in the route. It takes him a few steps to get rolling, but once he starts striding out, it’s difficult to keep up with his size and speed combination.
Perry’s best work often comes on go balls, post routes and the occasional deep over route, all of which just let him take off in one direction. He also has loose feet and hips for a player his size, which allows him to threaten other routes that play off of vertical stems, such as deep digs, glance routes and comeback routes.
Perry also has the ball skills one might expect of a 6’3″ receiver. He has moments of inconsistency when it comes to fighting through contact, but there’s still more good than bad in that area. More importantly given his downfield skill set, Perry is very comfortable tracking the ball. He excels at finding the ball over his shoulder and shows little issue contorting his body however necessary to get hands on the ball. Perry also has strong, reliable hands to finish the catch more times than not.
On the other hand, Perry lacks the twitch and acceleration of a truly dominant player. The sharper the route break, the more prone he is to needing to slow down, take extra steps and roll slowly out of the break, losing some separation potential.
Perry can also be sluggish off the line at times. It takes him some build-up steps to really get moving, which is an issue when paired with his inconsistent technique in using his hands to defeat press coverage. Perry may be able to solve some of these issues with coaching, but it will likely take a good deal of time, especially the route-running.
Perry is an exciting bet on a vertical threat. It isn’t easy to find guys with his size, deep speed, fluidity and ball skills. Perry’s lack of twitch and some technique inconsistencies make his game incomplete right now, but he can still be an early contributor as a field-stretcher while he strives towards rounding out his game. A Bruce Arians-style vertical system that leans on Perry’s size and speed would be his best fit in the NFL.
(Source)
