Damore’ea Stringfellow is scheduled today to meet with the Oakland Raiders as Ian Rapoport reported via his Twitter account.
Stringfellow will finish his college career with 102 receptions for 1478 yards while hauling in 12 touchdowns for Ole Miss. If you’re not familiar with him it might be due to some complicated reasons.
Should the Raiders draft Stringfellow?
#OleMiss WR Damore'ea Stringfellow is visiting the #Raiders today, source said. #Jets, #Rams & #Titans, #Chargers, #Seahawks, coming up.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 12, 2017
Hailing from Perris, California this young man was recruited to the University of Washington, by then-head coach Steve Sarkisian. After his freshman season, which would see him enjoy a breakout game against UCLA Â and earning a trip to the 2013 Fight Hunger Bowl, coach “Sark” would bolt for USC. Leaving Stringfellow in a situation he didn’t sign up for.
Immediately he began looking for a new place to play football eventually settling on Ole’ Miss.
A transfer student from Washington, ‘String’ was forced to sit the 2014 season and would be unable to become a full time starter until 2016.
Once he finally was able to get on the field he began producing; 46 catches for 716 yards and six touchdowns, all career highs and in the SEC.
Over his playing career he would continue to grow his average yards per reception. In 2016 he finished averaging 15.6 YPC, up from 14.0 YPC in 2015 which was also an improvement from the 13.0 YPC at Washington. He would produce numerous highlight worthy plays and give Alabama All-American cornerback Bobby Humphrey all the work he could handle.
Measurables
Stringfellow stands 6’2″ and weighs 218 pounds. Uninvited to the combine, String had to wait until the Ole’ Miss pro day to showcase his abilities. Stringfellow would rep 225 pounds, 17 times on the bench press. He would record a 38″ vertical leap along with a 10’10” broad jump.
Strengths
- Excellent body control
- Big target
- High points the football
- Works back to the football
- Excels as a vertical threat when the ball is in the air
- Elusive in open field
- Plus shimmy and shake
- “Catch of the Year” level ability
Weaknesses
- Release of the ball is suspect
- Very “jammable” at the line
- Lacks foot quickness to uncover on short throws
- Has to build to full speed
- Inconsistent hands
- Not a willing blocker
- Needs to work on sharpening his cuts
Final Thoughts
Speed isn’t everything to a wide receiver, but it makes a world of a difference when you possess it, with that said Stringfellow plays a game tailored to his ability.
He won’t wow anyone in terms of star power, but can be more than effective if neglected. His footwork and route running need cleansing, but the effort is there. His ability to make defenders miss in the open field is terrific.
He’s a solid mid round pick in my opinion and although he has been mentioned as high as a late first to an early second round pick. Stringfellow is a playmaker, and any team would be glad to have a player with talent and a chip on his shoulder.
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