Oakland Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow isn’t by any means the biggest and most athletic player on an NFL field, but that didn’t stop him from having a positive impact in his rookie year before an injury derailed his season.
Coming out of Clemson, Renfrow was seen as a player that could fill the slot right away. He had the the skill set and looked polished on tape. Even though he was drafted in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, he was expected to be part of an aerial attack that featured former Chargers deep threat Tyrell Williams and current free agent Antonio Brown.
Long story short, Brown was cut a couple days before the season started and Williams has had ups and downs throughout the season, so it was Renfrow’s opportunity to shine and he did… until this season’s second half.
Renfrow started the first seven games of the year slowly, catching two passes for 19 yards per game. These kinds of numbers are acceptable and even expected from a fifth round selection, but not good enough from a player that was supposed to be a key cog on the Raiders offense.
Related: 2019 Raiders Draft: How are they coming along?
Then, the game against the Texans happened. Renfrow scored his first touchdown of the year and had his best output of the year. It would have been fine to think that this game was the exception and not a sign of things to come. The rookie kept this pace and he ended up breaking out in the following games.
Then the injury happened…
Then the injury happened last week and he will likely miss the rest of the season. Had he kept playing at the pace before he puncture his lung, he would have finished the year with 52 catches for 576 yards and four touchdowns. Not bad at all and on par with other slot receivers production.
If there’s a silver lining it is the fact he didn’t suffer a lower body injury, something that would hinder his progress as he would have had to rehab and wait to be at full speed, which is essential for skill players.
Renfrow gave us a glimpse of what he brings to the Raiders and should have no problems coming back next year. In retrospect, that fifth round pick looks like a good investment after all.
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