The Las Vegas Raiders need a wide receiver to come in and provide the deep threat that their aerial attack is missing. That someone could be Denzel Mims, a senior out of Baylor.
The Raiders traded star wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Cowboys in 2018 and ever since, they haven’t been able to find an adequate replacement. Last year, Tyrell Williams, who became their featured wideout by default, had a disappointing end to his season after scoring four touchdowns in the first four games of the regular season. Hunter Renfrow showed lots of promise throughout the year, but outside of those two, Las Vegas will rely on the recently signed Nelson Agholor and veteran Zay Jones, both of whom didn’t meet any expectations with their previous teams (Eagles and Bills).
Raiders Blog: Denzel Mims, anyone?
The Raiders have a chance to infuse talent at wide receiver in the draft and Mims can fill the void with his combination of speed and size. He’s a 6-foot-3, 216-pound receiver who ran a 40-yard dash in 4.38 seconds, top 10 at his position, at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine.
Baylor's Denzel Mims 40-yard dash NFL Combine #SicEm https://t.co/P1wIQ5h1OX pic.twitter.com/0DcBlducak
— BaylorFans.com (@BaylorFansCom) February 28, 2020
Related: Doug Farrar sees Raiders drafting a wide receiver with the 12th pick
Mims burst onto the scene back in 2017 when he caught eight touchdowns and racked up over 1,000 yards. Even though he didn’t play with an elite college quarterback, he still found ways to produce. His biggest game of the 2019 season came against the Longhorns on November 23rd. He ended that game with seven receptions, 125 yards and one touchdown. On the other hand, he does have some issues with inconsistent hands and a limited route tree. Also, he isn’t great at sticking a route and creating space to get away from the corner. However, his large frame and large hands made up for his shortcomings. Sometimes, Baylor’s plays consisted of throwing it up to Denzel Mims in a one-on-one versus a smaller cornerback. His money in the NFL will be made through getting mismatches and beating cornerbacks deep with physicality.
Underrated @BUFootball WR Denzel Mims got open, caught the ball, and made plays all @seniorbowl week but we were most impressed by his physicality in stalk drills. Mims will be a better pro than many of the more talked about junior WRs in this class.#TheDraftStartsInMOBILE pic.twitter.com/ibm1xMEscb
— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) February 18, 2020
Mims would be a great target for quarterback Derek Carr because of his pin point accuracy and past success throwing the ball to Davante Adams, who was his favorite receiver back at Fresno State. Mims and Adams had very strong vertical jumps, which plays a huge role in their game and outside the 40-yard dash, had very similar combines.
Carr hasn’t had much success in the NFL outside of his 2016 season, but he was a very successful in college when he had Adams. The Raiders should give Mims a good hard look. He is a freak athlete with a build that could become the quarterback’s favorite target.
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