Matt Waldman’s RSP Film Room examines the budding skills of Kayshon Boutte, one more in a recent line of LSU receivers with the NFL Draft in his sights.
Even if you try to ignore the narratives of college football, it’s hard to block out who everyone in your industry is talking about. Boutte is on that short list.
I’ve been doing this long enough to wonder if the reason Boutte is on that short list has to do with logo scouting. Logical to wonder before you study a player when the list of recent prospects coming from Baton Rouge includes Racey McMath, Justin Jefferson, Terrace Marshall, and JaMarr Chase.
It even crosses your mind when you’re at lunch at your local spot and ESPN flashes highlights of Boutte catching wide-open slant after wide-open slant with nothing but empty pastures of grass ahead of him.
One of the potential positives about getting older is developing perspective — the ability to take the logo, the recent stars, and the big media highlights and trash any lingering optimism or skepticism from the glimpses.
After my first run of games with Boutte in my sites, it’s easy to see that he has the athletic traits, tracking ability, open-field vision, and route running potential to develop into an NFL starter.
The feel for the game — the invisible thread that ties the technical, conceptual, and physical aspects of his play — is present with Boutte. The details that separate an NFL starter from an early-round NFL prospect are still a work in progress — as anyone with an ounce of realistic knowledge of the game would expect.
These details include:
- Hand positioning with contested targets.
- Early tracking of targets wide of his frame so he maintains his footing when catching the ball in stride.
- Do more to set up stems in an artful fashion.
You’ll find both the strengths and flaws of Boutte’s game from this week’s film room that comes from a sample of three games (Auburn, Mississippi State, and Kentucky) last year.
And of course, if you want to know about the rookies from this draft class, you will find the most in-depth analysis of offensive skill players available (QB, RB, WR, and TE), with the 2022 Rookie Scouting Portfolio for $21.95.
Matt’s new RSP Dynasty Rankings and Two-Year Projections Package is available for $24.95
If you’re a fantasy owner and interested in purchasing past publications for $9.95 each, the 2012-2020 RSPs also have a Post-Draft Add-on that’s included at no additional charge.
If you’re a fantasy owner and interested in purchasing past publications for $9.95 each, the 2012-2020 RSPs also have a Post-Draft Add-on that’s included at no additional charge.
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