Nunes Magician and the take on Lemon...

[jekelish]

In a TNIAAM discussion published today, they were talking about Alec Lemon, and one of the people involved made a comparison I had never considered, but is so spot on it is absurd.

Hines Ward.

Now I'm saying more of a poor man's Hines, since he's a borderline Hall of Famer, but still. Similar stature, great route runners who aren't afraid to get hit, good athletes that don't have exceptional athleticism but can still get open...

Is there a better "best case" for Alec than Hines Ward?

 

[TDTOrange]

Hines was a much better college QB

 

[JD]

Alex threw that TD at USC last year.

 

[jcuse44]

I think alec has the possibility of being more productive because of his size.

 

[sufandu]

I'm thinking Wayne Chrebet. I forget his size, so Alec may be bigger, but I think the less than athletic guy who has a knack for getting open comparison is accurate. I had said Ed McCaffrey in an earlier thread, but considering he was an AA while at Stanford, that may not be accurate.

 

[Orijinal]

A rich man's Wes Welker.

 

[jekelish]

A rich man's Wes Welker.

Settle down cowboy

 

[GoSU96]

A rich man's Wes Welker.

Different kind of player

 

[Doctor44]

Jordy Nelson?

My concern for him is his speed. A great route runner/ possession receiver for a slant or in. Not sure he has the quickness to perform at the next level.

 

[sendithome]

Michael Crabtree. Very good production and good but not great at all phases (quickness, size, strength, hands, route running).

Ward was a great blocker and used that physical strength as well as good route running to create separation. I didn't see that from Lemon.

 

[SUFaninNJ]

Ward was a great blocker, but also considered one of the dirtier players in the game. Not sure who to compare him to. He has a long ways to go, but how about our own Art Monk?

 

[billsin01]

his toughness always reminded me of Josh Reed and I wouldn't be surprised to see him have that type of NFL career. Not a guy who did a ton, but still put together an 8-year career and caught over 300 balls. Pretty solid all things considered.

 

[BlackKnight76]

I would slow our roll on calling him a better version of either Welker or Ward, since they're both probably borderline Hall of Famers at this point, but there's no reason Lemon can't carve out a long career in the slot.

 

[shandeezy7]

his toughness always reminded me of Josh Reed and I wouldn't be surprised to see him have that type of NFL career. Not a guy who did a ton, but still put together an 8-year career and caught over 300 balls. Pretty solid all things considered.

I like that comparison. Lemon is a few inches taller than Reed though, correct?

 

[billsin01]

I like that comparison. Lemon is a few inches taller than Reed though, correct?

Yeah, Reed was a bit more of a fire hydrant build.

 

[jekelish]

I would slow our roll on calling him a better version of either Welker or Ward, since they're both probably borderline Hall of Famers at this point, but there's no reason Lemon can't carve out a long career in the slot.

In fairness, I called him a poor man's Ward as a ceiling.