NFL Draft: Dyami Brown a big-time threat at discounted cost

The NFL is getting increasingly vertical-oriented, and as a result, wide receivers continue to fly off the board in an increasingly heavy fashion in the NFL Draft. After a star-studded class a year ago, this 2021 NFL Draft class is just as heavy at the top, if not deeper.

One of those top-ten receivers in this April’s class is the dynamic North Carolina Tar Heel Dyami Brown. Here we will take a deeper look at half of the duo in Chapel Hill as the end of April nears closer by day.

Looking at the box score of Brown

Brown has finished his college career with back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons for the Tar Heels, including a career-high in catches and yards in 2020. He has averaged over 18 yards per catch throughout his career in Chapel Hill, racking up 1,099 yards and eight touchdowns on 55 catches this past season. In his career, Brown has racked up over 2,300 yards and 21 touchdowns as he now heads to the next level.

We now take a look at what Brown brings to the next level in his scouting report.

NFL Draft scouting report on Dyami Brown

Hands (8/10)

Brown shows genuine catch comfortability, hauling balls far away from his frame in order to prevent drops off of his breastplate. In traffic, however, Brown struggles to hang on to tough passes as he anticipates and absorbs contact. He shows the willingness to go up at the catchpoint down the field, winning with sparing success. Overall, Brown is perfectly capable of bringing in passes in wide windows, but his catch probability and hand strength decrease as the windows shrink and he feels the pressure closing in.

Route running (17.75/20)

Getting in and out of his breaks at a high level, Brown can get out of a vertical route in five steps and underneath in three. After hitting his breaks, Brown is well qualified to work back to the football and flash a clean number to the quarterback. His route tree is predominantly vertical, but Brown shows nuance to win on underneath routes and 45-to-90 degree routes as well, winning with efficient and precise feet off of his breaks. When stemming vertically, Brown’s subtle and sudden feet at the top of routes cause opposing defensive backs to force open or flip their hips, allowing for Brown to gain leverage.

Separation (20.75/25)

Brown displays eye-popping explosiveness both off the ball and vertically. Brown, however, lacks nuance with his hands in order to fight off press man coverage off the line of scrimmage and at the top of routes. He does, however, show flashy footwork to push defensive backs onto their heels to earn a clear release; he does not waste movement off the line of scrimmage or at the top of routes. He makes space by quickly ID-ing holes in zone coverage and working into them before settling in. When pushing vertically, Brown flashes the technique to work back over the top of defensive backs and stack them.

Ball tracking and body control (13.5/15)

Every vertical threat needs to be able to track the football, and can Brown ever. Over either shoulder or directly over top of his head, Brown shows the ability to ID a football at a high level and work his way underneath of it. Along the boundary, Brown flashes a high awareness to work foot inbound while hauling in his catches. When going up at the catchpoint, Brown shows the great ability to get his shoulders squared to the football, getting in his best position to haul in passes down the field.

Yards after catch ability (6.25/10)

Brown does not prove to be much of a lateral threat or an extension of the run game in the UNC offense. He is not an active participant in the screen game nor given manufactured looks in the open field. He does, however, prove to have a strong lower body to run through wimpy tackles as he works up the field after the catch. While he is not given many opportunities in the open field, Brown is a twitchy athlete who proves to have the ability to stick his foot in the ground and make a man miss.

Looking at Brown’s NFL Draft projection

Brown enters the 2021 NFL Draft as a top-ten receiver in this class, sitting as the ninth-best pass catcher in this class. He landed with a second-round grade and expects firmly to be a day-two pick.

Joe Marino of The Draft Network gives his thoughts on Brown:

"“Brown is a terrific athlete and vertical route-runner that excels at getting deep where his burst to the football and ball skills led to big plays down the field. Because he’s such a good vertical receiver, it opens up a world of possibilities for him to snap off routes and get open in the intermediate areas of the field. Brown is an elite competitor who battles as a ball carrier, gives great effort as a blocker, and is fearless working the middle of the field.”"

Look out for Brown as he is the type of vertical threat the NFL is looking for, as he has the ability to dominate defensive backs down the field.