4 lesser-known UDFAs who could make the jump to the NFL
By Darral Nail
Sage Surratt, Wide Receiver, Detriot Lions
Along with fellow UDFA Jonathan Adams, Wake Forest’s Sage Surratt could find himself the beneficiary of a Detroit Lions receiver group that, despite the selection of USC’s Amon-Ra St. Brown in the fourth round of this year’s draft, remains strikingly thin.
A 6-foot-2, 215-pound contested-catch monster, Surratt possesses the physicality and sure-handedness that league coaches covet from a possession-type receiver, with upside as a mismatch red zone target for new Lions QB Jared Goff.
Of the 6 wide receivers with whom the Lions entered the previous season, only 2020 5th round pick Quintez Cephus remains on the club’s roster. Though the team added a handful of pass catchers in free agency, a group highlighted by the well-traveled Breshad Perriman, Surratt need only overtake the likes of Tyrell Williams, Kalif Raymond and Damion Ratley to claim a regular spot in the Lions rotation at the position.
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Though Surratt played the majority of his collegiate snaps as a split-end or “X” receiver, he did log more than 20% of his snaps from the slot in 2019, while also getting some time at the flanker (“Z”) position. This positional versatility, coupled with reliable hands and proficiency as a blocker, could ultimately allow him a leg-up on what amounts to an underwhelming level of internal competition that he will face in Detroit’s training camp.