Welcome to Baltimore Miles Boykin

[WNCRavensFan]

If I recall correctly Boykin was drafted in the 4th round of our RSR 2018 Mock draft. I do think he was a solid DeCosta pick in the 3rd though, especially as a complement to Hollywood... Bc

Good call. NJ took him with the 6th pick in round 4:

Giants finally add some size at the WR position with Miles Boykin. Boykin should be able to get Corey Coleman out of the two deep fairly early on and he has the ceiling to be a potential long term starter across from Sterling Shepherd. The Giants offense is pretty stacked rn with a potentially elite OL, Saquon, Tate/Shepherd/Boykin at WR and possibly the most dynamic young receiving TE in Evan Engram. Certainly setting Grier up for success.

[NjRavensFan]

I would have preferred AJ Brown in the first, but I still "like" the Hollywood selection.

His weight/frame is a legitimate concern because there are no apple to apple comps. I'm hoping he can add 10-12 pounds over the course of two years (I believe I read on this board that he's already added some weight), and take that concern off the table.

On the other hand, I am most (almost solely) concerned with the Lisfranc injury. As much crap as the Sword gets for his various hot takes, I think he's been pretty spot-on with his thoughts on Brown's injury - could it be a chronic condition, could it contribute to other lower leg or foot injuries, could a game predicated on twitch and ridiculous start/stop/change of direction be adversely impacted by this type of injury, etc.?

I hope the answer to all of those questions are "no," and we have a legit superstar on our hands come 2020, but they are legit concerns.

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FWIW Decosta seems to have done a ton of research on both Brown’s specific injury and lisfrancs generally, and has said repeatedly that they’re very comfortable with where he’s at. Take that however you will.

[NjRavensFan]

Good call. NJ took him with the 6th pick in round 4:

I remember being pretty surprised he was still there. Two big bodied receivers went right before him, one of whom was definitely David Sills and the other of whom might have been Antoine Wesley, interestingly enough.

[AmishlandRavenFan]

This is bang on.

I do fear people have higher expectations with Boykin's immediate impact than waht we're going to see. I think he needs some work on the technical aspects, especially with press. He gave up his chest a lot with poor hand usage. However, in his steps off press, you can see how fluid his hips are so that's encouraing. I would rather be teaching a guy to hand fight than to loosen their hips.

I still think his production trakc could run similar to Michael Gallup, which would be encouraging for a 3rd round pick.

Re: expectations, another issue is that, for the first time in forever, we have multiple mouths to feed. Snead, Andrews, and Hurst are going to get targets, and I expect our backs to be more active in the passing game as well. Honestly, I'm throwing stats out the window for analyzing Brown and Boykin this year; I'm looking at "arc" - do they finish the year better than they start it, and are they making impactful plays coming down the stretch in meaningful games weeks 12-17 (and beyond).

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[NjRavensFan]

Re: expectations, another issue is that, for the first time in forever, we have multiple mouths to feed. Snead, Andrews, and Hurst are going to get targets, and I expect our backs to be more active in the passing game as well. Honestly, I'm throwing stats out the window for analyzing Brown and Boykin this year; I'm looking at "arc" - do they finish the year better than they start it, and are they making impactful plays coming down the stretch in meaningful games weeks 12-17 (and beyond).

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This, exactly.

[JimZipCode]

Re: expectations, another issue is that, for the first time in forever, we have multiple mouths to feed. Snead, Andrews, and Hurst are going to get targets, and I expect our backs to be more active in the passing game as well. Honestly, I'm throwing stats out the window for analyzing Brown and Boykin this year; I'm looking at "arc" - do they finish the year better than they start it, and are they making impactful plays coming down the stretch in meaningful games weeks 12-17 (and beyond).

This is extremely well said.

I also do not have any expectations around stats for our two – or honestly, for any – rookie WRs. Just looking for growth, and assertiveness, and increasing targets & productivity. "Arc" is a great way to put it.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

Re: expectations, another issue is that, for the first time in forever, we have multiple mouths to feed. Snead, Andrews, and Hurst are going to get targets, and I expect our backs to be more active in the passing game as well. Honestly, I'm throwing stats out the window for analyzing Brown and Boykin this year; I'm looking at "arc" - do they finish the year better than they start it, and are they making impactful plays coming down the stretch in meaningful games weeks 12-17 (and beyond).

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Fair point for sure. Make plays when it counts and it'll trump basically every WR we've drafted in the last ten yards not named Torrey.

[JimZipCode]

Yep. Not his fault! Still has real consequences though.

Absolutely.

Show your work.

[JimZipCode]

Show your work.

I'd be curious too. I'd like to hear the rationale.

Marquise is going to a a great asset. Productive, versatile; also he'll invite some "gadget" usage, like bubble screens or whatever. The defensive attention he draws is going to really benefit Thor & Mandrews and the RBs. But he can't run thru contact even a little bit, he's gonna start slow because of the Lisranc, and the size makes me think he'll only be productive for like 4 to 7 yrs.

I know Steve Smith wasn't any taller; but I don't find reassurance there. Smitty was thicc; and I can't expect anyone to match his toughness. DeSean Jackson is more encouraging. Jackson was identically sized coming out (has put on ten or so lbs since); and he's been productive for over a decade. That would be great. But I'm worried.

Boykin is still underrated, even when people go back to his tape. He's going to physically dominate on this level. A matchup nightmare, every bit of 6-3 220 with legit 4.4 speed, and just ridiculous leaping ability. That 99+ pctile athleticism is real. Not 99+ pctile in the world, it's 99+ pctile among NFL athletes. He's smooth as butter, and the ball just wants to find his hands and live there. Some receivers fight the ball: Boykin and the ball renew their wedding vows at the catch point.

He's going to be a monster after the catch. Like a poor man's Terrell Owens. Speed & acceleration & wiggle, and you see a fair amount of "Git offa me!" on the tape, him rag-dolling a DB once in a while. He's got the size & physicality to produce under a volume workload.

Boykin's gonna play for a dozen years or more, be a consistent thousand-yarder once he gets established, Ring of Honor, etc.



So: it's not so much that I'm discounting Marquise (though maybe I'm not optimistic enough on him). It's that I'm looking ahead to 2035, when we have a "Hall of Fame or Hall of Very Damn Good?" thread about Boykin.

[Shrubbs]

The thing that I like about Boykin is his Quarterback was like basically allergic to getting the ball out on time in all the film I watched, and he still made it work. That's why I think he'll have better YAC at the next level.

[RavenIsh]

The other thing about Boykin is his own attention to detail. He knows what he has to improve upon and seems to be a strong student of the game. Watching film, being in shape, etc. He and Hollywood have chemistry already. Then add our hardworking QB. I do see a future number 1 with Boykin.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

Marquise is going to a a great asset. Productive, versatile; also he'll invite some "gadget" usage, like bubble screens or whatever. The defensive attention he draws is going to really benefit Thor & Mandrews and the RBs. But he can't run thru contact even a little bit, he's gonna start slow because of the Lisranc, and the size makes me think he'll only be productive for like 4 to 7 yrs.

I know Steve Smith wasn't any taller; but I don't find reassurance there. Smitty was thicc; and I can't expect anyone to match his toughness. DeSean Jackson is more encouraging. Jackson was identically sized coming out (has put on ten or so lbs since); and he's been productive for over a decade. That would be great. But I'm worried.

Boykin is still underrated, even when people go back to his tape. He's going to physically dominate on this level. A matchup nightmare, every bit of 6-3 220 with legit 4.4 speed, and just ridiculous leaping ability. That 99+ pctile athleticism is real. Not 99+ pctile in the world, it's 99+ pctile among NFL athletes. He's smooth as butter, and the ball just wants to find his hands and live there. Some receivers fight the ball: Boykin and the ball renew their wedding vows at the catch point.

He's going to be a monster after the catch. Like a poor man's Terrell Owens. Speed & acceleration & wiggle, and you see a fair amount of "Git offa me!" on the tape, him rag-dolling a DB once in a while. He's got the size & physicality to produce under a volume workload.

Boykin's gonna play for a dozen years or more, be a consistent thousand-yarder once he gets established, Ring of Honor, etc.



So: it's not so much that I'm discounting Marquise (though maybe I'm not optimistic enough on him). It's that I'm looking ahead to 2035, when we have a "Hall of Fame or Hall of Very Damn Good?" thread about Boykin.

I'm not sure he needs to run through contact though. That's why I came around a lot on him.

Watching him run comeback routes at Oklahoma was very impressive and really sold me. To have a guy that fast that can burn guys, be that good at changing direction to come back is a nightmare for corners. Add in some hesies to his already pretty solid route runnign and he's got a hell of a lot of options in terms of his route tree.

One thing I do worry about is if Lamar can get good enough outside the numbers to best utilize him though. I think his best usage will be on the outside. If he adds some meat and improves his contact balance he can get to that Tyreek type role, but I don't see him there as a prospect.

Those are some bold predictions, but hey it's May and that's what May is for! All I know is that for the first time in a very long time I am legitimately excited for the young talent on this offense.

For funsies let's look at this:

Name (age week 1)
Quarterback
Lamar Jackson (22)
Trace McSorley (24)

Running Back
Mark Ingram (29)
Gus Edwards (24)
Justice Hill (21)
Kenneth Dixon (25)

Wide Receiver
Marquise Brown (21)
Miles Boykin (22 - 23 in October)
Willie Snead (26 - 27 in October)
Chris Moore (25)
Jaleel Scott (24)
Jordan Lasley (22)

TE
Hayden Hurst (26)
Mark Andrews (23)
Nick Boyle (26)

Sure as shit beats marching out 34 YO Dallas Clark and 37 YO Brandon Stokley lol