Kansas City Chiefs: Small-School Draft Targets

Aug 31, 2013; Morgantown, WV, USA; William & Mary Tribe wide receiver Tre McBride (3) runs back a kick-off against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the third quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium. The West Virginia Mountaineers won 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Tre McBride – WR – William & Mary – 6’0″, 210 lbs

If any small-school prospect has a chance to beat out Marpet as the first off the board, it is wideout Tre McBride from William & Mary. McBride is a complete receiver, and it seems the more people look at him, the higher his draft stock climbs. He has good speed but is not an absolute burner. He runs good routes but is not elite in that area. He is considered to be a solid blocker and has experience returning kicks.

There is one video for McBride available at draftbreakdown.com (if you aren’t using that site to scout prospects, you’re doing it wrong). While he has a couple of drops late, you can see his physical abilities. I am a HUGE believer that a receiver must catch the ball with his hands and not his body to be successful in the NFL, and McBride does that. There are also videos available on YouTube where you can see highlights of McBride. While highlight videos don’t give you the complete picture, you can get a sense of McBride’s upside from them (he did make some nice plays against West Virginia when he got a chance to go against some major competition).

So how highly do some draft experts think of McBride? Check out the following excerpt from Matt Waldman’s Rookie Scouting Portfolio (recommended reading):

"I watched the William & Mary receiver in September and by the time my sessions were over, one question came to mind: Assuming he knew the scheme inside and out, if McBride kidnapped Amari Cooper and replaced the receiver in the Crimson Tide offense would anyone watching notice a difference? With the exception that McBride is more disciplined in the open field as a runner and blocks with greater intensity, the answer is no. McBride is built like Cooper, has similar athleticism, and makes tremendous adjustments to the ball in the air. He’s also adept at releases from the line of scrimmage and he can execute hard breaks."

I’m by no means willing to say that McBride is as good as Amari Cooper, but I do see the similarities in their games. In a draft class that is deep at receiver, it is conceivable that the Chiefs could land McBride in the third or fourth round. To get a well-rounded receiver with that kind of upside at that point in the draft would be an excellent value for Kansas City, and one that I would be very happy with.