Oakland Raiders Snatch Up Arizona Wide Receiver Juron Criner
The Oakland Raiders used their fifth round pick to snatch up Arizona wide receiver Juron Criner, who was my best rated receiver left on the board.
Here is our report on Criner:
Pros:
Great size
Great Body Control
Big Hands
Good Yards after receptions
Plus Blocker
Can make plays in traffic
Productive for 3 seasons
Cons:
Doesn’t have great straight line speed (will probably run 4.50-4.60)
Passion for the Game has been questioned
Has been in some small trouble,
Is a long strider who is not very productive in the short passing game
Doesn’t create a ton of separation initially
He needs to be more physical at the line of scrimmage against press coverage
Player Comparison: Sidney Rice
Summary:
Juron Criner has been productive since his sophomore season. He plays in a spread offense and has great chemistry with Nick Foles. He posses elite size and uses his body very well to shield defenders from the football. He has been productive in big games and would be a first round lock if it wasn’t for questions about his off the field antics. His passion for the game has been questioned…that is a bad sign. It doesn’t help that Teams likes the Rams, Patriots, Colts, and Jets would love to draft him.
Criner hasn’t had a terrible season, but he’s been passed up by players like Kendall Wright, Nick Toon, and he doesn’t offer the same kind of upside as a player like Miami Hurricanes Tommy Streeter. The big issue with Criner seems to be whether or not he is mentally capable of handling the N.F.L., and not in terms of intelligence, but his ability to deal and cope with stress (think Brandon Marshall) and his straight line speed. I have absolutely no insight about Criner’s mental capacities, that’s just the kind of rumors that are out there, if he interviews well and has a nice combine he could go in the second round, if not he’ll probably be a mid third round early fourth round guy because he has a lot of ability and he’s the kind of player who can make catches in traffic.
I had a mid-second round grade on Criner but he obviously slipped a little bit more than I anticipated. This is a solid pick for the Raiders.