Oakland Raiders undrafted sleeper: WR Ishmael Zamora
The Oakland Raiders signed some interesting wide receivers after the 2017 NFL Draft, but their most underrated UDFA signing was Ishmael Zamora…
The Oakland Raiders have one of the most exciting offenses in the NFL, led by quarterback Derek Carr, a stellar offensive line, and star receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree. This offseason, the Raiders have set out to find depth for the offensive skill positions, and after the 2017 NFL Draft, they signed Baylor wide receiver Ishmael Zamora, who could turn out to be a big time sleeper in this year’s undrafted free agent group.
Zamora was not invited to the Scouting Combine this year and was suspended three games in addition to serving 40 hours of community service after video surfaced of him beating his dog with a belt.
Those questions were answered at length in the pre-draft process, which included a visit with his new team, the Oakland Raiders.
"“It comes up every time. But once they realize I’m really a genuine guy and not what the media has been portraying me as, they understand,” Zamora said. “I really want them to know that I’m really a nice guy. I’m a family man and I really love my family. And I love my dogs as well. I’m not just an aggressive guy. That’s not something that you have to worry about in the future like coming up on TV.”* Ishmael Zamora, Sports Day/Dallas News"
Zamora showed off plenty of NFL caliber skill while at Baylor, but there’s perhaps nothing more enticing about him as a prospect than his combination of height (6-foot-3), weight (224 pounds), speed (4.52 second 40-yard dash), and athleticism (40-inch vertical jump).
While at Baylor, Zamora displayed strong hands at times but also struggled with drops. The drops didn’t seem to be for lack of natural pass-catching ability, but more of a concentration issue. Of course, part of the issue with Baylor receivers anymore is they don’t run an overly expansive NFL route tree, something that will cause Zamora to need extra coaching at the next level.
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However, when you look at his raw skill and playmaking ability, there’s no denying that this is a potential stud in the making. The Oakland Raiders definitely have a couple of spots open on the wide receiver depth chart, depending on how many they choose to keep. Of course, we know Cooper and Crabtree are going nowhere, and the team also signed Cordarrelle Patterson this offseason from the Vikings.
In addition to those three, the Raiders have Seth Roberts but behind those four, there are only undrafted free agents from the past two years. Zamora will have to compete with guys who have a more in-depth knowledge of what type of offense is being run, but he certainly has the edge in terms of size and athleticism.
The off-field questions will persist until more time has passed, but there’s no doubt this kid has the physical tools teams covet and he could be a big time sleeper for the Raiders this year.