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Jacksonville Jaguars get undrafted gem in WR Allen Lazard

By Sayre Bedinger

AMES, IA - NOVEMBER 11: Wide receiver Allen Lazard #5 of the Iowa State Cyclones pulls in a touchdown pass as safety Darius Curry #2 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys blocks in the second half of play at Jack Trice Stadium on November 11, 2017 in Ames, Iowa. The Oklahoma State Cowboys won 49-42 over the Iowa State Cyclones. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
AMES, IA - NOVEMBER 11: Wide receiver Allen Lazard #5 of the Iowa State Cyclones pulls in a touchdown pass as safety Darius Curry #2 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys blocks in the second half of play at Jack Trice Stadium on November 11, 2017 in Ames, Iowa. The Oklahoma State Cowboys won 49-42 over the Iowa State Cyclones. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images) /
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The Jacksonville Jaguars may have gotten themselves a gem in undrafted free agent Allen Lazard, a wide receiver from Iowa State…

The Jacksonville Jaguars have one of the most loaded rosters in the NFL from top to bottom, and one player that might have an edge as an undrafted free agent in their rookie class is wide receiver Allen Lazard.

Lazard comes from Iowa State, where he was very productive over the course of the past four seasons.

Making an impact on the Jaguars at the wide receiver position will be difficult, but Lazard has a rare combination of size and leaping ability for the position.

What Lazard (6-foot-5, 222 pounds) lacks in short area quickness, he makes up for with long speed (4.55 at his size is solid) and excellent leaping ability and catch radius.

In addition to being a team captain, Lazard was one of the hardest workers at Iowa State and very durable. He takes great care of himself physically, and that’s a huge reason why he was able to play in 48 collegiate games with the Cyclones.

What I saw from Lazard in college was a player that could just absolutely go up and get the football.

Specifically, in the red zone, Lazard was a major weapon for the Cyclones.

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He made difficult, contested catches look easy.

The Jaguars made some wholesale changes at this position over the course of the offseason, bringing in Donte Moncrief from the Indianapolis Colts and drafting LSU’s D.J. Chark in the second round.

Jacksonville said goodbye to Allen Robinson, and while this Allen (Lazard) isn’t necessarily going to be able to replace him, I think he could be an asset for Jacksonville as a guy who creates separation with great size and athleticism rather than burst in short areas.

It wouldn’t surprise me to see Lazard asked to put on another 10-15 pounds and potentially learn how to play more tight end/h-back. The physicality is certainly there in his game.

Ultimately, I was shocked he went undrafted. I felt like the body of work was good enough in college that Lazard could have gone as early as the fourth or fifth round, but certainly not passed on altogether.

He landed in a pretty good spot with the Jaguars and will get a good chance to put on some good tape for the rest of the league at the very least.

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