SAGE SURRATT: SCOUTING REPORT. EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW.

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TREVOR LAWRENCE	JUSTIN FIELDS	TREY LANCE
RONDALE MOORE	JA’MARR CHASE	RASHOD BATEMAN

BACKGROUND

• Height: 6’3”
• Weight: 215 lbs
• College: Wake Forest
• Year: Redshirt Junior
• Position: Wide Receiver

Sage Surratt is one of many top receivers in a deep and diverse wide receiver class. 

Surratt has already declared for the 2021 NFL Draft. He chose to opt out of the 2020 college season because of the Coronavirus pandemic meaning he has been able to focus his attention on preparing for the draft in April 2021.

Surratt is the brother of North Carolina linebacker Chazz Surratt and is from Lincolnton in North Carolina, where he attended East Lincoln High School. At high school Surratt was a standout in football and basketball, making him a 3 star recruit. He then chose to pursue football declaring to go to college at Wake Forest. 

Despite redshirting his freshman year, Surratt was productive right off the bat, totalling 581 yards and 4 touchdowns off just 41 receptions.

Through 2019 he was proving to be one of the best receivers in the country, before missing the last 4 games due to a shoulder injury ending his season. Surratt still ended the 2019 season with 1001 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Surratt eventually needed surgery on his shoulder, but according to Wake Forest, he would have been ready to start the 2020 season. Instead Surratt will prepare for the 2021 Draft and the NFL combine, where all eyes will be on him to see how he performs in the 40 yard dash.  

Surratt was the Valedictorian for his class and has shown leadership and intelligence on and off the field.

As a player, Surratt is a huge human being who is a super physical receiver with an extremely good catch radius. 

Check out the video below which shows Surratt’s incredible physicality and athleticism. Look out for #14.

STRENGTHS

• Size and Frame
• Huge Catch Radius
• Physical
• Clean Route Running

Sage Surratt has ideal size and strength. He thrives in a physical battle. He can compete with anyone physically, meaning he can win 1 on 1 matchups and is difficult to cover when facing man coverage. 

Surratt’s physicality means he is exceptional as a blocker, a trait you don’t often see in college receivers. It also means he gives good deep field threat. He has great body control meaning he is great in contact and at the catch point.

At the catch point, the ball seems to stick to his hands. Where, he has the ball skills to combine with his natural athleticism. It makes him one of the best receivers in contested situations. This is because his large frame gives him the strength to climb the ladder while fending off defenders. 

He will be a useful redzone target in the NFL due to his catch radius. Quarterbacks will be able to chuck the ball up knowing he has a chance of making a play on it. Want to throw the ball high so the defender doesn’t have a chance of making a play? No problem, Surratt has the size to get up and catch it. 

Surratt’s route running is clean. He simply glides through his routes. He is also able to control his pace well, he can speed up and slow down in an instant. Combining this with his snappy route running, it is a deadly combination. 

Surratt does offer some run after the catch abilities. Although, he isn’t the most elusive or fidgety receiver in this class due to his size. What he does provide after the catch is tenacity and toughness. It can take more than one defender to get him on the ground.

WEAKNESSES

• Speed
• Creating Separation
• Initiates Contact

Surratt isn’t an explosive receiver. He doesn’t offer the breakneck speed others do. It means he can overly rely on his strength to beat his opponent. He will need to be careful he isn’t overly physical at the next level as it could draw some flags.

Because he initiates contact at the catch point it means he has to catch the ball with his body at times. Catching the ball with the body is a trait NFL teams really dislike in college prospects.

Teams will have a close eye on how he runs in the 40 yard dash. As, although his game speed doesn’t appear slow, most NFL cornerbacks will have the speed to keep up with him.

Surratt could also do with learning how to tame his physicality to create better separation. How good he is contesting the catch has bailed him out at times in college. But, he will need to learn little subtle techniques to use his physicality to his advantage as a pro. 

It is one of the reasons he is likely to be placed as an outside receiver in the NFL. He cannot consistently produce separation to play in the slot. Surratt is better placed outside of the hashes where he can contest catches. 

SUMMARY

Surratt is a part of a deep receiver class and the top of it is becoming even more saturated. We are yet to find out if opting out will end up hurting Surratt. But, there are certainly receivers who are doing their talking on the pitch to be ahead of him currently.

But Surratt is yet to do his talking. That will be done at the combine and his pro day where he will be hoping to put in an eyebrow raising 40 yard dash time.

Sage Surratt will be a redzone nightmare for defenders and used in the right way he will be extremely productive at the next level.

Draft Projection: Late Round 2 / Early Round 3

How good of a prospect is Sage Surratt? Let us know over on Twitter @NinetynineYards and @Owain_Jones_