Dynasty Prospect Profile: Antoine Wesley
Antoine Wesley, WR, Texas Tech
Height: 6’4
Weight: 206
Age: 21.5
Combine results:
(percentile rank among all WRs at the Combine since 1999, courtesy of mockdraftable.com):
40-yard dash: n/a
Vertical: 37” (71st)
Broad: 117” (28th)
3-cone: 7.07 seconds (29th)
20-yard shuttle: 4.26 seconds (39th)
College career:
Texas Tech is no stranger to producing big receiving numbers.
Wesley became the latest Red Raider to fill up the stat sheet last year. He ranked 11th in the country in catches, 3rd in receiving yards and 30th in TDs. He topped 100 yards in half of his 12 games, including a massive 13-261-3 outing vs. Houston.
As usual, Texas Tech’s passing game was a powerhouse, finishing 3rd in completions, 6th in yards and 23rd in TDs. But Wesley still tallied nice market shares, accounting for 24.4% of the catches, 33.3% of the yardage and 32.1% of the scores. Those marks rank 23rd, 14th and 21st among the 48 WRs invited to this year’s Combine. Per Pro Football Focus, Wesley ranked 28th among draft-eligible WRs in yards per route run (2.59).
Wesley was a 1-hit wonder, though. He played in just 4 games as a true freshman in 2016 and finished 7th on the team in receiving yards as a sophomore. He needed hip surgery in the spring of 2018, but that obviously wasn’t a factor last season.
Film study:
Courtesy of @WhatsOnDraftNFL
Games watched - Houston, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, TCU
Wesley is long and lanky. On top of the 6’4 frame, he possesses 34-inch arms (94th percentile) and an 80-inch wingspan (89th). So it’s no surprise that he boasts a big catch radius.
He also has some of the best hands in the class, dropping just 2.2% of his catchable targets last year, according to Pro Football Focus.
(Wesley’s right foot lands just out of bounds on the play below, but it’s still a nice display of hands and ball-tracking ability.)
Wesley’s movement skills are a pleasant surprise for such a big dude. He can get in and out of breaks to create separation.
And he has some elusiveness after the catch.
Wesley was also super effective going deep for Texas Tech. His 131.1 passer rating on targets 20+ yards downfield last year ranked 7th among draft-eligible WRs, per Pro Football Focus. He doesn’t have elite speed, but Wesley eats up ground with long strides and can leap over most DBs.
Fantasy potential:
There are reasons not to believe in Wesley. He has just 1 year of big college production. And it came in a pass-happy offense. He didn’t test well at the Combine, either.
But his combination of size, movement ability and balls skills is intriguing. And while Texas Tech hasn’t exactly been a WR factory, we have seen alums Keke Coutee and Jakeem Grant have some NFL success recently.
Wesley is much more project than NFL-ready prospect and certainly comes with high bust potential. But he also has enough upside to be a name to highlight late in dynasty rookie drafts.