Malachi Corley joins the Jets
By Jared Smola |
Updated on Fri, 26 Apr 2024, 9:53 PM EDT
The Jets used a Round 3 pick on Western Kentucky WR Malachi Corley. Corley has commonly drawn comparisons to Deebo Samuel for his after-catch skills. The 5’11, 215-pounder averaged a huge 8.2 yards after catch per reception over his four-year career, including 9.2 over the last two seasons. Corley boasts an impressive combination of power, acceleration, and agility. He forced 55 missed tackles over his final two seasons. There’s not much else to his game at this point, though. In fact, 133 of Corley’s 259 receptions at Western Kentucky – or 51.4% – came on screens. He did very little work downfield, with a minuscule 6.3-yard career average target depth. Corley totaled just 20 catches on 47 targets 20+ yards downfield over the past four years. He has enough athleticism to develop into a more complete receiver. But, at least in the short term, Corley will need heavy volume and designed touches to be a real fantasy factor. He projects as the third or fourth target for a Jets squad that’s expected to remain pass-centric.