From now until the 2023 NFL Draft, we will scout and create profiles for as many prospects as possible, examining their strengths, weaknesses, and what they can bring to an NFL franchise. These players could be potential top-10 picks, all the way down to Day 3 selections and priority undrafted free agents. Today, I will be profiling LSU wide receiver, Kayshon Boutte.
#7 Kayshon Boutte, WR, LSU (SR) — 5112, 195 lbs.
Combine/Pro Day Measurements
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Kayshon Boutte | 5’11 1/4”/195 | 9 1/2 | 31 3/8 | N/A |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| 4.50 | 1.58 | 4.25 | N/A | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| 9’10” | 29 | N/A |
The Good
— Experience in slot and outside
— Good short-area quickness
— Uses hands and quickness to create space
— Good understanding of spacing in zone coverage
— Productive in the short and intermediate areas
— Creates yards after catch with physicality and burst
— Possesses extra gear, especially with ball in his hands
— Very good in scramble drill
— Willing blocker
The Bad
— Poor explosiveness numbers at Combine
— Physical press corners can halt his routes
— Route running is not at full speed
— Didn’t consistently stack defenders on deep routes
— Had some drops on balls thrown to back shoulder/hip when on the move
— Adequate length works against him as a blocker
— Had inconsistent QB play in college
Bio
— 2022: 48 receptions, 538 yards, 11.2 YPR, 2 TD, 1 rush, 41 yards
— Career: 131 receptions, 1,782 yards, 13.6 YPR, 16 TD, 1 rush, 41 yards
— 27 games, 11 starts
— 2022 led team in receiving yards (509) and TDs (9) despite playing just 6 games
— 2020 Freshman All-American
— Had 14 receptions for 309 yards in final game of 2020
— 4-star recruit
— Birthday May 7, 2022 (age 20)
Tape Breakdown
Kayshon Boutte is one of the more interesting prospects in this draft. He put up consistent numbers in his three years despite playing with five different quarterbacks who threw at least 130 passes. At the Combine, he didn’t test very well in the explosive categories and didn’t try to improve on them at his Pro Day.
Primarily a slot receiver, he did play some on the outside as well. He has solid acceleration off the line of scrimmage and solid quickness and footwork versus press coverage. At the top of his route, he shows good quickness to get into his break. He also utilizes solid hand usage and play strength to separate. On comeback routes, he drops his hips well to work back to the quarterback. Facing zone coverage, he has a good understanding of spacing to find the open areas.
Most of his production came in the short and intermediate areas of the field. He connected on a lot of slant, curl, comeback, dig and crossing routes and shows no fear over the middle of the field. On the deep level he wasn’t targeted often in the games watched but did run routes on that level.
Boutte wasn’t always able to get on top of the DB, but here you can see him hit the extra gear on this deep route.
His hands are good on throws in front, up, and down and he plucks the ball cleanly away from his body. Adjusting to the ball, he is solid overall with good awareness on sideline throws. After the catch, he is at his best. He can create extra yards with stiff arms and breaking tackles. With a little space he shows an extra gear to weave through defenders. Another good quality was his work on scramble drills. He knows how to get open when the play breaks down.
After the catch he was good at creating the extra yards.
Here are a couple more examples. Given some space he can take it the distance.
When the scramble drill kicks in he is always working to find open space.
Another example of getting in the QB’s vision in an open area.
He is a willing blocker in the running game and for fellow receivers. He uses a good base, pad level and effort to sustain blocks.
Against press, if Boutte didn’t avoid the jam, he displayed only marginal ability to get off the defenders. His route running is not at full speed, and it takes some time to get into deeper routes. He needs to get to his spot and get his head around quicker to give a good target. I saw three drops in the games watched, and all were on balls thrown on his back hip/shoulder on slants. On deep routes, there wasn’t a consistent ability to stack defenders and get over the top. As a blocker, he lacks the length to hold off defenders. He will need to move his feet more efficiently to stay engaged.
Against UCLA, the DB is able to jam him at the line and completely cut off his route.
On balls thrown behind him he struggled to make the catch.
Despite good speed he didn’t consistently get on top of defensive backs.
Conclusion
Boutte is a slot receiver with some experience outside with solid acceleration and quickness off the line of scrimmage. He uses quickness and play strength to create space and has a good understanding of zone coverage. His hands are good in most directions and are effective in the short and intermediate passing areas. Creating after the catch and getting open in the scramble drill are two of his better traits and he is a willing blocker for teammates.
Areas to improve include winning against physical press corners to get into his routes; increasing the speed of his route running to get to the targeted areas more quickly; handling the ball thrown slightly behind him; and consistently using his speed to stack defenders will create opportunities to make more plays.
Watching Boutte, you get the feeling that there is more to his game than he shows. He seems to play at less than full speed within his routes but once the ball is in his hands, he becomes a real threat. Could more consistent quarterback play and NFL coaching get the best out of him? It’s possible. The testing numbers can’t be ignored but teams will need to do their research on what drives him.
His best fit is a slot receiver in a quick passing offense where he can be a possession-type receiver to move the chains. He should be able to back up the X receiver spot as well. Pittsburgh has a need in the slot and there are several good options in the middle rounds. For a comp, I’ll go with another former LSU receiver, Jarvis Landry. He too had poor explosive numbers but was good over the middle, was good after the catch and was a willing blocker.
Projection: Late Day Two/Early Day Three
Depot Draft Grade: 7.5 Rotational Player (4th Round)
Games Watched: 2021 – At UCLA; 2022 – Vs Tennessee, Vs Florida, Vs Alabama, Vs Georgia
