From now until the 2024 NFL Draft takes place, 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, a scouting report on Pittsburgh WR Bub Means.
#0 Jerrod ‘BUB’ MEANS/WR PITTSBURGH – 6-1, 212 POUNDS. (RS SENIOR)
MEASUREMENTS
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Bub Means | 6010/212 | 10 1/8″ | 33 1/4″* | 79 3/8″ |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| 4.43 | 1.52 | 4.30* | N/A | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| 10’2″ | 39.5″ | 19 |
*Pro Day time
THE GOOD
– Big, physical receiver who uses it to beat press coverage
– Long arms and wingspan to give quarterbacks a big window to throw
– Good long speed to carry cornerbacks vertically
– Acceleration off the line to get downfield in a hurry
– Takes long strides that put defenders behind him quickly
– Crisp breaks on his post and corner routes
– Better at not dropping the football this year
– Win rate for contested catches dramatically improved this year
– Can adjust to underthrown balls
– Kick return ability
THE BAD
– Needs improvement and work on comeback and curl routes
– Hip flips and changing direction are not fluid for him yet
– Over-the-shoulder catches
– Not a very twitch athlete to elude defenders
– More explosive than agile in the open field
– Doesn’t use his size to his advantage well enough to win contested catches consistently
– Gets carried away with his momentum on comeback routes
– Bigger, physical cornerbacks with decent speed give him fits
– Gives up too easily in run blocking situations to sustain blocks
BIO
– Born 1/10/2001 (Age 23)
– 871 career snaps (660 as boundary WR, 211 as slot WR)
– 2023 season: 721 yds., 41 rec., 6 TD’s, 50 percent completion, 50 percent contested catch rate (11/22), two drops, 5.2 YAC, 17.7 ADOT
– 19 career starts and appeared in 36 games over three seasons
– 2024 Shrine Bowl participant
– 2023 Honorable Mention All-ACC
– 2021 All-Freshman Conference USA Team
– Played for Tennessee University in 2019, appearing in four games as a part-time defensive back before transferring to Louisiana Tech for the 2020 season
– He transferred from Louisiana Tech to Pittsburgh for the 2022 season
– 75 total special teams snaps (44 on kick returns)
– Two-star high school recruit according to 247Sports
– Helped Lovejoy High School get to the Georgia 6A state playoffs as a senior
– Totaled nearly 900 receiving yards with 11 TD’s over his final two varsity seasons
TAPE BREAKDOWN
Jerrod “Bub” Means is an experienced wide receiver who finally broke out in the 2023 season for the Pittsburgh Panthers on the boundary. In the previous season (2022), they had him aligned out of the slot position much more, but this past season he was almost exclusively used out wide, which plays much more to his strengths as an athlete. Means is explosive with great size, length and catch radius. He is a long strider with impressive acceleration and good second gear with vertical routes.
He is #0 in all of the following clips:
— Jim Hester (@Jh86Guy) April 2, 2024
He also displays good burst off the line of scrimmage and is physical enough to deflect handsy defenders. Means can be an effective asset to a team as a red zone threat with his catch window, verticality and ability to high point the ball, as evidenced below.
— Jim Hester (@Jh86Guy) April 2, 2024
He is a mismatch for slot cornerbacks, safeties and linebackers due to his quick burst and strength to get to his spots in the intermediate and deeper portions of the field. An area of his game that he’ll need to work on is sitting too long on underneath routes for defenders to meet him too quickly. Means makes his living when defenses are in Cover 0 or Cover 1 where he can use his athletic strengths to his advantage. However, when watching film on him, he was consistently underthrown by Pittsburgh’s quarterbacks during his time with the Panthers. Means adjusts well to underthrown passes (and there have been many), but he hasn’t maximized his size or arm length in contested catch situations consistently. Watch him here really bail out the quarterback several times by changing his routes and finding an opening where they could scramble and throw to with pressure coming.
— Jim Hester (@Jh86Guy) April 2, 2024
— Jim Hester (@Jh86Guy) April 2, 2024
Means executes crisp breaks on post and corner routes. He can elude defensive backs at the top of the stem tree on shorter in-breaking routes with sharp cuts. Where he does struggle is changing directions (flipping his hips) or when his momentum is placed too far in one direction. His comeback routes noticeably aren’t done with the fluidity you would want out of your receiver. Means has good vision with the ball in his hands but isn’t a twitchy athlete to elude defenders at all. In the final few games of the season, he really took some strides in being able to turn intermediate catches into real YAC threats.
— Jim Hester (@Jh86Guy) April 2, 2024
— Jim Hester (@Jh86Guy) April 2, 2024
He’s much more likely to be sure handed, catch the ball deeper down the field and not give you much after the catch. He is late off the line at times and needs to use his hands more during his release package phase to succeed against press coverage. He still has work to do on tracking the ball visually down the field with his eyes. He will get his head around too late or will try to body catch the ball instead of with his hands. Means might never be a high-volume receiver at the next level, however, he could excel as a role-specific vertical threat and slot receiver. He’s a fine and willing blocker, but I wouldn’t say he will wow anyone with his physical presence on dishing out punishment in the running game. His size definitely helps him in this phase of the position, but he needs to show more consistent effort in sustaining his run blocks.
CONCLUSION
Bub Means is a wideout that has alluring athletic traits to possibly be an “X” receiver option in an offense and moonlight as a slot receiver in an 11 personnel scheme. His projection is difficult to assess because he wasn’t truly properly used until just this season. He knows how to use his size and speed well to take the top off defenses and will give quarterbacks a nice target in the intermediate and deep parts of the field. He’ll probably need his route tree to be limited at first, but over time, he may be able to handle more with routes that require him to get in and out of his breaks. I would really love to see Means use his size more to box out guys in contested catch situations as well.
Another player who he reminds me of is Quincy Enunwa, who played for the New York Jets. A bigger receiver who had the speed to win deep, but never properly developed further than that. There is promise with Means to expand his roles at the NFL level, but he’ll need time to get acclimated and work on the parts of his game that could lead him to be more of a dynamic receiver. He does have use as a vertical threat and kick returner to get him on the field more quickly.
Projection: Late Day 3/UDFA
Depot Draft Grade: 6.8 – Backup/Special Teamer (Fifth Round)
Games Watched: vs Florida St. (2023), at Notre Dame (2023), at Virginia (2022), at UCLA (2022)
