Film Review: Marquez Valdes-Scantling
By AndyHerman
When Green Bay selected wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling with the 37th pick in the 5th round of the NFL Draft it certainly had the feel of Green Bay taking another super-fast wide receiver with high upside who in all likelihood would never really pan out.
Packer fans have seen these types of fast, late round receivers drafted in the past with little to no success. Receiver like Jeff Janis, Trevor Davis, Kevin Dorsey, David Clowney, Charles Johnson, and many more quickly come to mind. While “MVS” had a ton of desirable traits; 5th round receivers who have one year of solid production on their record generally don’t come in and tear up the NFL.
Yet, here we stand, two preseason games into Valdes-Scantling’s career, imagining the possibilities if Aaron Rodgers could have a 6’4” receiver with legit 4.37 speed on the outside to throw the ball to. I have said for some time now that the key to truly unlocking the Packers’ offense is a dynamic playmaking receiver on the outside to keep safeties honest.
The HIGHEST graded rookie WR from week one of the preseason is Marquez Valdes-Scantling. #Packers pic.twitter.com/ImKQ7PqyfI
— PFF GB Packers (@PFF_Packers) August 14, 2018
Green Bay struggles most against press man-to-man coverage when the opposing defense is playing with a single high safety. The best way to combat that is with playmakers on the outside who can stretch the defense and make either the corners play off or the safeties stay honest. In either scenario the offense opens up drastically.
So the question remains; can Marquez Valdes-Scantling finally be the late round, high upside gem that Green Bay’s been waiting for at wide receiver? And more importantly, can he become a consistent playmaker on the outside and open up this offense for Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay?
Let me start with the moment that made me realize that MVS was a lock to make the Packers roster. Early on in training camp there was a one-on-one rep that was captured by a fan in the stands which pitted MVS vs. Packers’ first round pick Jaire Alexander. While MVS has a massive 6 inch height advantage on Alexander, this matchup was not about height; it was always going to be about speed. As noted above, MVS ran a 4.37, 40-yard dash at the combine, while Alexander ran a 4.38. Here was the result:
— True Packers Fan (@TruePackersFan) July 28, 2018
There’s a lot to note here. First of all the throw is brutal and it makes the play a lot less sexy than it should be. Secondly, MVS actually does a poor job coming back for the football, something he will need to work on. Those are all fine and well but what sticks out here is the pure, insane, speed that MVS is able to get to and blow by the 4.38 speed of Jaire Alexander. What makes this even more impressive is that MVS isn’t even using any tricks of the trade yet on how to separate from Alexander. This is just flat out pure speed. And when you find an unrefined playmaker who can blow by your insanely fast top 20 draft pick at cornerback—you do not give up on him after one offseason. This is the moment I knew MVS was going to be around for a while.
Now I know insane speed is one thing, but as we’ve seen from some of the receivers in the past, speed in and of itself will not get the job done. What I’ve seen from MVS in college, training camp, and pre-season so far suggests to me that there is more to MVS than a pure speed receiver. From an athletic standpoint, MVS is a freak. His mixture of height, speed, and agility make him one of the most athletic receivers in the NFL. A 6.85 3-cone at 6’4” is really impressive. These types of things show up on tape. As you see in the videos below, Scantling is able to make quick, decisive cuts, he has playmaking ability after the catch, he can be used in gadget plays like end arounds & reverses, and he uses his body very well to create a large catch radius for his quarterback.
#Packers 5th rd pick - WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling is a tall glass of water! Instant speed and a longgggg frame.... Even since his NC State days - he’s been a red zone problem... pic.twitter.com/cOhccNZjiW
— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) May 1, 2018
The first of many #USF TDs for Lakewood product Marquez Valdes-Scantling pic.twitter.com/g6tjDsTgA0
— BIG COUNTY PREPS (@BigCountyPreps1) September 4, 2016
Goedert and Gesicki were on my list bc of that. Hamilton is the slot WR for Daboll. WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling was worked out by WR Coach Robiskie.https://t.co/EmvRDx2aQp pic.twitter.com/6yGPYvHdkg
— Cover 1 (@Cover_1_) April 27, 2018
MARQUEZ VALDES-SCANTLING TO THE HOUSE ON THE JET SWEEP! This game is fun. 31-17 USF. pic.twitter.com/61oY0pQW92
— Ryan T. Smith (@RyanSmithWrites) September 30, 2017
Ok 6'5" 209lb USF WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling ran two routes very well. Finds soft spot in zone on corner and runs a sharp slant. Caught w/strong hands on both and looks smooth and fluid when running. Also love his get off from LOS #nflpabowl #NFLDraft #NFLDraft2018 pic.twitter.com/KTkzCQK34X
— Tony G (@TonyG_DevyScout) January 21, 2018
Whitehead not picked up on the blitz, would have been a sack, nice throw from Kizer and catch from MVS though. pic.twitter.com/KyrdBfYLpi
— Andy Herman (@SconnieSports) August 5, 2018
Deshone Kizer hits Packers rookie Marquez Valdes-Scantling for a 51 yard gain on 2nd and 30 pic.twitter.com/qKizlukazt
— TheRenderNFL (@TheRenderNFL) August 10, 2018
Marquez Valdes-Scantling with a nice touchdown catch in his Packers debut pic.twitter.com/iXrTFsSPnz
— Eric Rosenthal (@ericsports) August 10, 2018
There you go MVS. Stack that success. pic.twitter.com/2Vi8EMgFII
— Andy Herman (@SconnieSports) August 17, 2018
Of course, there were many reasons why MVS lasted until the end of the 5th round as well. First, MVS is not a natural hands catcher and catches way too many passes with his body. The fact he’s not a great hands catcher also leads to way too many drops which, obviously, is kind of important when playing receiver. We’ve seen this throughout camp already and it’s something that MVS will consistently need to work on.
A couple of things for MVS to work on. Stop “bucket catching”. Want to see him catch more with his hands extended and not cradling the ball to his body. Also, more decisive cuts when route running. Waste as little motion as possible.pic.twitter.com/BEqn7NSWWz
— Tyler Grzegorek (@tyler_grez) August 14, 2018
#Packers Marquez Valdes-Scantling....first play I fire up and the ball nearly nails him in the face. Only up from here. pic.twitter.com/MgFrOuf2mM
— Steve Frederick (@SportsGuyTweets) April 28, 2018
MVS also isn’t a leaper. This may be surprising for some who think of a big, physical, 6’4” receiver and try to think of him as someone who’s not able to go up and sky for the football; but the truth is his vertical jump was one of the worst at the combine. This shows up on tape as well. While he can go up and get the ball because of his 6’4” size and long arms, you can see he’s not someone who’s naturally going to sky with ease for a football.
Lastly, MVS also struggles with his route running. It’s not brutal, but it’s not technically sound yet either. I see this as a positive going forward because he’s already able to gain natural separation with his speed and he’s only going to get better. That said, if MVS really wants to become a true playmaking receiver, he’s going to have to continue to work hard on his craft.
So what makes me think that MVS can succeed in the NFL? Generally the biggest thing that determines whether or not these ultra-athletic playmakers develop in the NFL is work ethic. What I’ve seen from MVS is a genuine thirst to get better every single day. Whether it was his offseason work with Randy Moss, or his re-writing (not re-reading, re-writing!!!) of the playbook three times so he could understand every concept, MVS is trying every day to get better.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling is training with Randy Moss.. pic.twitter.com/6bktHwWmg1
— Jake (@SeedsofJake) July 13, 2018
Marquez Valdes-Scantling has redrawn the #Packers playbook three times by hand and prepared for training camp with Randy Moss. It’s all part of the rookie learning curve: https://t.co/KtVoyyHeTq
— Michael Cohen (@Michael_Cohen13) July 31, 2018
At 6’4” 206 with elite speed, agility, and playmaking ability the sky is the limit for MVS. He will make the roster this upcoming season but reaching his potential will be another challenge all together. MVS has the traits, the makeup, and the work ethic to be a playmaker in this league, but only time will tell if he ever reaches his true potential.
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Andy is a graduate of UW-Oshkosh and owns & operates the Pack-A-Day Podcast. Andy has taken multiple courses in NFL scouting and is an Editor for Packer Report. Andy grew up in Green Bay and is a lifelong season ticket holder - follow him on Twitter @AndyHermanNFL!
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Comments (32)
NickPerry
August 17, 2018 at 06:30 am
With the speed he shows blowing by Alexander and his 3 cone time at the combine you have to figure when he learns how to be a better route runner which he will and improves in time with catching the ball with his hands this guy could REALLY, really be something.
RobinsonDavis
August 17, 2018 at 04:47 pm
Yeah, you can see it! From where I sit, I have no problems with his routes so far....I am sure Mike & company will be working with improving it, however. MVS is a football player! It wasn't too long ago where we were talking about the lack of separation from our WRs. Andy is right, MVS creates separation in different ways...not just speed. Even when contested, MVS takes a simple slant, that at best would gain 8-9 yards in the past, and turns it into a 17 yard gain WHILE he is in the process of being tackled (look at Andy's film from last night). All of this happens because of his gifts - speed, stride, length, and strength. Here's to hoping his basket-body-catching issues are over with, and that Mike actually designs plays for him, instead of just making MVS fit a system.
Thank you (as always), Andy!!
Community Guy
August 17, 2018 at 07:02 am
he consistently gets separation and plays like he is "shot out of a cannon". he seems to be focusing on returning kickoffs, which might be his role as a rookie. he needs to develop chemistry with AR12 and then the Packer passing game is going to be fun. what a deep roster for pass catchers!
RCPackerFan
August 17, 2018 at 07:06 am
MVS has really impressed me. Out of the 3 rookies MVS has impressed me the most.
His speed is obvious and it transfers to the football field.
The part that I love about having a guy like MVS is that he offers something the Packers don't have. A legit big target with blazing speed. But if he were to line up most times with Rodgers he would be our 4-5th option. With Adams, Cobb, Graham being the top 3 most teams will be watching for them mostly likely leaving MVS 1 on 1 with the 3rd-4th CB. I like that matchup.
White92
August 17, 2018 at 07:17 am
Gives me warm and fuzzies :)
Tundraboy
August 17, 2018 at 10:41 am
Yup
stockholder
August 17, 2018 at 07:45 am
I don't know how the packers could cut anyone of these new WRs. They just keep showing us results. Keep them all!
pooch
August 17, 2018 at 07:45 am
Numero gives me the warm and fuzzies
pooch
August 17, 2018 at 07:46 am
Kumerow oops
Andrew Lloyd Peth
August 17, 2018 at 09:04 am
MVS is a freak, but he's not the biggest freak.
That would be Gute.
Seriously, look at all the Gute-gems from this draft. It's downright sick. Our 2 CB's look really good, our 3 WR's were massive steals, our punter will be terrific once he shakes his jitters, Looney and Donnerson were high value, Burks is a Patriot missile...
...WOW. And he even scored an extra 1st next year. DOUBLE WOW.
So far Gute is a freak. Let's hope he can sustain some of this.
Bedrock
August 17, 2018 at 09:12 am
Hello, it’s Debbie Downer here. Didn’t we say similar things of a certain Jeffrey Janis? Wasn’t it that he just needed to learn to be a route runner?
Ahhhh, but the Kool-Aid is so good! I’m excited about MVS too.
Translation...temper thoughts of awesomeness until he produces consistently during the regular season.
Andrew Lloyd Peth
August 17, 2018 at 09:24 am
MVS doesn't move stiffly like Janis. Outside of being tall, fast, and unpolished, I see no similarities in their games. Coming off the line and out of breaks, MVS looks like a different cat altogether.
holmesmd
August 17, 2018 at 11:20 am
Total false equivalency. Janis was a great athlete but he certainly didn’t have this much production in his rookie pre-season. He’s also not as fast as MVS. The only guy I can think of on the roster as fast as MVS was Sam Shields. Oh, and he’s 4 inches taller, still a kid, and will get stronger. MVS has generational metrics and all the resources available to become a generational talent. There is no guarantee but the ingredients are there.
Bedrock
August 17, 2018 at 03:30 pm
Holmes...not total false equivalency. The excitement that followed Janis is similar to what some have for MVS.
IF one was comparing the actual players, I would agree that it is false equivalency. But that’s not what I’m doing.
JonathanSpader
August 17, 2018 at 11:38 am
Jeff Janis was a 7th round pick from a Division II program. He was extremely raw but has physical attributes that led to him being an elite gunner in the NFL. MVS was a 5th round pick and played WR in college against real competition. He's already more polished at WR year 1 than Janis was in year 4. Translation compare apples to apples.
Bedrock
August 17, 2018 at 03:28 pm
I’m not disputing any of the above claims. I’m simply saying we have very little evidence. I’m excited like many others. Just pump the brakes; he’s yet to do anything. I’m comparing the apples of the Janis hype to the apples of MVS hype. No doubt they are different players and skill sets, I’m not intending to truly compare those. Each has/had their own weaknesses to work on. We cannot dispute the excitement Janis brought before day one of the regular season. Just pump the brakes.
Oppy
August 17, 2018 at 04:47 pm
That's fair, bedrock.
None of this stuff matters until we see the unproven guys (and our unproven offense, and especially our unproven defense) playing in the regular season games against NFL starters who have game planned for the Packers.
We should theoretically even get a bit of a "honey moon" period with the rookies, because there will be little film for the opposition to study.
Bearmeat
August 17, 2018 at 09:28 am
I am very excited about MVS and remain high on EQB too. Moore has many tools, and Kumerow has shown he belongs. There is no spot on the roster for Trevor Davis. Monty returning kicks again last night showed me they are trying to replace Davis' special teams value.
Tonyan looks good at TE too.
All of a sudden, WR and CB look like they're going to be a strength by December. Awesome.
Gilbert has done it against scrubs. I want to see him play #1 LTs next week. The DL looked bad yesterday, but I'm prepared to wait and see there. ILBs looked solid. HHCD did not look good.
Arrow is pointing up!
Thegreatreynoldo
August 17, 2018 at 12:56 pm
There have been a couple of positive tweets on Tonyan. Those tweets sound like they described plays Tonyan made last night. Skying for fades in the end zone, IIRC.
No idea if Tonyan or Byrd can block or possess physical toughness.
RobinsonDavis
August 17, 2018 at 04:50 pm
My thoughts exactly. I really would love a film review of our TE's. How good are they blocking and off-the-ball? Where do they falter? I did notice our 2 TE packages were creating mismatches and confusion for the D last night, too.
GatorJason
August 17, 2018 at 07:34 pm
MVS is safe. Here is how I see the six WR roster spots today:
Adams: All Pro. Big, strong, quick & reliable. May lead NFL in TDs.
Cobb: Versatile, quick. Our #1 slot. Showtime in 18 for 19 FA.
Kumerow: Believe your lying eyes. He’s not JAG. 3rd receiver
Allison: Reliable, sure handed, tall. Very Good 4th receiver.
MVS: Unreal size, speed height combo. Raw. Highest ceiling.
Moore: Bad hands, raw. Stays because he was a 4th Rd pick.
----------------------------------------------------------
Davis: Trevor should be #6 as a ST player but can’t cut Moore.
St Brown: Intriguing size athleticism but raw. Practice Squad.
Yancey: Sorry to say but he’s JAG. Possibly a PS player.
Lewis and Jennings: Candidates for other team’s PS
MVS is the only 2018 draft pick that has shown special talent to be on active roster. Moore and St Brown are talented too but Moore dropped too many in college and problem followed him to pros. He needs to wear gloves. St Brown meets eyeball test but was targeted 5 times last night with one reception. Why in the world would you cut Kumerow (like the professional analysts keep saying) to protect a raw, inconsistent 6th round pick?
Late Note: Packers more likely to keep 4th TE than a 7th WR. Both Byrd and Tonyan are bigger threats and more reliable than receivers 6-9. They have ST value as well.
Tundraboy
August 17, 2018 at 10:47 am
"Why in the world would you cut Kumerow (like the professional analysts keep saying) to protect a raw, inconsistent 6th round pick?"
Exactly. Haven't we done enough of that already?
Tundraboy
August 17, 2018 at 10:47 am
Oops.
LayingTheLawe
August 17, 2018 at 10:53 am
MVS plays sudden and seems able to do a couple things you need. The quick slant Rodgers loves so much And to go deep. He seems the one rookie ready to go in and play right now and be able to contribute.
PatrickGB
August 17, 2018 at 12:29 pm
I am not impressed with the three drafted WR’s. Yet I also expect many of their faults to be growing pains. Great potential but not much can be expected this year.
If a SB is the goal for this year then we have other receivers can fit the bill better.
Oppy
August 17, 2018 at 04:26 pm
To the first point about the take-away about MVS's blow by speed: Thiis clip isn't about MVS in my opinion.
MVS' 4.37 speed should be on full display- he's pretty much running a straight-line sprint against Jaire Alexander, who is playing tight to MVS off the line, zero cushion against a speed WR, and more importantly, being a DB playing head-up at the LOS (as opposed to playing off in bail technique), Jaire Alexander has to completely flip his hips a full 180 degrees before entering the race. The "burst to blow by Jaire" is illustrating the time it takes the DB to flip his hips and start accelerating a fraction of a second behind the WR. Jaire ends up closing the gap regardless, actually demonstrating JAIRE's ability to burst more than MVS'.
Interesting thing here is also, count the yards between the LOS and where the two end up being in the same place again.. almost precisely 40 yards down field.
Extremely impressive showing of burst and recovery speed by Jaire. I don't think in a regular season game you'd ever see a smaller corner put in press on a sub 4.4 WR, but Jaire's ability to recover is Sam Shields- like.
Oppy
August 17, 2018 at 04:40 pm
My biggest concern with MVS was work ethic; I had read a scouting report with an absolutely scathing analysis of his questionable work ethic. I can't find that scouting report anymore, so I wonder if it was pre-draft smokescreen material. It will be great if the Packers scooped up 3 legit NFL WR's in this draft, especially at their size/speed.
NoNonsense
August 17, 2018 at 06:57 pm
What sold me on MVS so early was a report about him spending his time between the draft and OTAs at a football camp learning how to master his playbook. Then we got reports about him rewriting the entire playbook 3 different times so he could learn the entire concept of each play and everyone's job on each play not just his own responsibilities.
I don't know about you but that screams work ethic and intelligence to me.
The idea that a rookie WR would take the time to teach himself the entire offense in his first year instead of just trying to learn his job, is pretty rare.
When you combine that with his size, speed and agilty that's even more rare. Hes only gonna get better with time.
I think he has a really bright future here in GB. How soon we see that paying dividends is on Philbin, MM and AR not so much MVS. Having his speed on the field will be beneficial to the offense as a whole. Especially if they start using him on end arounds or reverses. There might be some mistakes along the way but you take the good with the bad sometimes. In his case, I think the good outweighs the bad.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 18, 2018 at 12:00 pm
What everyone seems to forget or not mention is MVS hands. The size of his hands are humongous! Way bigger than Favre's and we were always lead to believe he had huge hands. Hands the size of MVS to go along with his size and speed screams to me the Pack has a gem. The gem may be rough and uncut right now but none the less it is a gem.
Oppy
August 18, 2018 at 12:39 pm
I have read that Favre had 10.375" hands (10 3/8"), and I'm seeing MVS listed combine hand measure at 10 1/4" (10.25) so Favre's hands are still bigger, but not by much.
For what it's worth, it's my understanding they measure hand size with hand down on a flat surface, fingers spread wide open, and they measure from tip of pinky to tip of thumb. I'm 6'2" tall, and because of how my hands are built, my hand measures are 9 5/8"(right) and 9 7/8"(left), as large or larger than many NFL wr's, and trust me when I tell you I don't have functionally large hands. I could never palm a basketball, for example.
I feel the NFL combine's preferred method for measuring hand size leads to a poor metric. Bottom of palm to tip of longest finger would be a better gauge of functional hand size, I believe.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
August 18, 2018 at 12:00 pm
What everyone seems to forget or not mention is MVS hands. The size of his hands are humongous! Way bigger than Favre's and we were always lead to believe he had huge hands. Hands the size of MVS to go along with his size and speed screams to me the Pack has a gem. The gem may be rough and uncut right now but none the less it is a gem.
Qoojo
August 19, 2018 at 01:08 pm
MVS seems like the only one of the 3 that can catch the ball regularly. All 3 still need a lot of work at contested throws. Adams, Cobb, Allison, MVS, and the rest are bench warmers with Kumerow at the top of them, especially given the TE situation. Biggest thing going for Moore right now is his draft status.