NFL Draft 2021 Scouting Report: WR Josh Imatorbhebhe, Illinois

*WR grades can and will change as more information comes in from Pro Day workouts, Wonderlic test results leaked, etc. We will update ratings as new info becomes available.

*WR-B stands for "Big-WR," a classification we use to separate the more physical, downfield/over-the-top, heavy-red-zone-threat-type WRs. Our WR-S/"Small-WRs" are profiled by our computer more as slot and/or possession-type WRs who are typically less physical and rely more on speed/agility to operate underneath the defense and/or use big speed to get open deep...they are not used as weapons in the red zone as much. 

*Pronounced: ee-MAT-or-bay-bay.

This is my last of three lesser-known WR prospect physical ‘freak’ scouting reports…three guys who the computer models wanted me to look at as ‘more than just a body’ – Brandon Smith (Iowa), Jalen Camp (Ga Tech), and here Josh Imatorbhebhe (Illinois).

These three WR prospects have three things in common…

1) They are talented WRs…NFL-worthy WRs, per my scouting eye. 

2) They all played with horrific quarterbacks and/or dreadful passing games in college. I could probably add the 2019 and 2020 season together for all three of their starting QBs (6 seasons worth of data) and the output might not equal Joe Burrow’s 2019 season. 

How could they get noticed in these offenses?

3) They are all physical freaks. A new breed of WR cropping up where these basketball small-forward type talents hit the weight room hard and are sculpted godlike figures. In the past they all would’ve begged to be running backs. In today’s NFL economy, they are smart…they want to be wide receivers. That’s where the money is. 

Check out this physical profile for Imatorbhebhe…

6’0.7”/218, 4.53 40-time, 7.10 three-cone, 24 bench reps, 11’2” broad jump, 46.5” vertical (what would have been an NFL Combine record). 

Two questions arise at this stage, for those who haven’t heard much about Imatorbhebhe and/or have never seen him play…

1) Just HOW good a WR talent is he? 

2) If he has pro WR skills, why aren’t we hearing more about him?

How talented is he? That’s a difficult question. I would say this – in the group with Brandon Smith and Jalen Camp, Josh Imatorbhebhe  is definitely #3.  But that’s not all that bad, since we grade both Smith and Camp as top 10 WR prospects for this draft.

Imatorbhebhe is legit good enough for the NFL, but I don’t see the potential star qualities in him that I see in Br. Smith and Camp. Imatorbhebhe’s game is more passive than theirs. The physical tools are there. He can catch the ball well enough, but he doesn’t have that electric speed or shiftiness to be a ‘wow’. He can be a useful-to-good NFL WR, but I don’t see ‘great’ happening…although it’s not totally out of the question.

Like Camp, Imatorbhebhe played in such an awful offense with such dreadful QB play that he never developed any great skills for route running…because there was no QB to make a precision passing game work. Both played in sandlot offenses/passing games, so they can out size/athlete college DBs, but beating pro coverage – they need work on that…they are behind the other well-groomed/well-heeled prospects entering from Alabama, etc. Even Brandon Smith at Iowa…the Hawkeye passing game was weak, but more pro-like. Smith is more ready to go than Camp or Imatorbhebhe…with Imatorbhebhe the weakest pro-ready of the three.

BUT…you CAN learn route running. You can’t ‘learn’ a 46’5” vertical. So, there is upside growth hope with Imatorbhebhe.

It’s hard to convey what I see with Imatorbhebhe due to the offensive issues he faced, but in my Jalen Camp and Brandon Smith reports – I attached video to watch because you could see ‘it’ hiding in the mess of their surroundings. You could see it in an instant. I am not doing the same with Imatorbhebhe. There just isn’t enough ‘wow’ on tape to get excited about. There is competent. There is ‘unique athlete’. There’s not a lot of ‘wow’.

Imatorbhebhe’s Pro Day numbers were headlined by that vertical…but also note the impressive bench press and broad jump. However, that kinda distracts from his average/good 40-time and so-so three-cone. There have been plenty of freak athlete, lower ranked WRs who got launched from college football via a ‘wow’ NFL Combine or a Pro Day…and then they go wither and die a mediocre death in a 4-5-6 year NFL career where they barely were noticed. Remember how stunning Chris Conley’s measurables were at his Combine? Some of the best I’ve ever seen…and he fizzled to mediocrity in the pros. In English Lit they call that foreshadowing - you will see Conley on our computer scouting model’s ‘comp’ board for Imatorbhebhe in a moment.

Imatorbhebhe is a very smart young man. He got his bachelor’s degree quickly, allowing him to graduate transfer immediately from USC in 2019. He already earned his master’s degree. You are getting a very intelligent, thoughtful, good communicator, good human being prospect here. But I think he’s lacking an ‘it’ factor to go all the way to being a producing or dominant NFL WR. The quickness, explosiveness, the edge, the ‘it’ is not showing through from what I see.

Josh Imatorbhebhe, Through the Lens of Our WR Scouting Algorithm:

 -- First year with Illinois (2019): 33 rec., 634 yards, 9 TDs. 

Share of the passing game in 2019…

16.8% of the receptions accounted for = meh

26.4% of the passing yards accounted for = not bad at all.

47.4% of the passing TDs = higher end

 -- in 2020 season, Imatorbhebhe worked with three QBs rotating in his 7 games. Here’s how good they were: they combined for 10 TD passes in Illinois’ 8 games total in 2020. The Illini averaged 152.9 yards passing per game in 2020. Why even bother looking at 2020 trends for Imatorbhebhe among this mess?

2021 Pro Day:

6’0.7”/218, 9.25” hands, 32.4” arms

4.53 40-time, 2.63 20-yd, 1.57 10-yd

4.38 shuttle, 7.10 three-cone

 24 bench reps, 11’2” broad jump, 46.5” vertical

The Historical WR Prospects to Whom Josh Imatorbhebhe Most Compares Within Our System:

This comp list should scare the living ‘S’ out of anyone rooting for Imatorbhebhe’s pro hopes. A bunch of terrific athletic measurables (mostly in vertical, reach, leg power, bench press) but weak or failed NFL WRs. 

*A score of 7.0+ is where we start to take a Big-WR prospect more seriously. A score of 8.50+ is where we see a stronger correlation of a Big-WR going on to become NFL good/great/elite. A score of 10.00+ is more rarefied air in our system and indicates a greater probability of becoming an elite NFL Big-WR.

All of the WR ratings are based on a 0–10 scale, but a player can score negative, or above a 10.0 in certain instances.

Overall WR score = A combination of several on-field performance measures, including refinement for strength of opponents faced, mixed with all the physical measurement metrics, and rated historically in our database.

“Power-Strength” = A combination of unique metrics surrounding physical size profiling, bench press strength, etc.  High scorers here project to be more physical, better blockers, and less injury-prone.

“Speed-Agility” = A combination of unique metrics surrounding speed, agility, physical size, mixed with some on-field performance metrics. High scorers here project to have a better YAC and show characteristics to be used as deep threats/to create separation.

“Hands” = A combination of unique metrics surrounding on-field performance in college, considering the strength of opponents played. Furthermore, this data considers some physical profiling for hand size, etc. High scorers here have a better track record of college statistical performance. Everything combining to project catch-abilities for the next level.

2021 NFL Draft Outlook:

I see Imatorbhebhe listed as a top 175 overall prospect for some draft services…and not even in the top 300 for others. At the end of the day, I think his measurables will get him taken in the 6th/7th-round. He played for Lovie Smith, and Lovie still has NFL connections. Lovie will get him drafted.

If I were an NFL GM, I keep Imatorbhebhe in mind but with Jalen Camp and Brandon Smith likely available day three, I’m not taking Imatorbhebhe anywhere near as hot as I’d take those two. If Imatorbhebhe goes undrafted, I’d throw a UDFA offer at him.

NFL Outlook:   

Should make a roster due to his athleticism. Likely stays buried as a #4-5 WR and might get some emergency starts and backup targets in a hurry up offense…and hopefully he can flash skills and carve out a future from there. I don’t think he’s going to flash/hit right away, he needs a year or two to develop his technical skills.

3/30/2021