Damonte Coxie NFL Draft Prospect Report

WR, Memphis

I have no idea why this guy is so low in the rankings. PFF has him as the 255th ranked prospect in the draft and for the life of me I can’t figure out why. He’s 6’3”, 197 lbs. so no issues with size. The biggest knock I can find on him is that he’s expected to run around a 4.5 40. That’s not blazing fast, but it’s not slow either. He’s plenty fast for the NFL.

What’s Coxie good at? A lot. How about body control to make the tough catch? How about a sick one handed snag? Or the contested catch between two defenders? He’s great at targeting the ball at it’s highest point.

So what’s the deal? He also produced at a high level in college, catching 72 balls for 1,174 yards and 7 TDs in 2018 and 76 for 1,276 and 9 TDs in 2019. He only played two games this past year, but was very effective with 16 catches for 176 yards and 1 TD. Memphis isn’t a college powerhouse, but they’re not at the bottom of the barrel either. In fact, Coxie had at least 100 yards against every ranked team he played last year, SMU, Cincinnati twice and PSU in the bowl game. Why doesn’t anybody like this guy? Honestly, his overall ranking is just plain stupid. Coxie should be a 3rd round pick. -Jonah Anderson

Ken’s Thoughts

Well Jonah you did it. You found a player that hadn’t been on my radar and I thank you for making me realize I missed one. Coxie (pronounced coke-C) is a surprise to me. I truly find myself asking why he isn’t being spoken about more. What is his negative? On tape he impresses and snatches the ball out of the air like an eagle stalking its prey. His routes are clean and he run blocks like a Offensive Guard in a Wide Receiver’s body. Coaches even say no one plays harder or is more competitive than him.

Strengths

Run blocks like he wants to embarrass the poor guy who gets in his way. High points the ball and has great body control while making the contested catch. This young man loves the game and wants to be the best he can. You can’t teach heart and he has a big one. The mitts on this guy must be made of glue because he doesn’t drop many. He isn’t afraid to play over the middle and will go right at a safety to make the play while absorbing some big hits. One of my favorite qualities about him is that he plays his biggest against the best competition.

Weaknesses

The biggest question mark here is speed. Coxie doesn’t have game changing over the top speed, but not every receiver needs that. On tape he doesn’t look slow just not really fast. A good 40 time at his pro day could really launch him into some mid round conversation. I’d like to see him polish off a few routes and continue to add to his route tree. I don’t see any glaring red flags I just wished he had played the entire season because I think he would be spoken of as a day two talent if he had.

Damonte opted out after 2 games this last year and that hurt him. Had he
stayed and played we would probably be speaking of him differently. He would most likely be the all time receptions and yards leader for Memphis which has produced other receivers like the Bears’ Anthony Miller and the Hall of Fame WR Isaac Bruce. So his numbers match his tape. His biggest games came against the highest levels of competition. In 2019 he posted 8 receptions for 132 yards against Penn State as well as a combined 15 catches for 310 yards and a touch versus Cincinnati not to mention he had 7 for 143 and 2 touches against SMU. All three teams were top 20 squads.

Team Fits

Coxie is NFL worthy and I think a team that isn’t looking for a day one starter with a quality veteran ahead of him could really help him grow. I like him to Atlanta, Los Angeles Chargers, or Buffalo. I could also see him as a good fit for Jared Goff in Detroit, although they’d ask more of him earlier. -Ken Noble