Trey Palmer Draft Profile and Scouting Report

 

 

Trey Palmer Scouting Report: Nebraska Cornhuskers, Wide Receiver, #3

 

 

2023 NFL Draft Measurements

6’1” / 190 lbs.

Trey Palmer 40-Time – 4.35 (estimate)

 

 

Trey Palmer Draft Profile

Palmer is a former 4-star recruit out of Kentwood High School in Kentwood, Louisiana. According to 247sports, Palmer was the 11th-best prospect out of the state of Louisiana in the 2019 recruiting class. While achieving this status, he earned scholarships to 15 Division I programs. Some of these programs include Alabama, Georgia, Arizona State, and LSU. Only two months after officially visiting Arizona State, he committed to LSU. Then four months after committing to LSU, he has an official visit.

Palmer had 41 receptions for 458 yards and 3 touchdowns in his first three seasons at LSU. After having these three disappointing seasons, Palmer decided to enter the transfer portal. After gaining lots of attraction in the portal, Palmer decided to finish his career in Nebraska. In his final collegiate season, he had 71 receptions for 1,043 yards and 9 touchdowns. This amazing season, led to him getting invited to the Senior Bowl and making DraftDive’s Senior Bowl Watchlist. After seeing how he stacks up against top seniors in the nation, I am excited to see how he does at the NFL Combine.

 

 

Trey Palmer Strengths

 

Quickness

Palmer has a quick step off the snap which allows him to gain leverage quickly. Against off man coverage, Palmer has a good speed release on short-intermediate routes toward the middle of the field. This allows him to quickly separate from the defender and be open for an easy reception. After making the catch, Palmer is good at quickly getting upfield and maximizing yards gained. When running routes deep down the field, Palmer also showed he has the top speed necessary to separate from defenders. This makes him a reliable target even though he has a limited route tree.

 

Agility

Palmer really shows off his agility when he is running routes. Against off man coverage, he does a good job of quickly stemming his route. Once he reaches the top of his route stem, he can use a double move or head fake to manipulate the opposing DB’s hips. Then he quickly sinks his hips and explodes in another direction, using his separation quickness as mentioned above. Palmer is also hard to bring down on screen and bubble plays because he is so shifty. He can change direction on a dime and make defenders miss even in congested areas. This will make him a very reliable target in the NFL, because he can move the chains in clutch situations.

 

Tracking Deep Balls

Palmer has a limited route tree which primarily consists of screens and short-intermediate routes up the middle. But Palmer can also be a threat deep down the field. After gaining separation from his defender, Palmer does a good job of tracking the ball over his shoulder. This is due to his concentration and grip strength which allows him to make a catch away from his body. He also has good body control which allows him to adjust to balls that are inaccurately thrown around his frame.

 

Yards After Catch

As I mentioned earlier, Palmer has very quick feet which helps him to separate from defenders and make them miss. On screen plays, he does a good job of quickly squaring up his hips after the catch. This allows him to quickly get upfield and maximize the number of yards gained. When running crossing routes in the middle of the field, Palmer can separate from defenders and even make them miss in open field.

 

Concentration

Palmer really impressed me with his ability to concentrate when making a play on the ball. He is not scared to get hit in the middle of the field. This allows him to brace for contact while making the catch to ensure he doesn’t drop the ball. Palmer is also very aggressive and can meet the ball at its high point even in congested areas. Not only can he go up and make the catch, but he can also hold onto the ball through contact.

 

Trey Palmer Weaknesses

 

Play Strength

When lined up against press coverage, Palmer is really limited in what he can do. When jammed at the line of scrimmage, he struggles to fight through the contact. This forces him to take longer than usual to run his route. Unfortunately, by the time he escapes the pressure the ball has been released.

 

Limited Route Tree

As I have mentioned throughout this article, Palmer had a limited route tree in college. Given that he primarily lined up as a slot receiver, he was limited to short routes that allow him to rack up YAC. Although he ran the occasional deep route where he could track the ball down the field, he is not polished in this field. After a year or so of being on an NFL roster, his route tree will likely broaden. Unless he has a similar role to a slot receiver like Zach Pascal.

 

Trey Palmer Draft Stock

As of today, nflmockdraftdatabase has Palmer as the 137th-best prospect in the 2023 NFL Draft. Personally, I think that he should be ranked higher than that because the slot receiver position is becoming more valuable. Given what he brings to an NFL roster, he will likely go in the 4th round.

 

Final Thoughts on Trey Palmer Scouting Report

Trey Palmer was one of the best receivers in the Big Ten last season. He is light on his feet, which allows him to be at his best in open field. It also helps him to quickly separate from defenders in off man coverage. After making the catch, Palmer quickly squares up his hips which allows him to elude defenders and maximize yards gained. When running the occasional deep route, Palmer does a good job of tracking the ball over his shoulder. This is primarily due to his concentration which also helps him hold onto the ball through contact. Going forward, it would be best for Palmer to put on 10 lbs. to improve his play strength. He also needs to work on broadening his route tree so he doesn’t become very predictable.

 

Trey Palmer Player Comparison

Trey Palmer reminds me a lot of Philadelphia Eagles receiver Zach Pascal. Both players are good at racking up extra yards when hit in stride. They also have a good speed release against off man coverage which helps them separate in the middle of the field. Finally, both players have below-average play strength and struggle to fight through press coverage.

 

Trey Palmer Scouting Report and Player Profile Analyst – Matthew Lewis