The Tennessee Titans will likely be in the market for a wide receiver in the 2021 NFL Draft after the team declined the fifth-year option of former No. 5 overall pick Corey Davis earlier this offseason.

Of course, it’s always possible that the Titans end up re-signing Davis if he can put together a solid campaign in 2020, but for now his future remains up in the air at best.

In his latest 2021 mock draft, Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling has the Titans going with Alabama wide receiver Jaylen Waddle in the first round (No. 17 overall).

After posting 45 receptions for 848 yards and seven touchdowns in his freshman season, the 5-foot-10, 182-pound receiver took a step back statistically in 2019 with just 33 receptions for 560 yards and six touchdowns.

The problem for Waddle was that there were a lot of mouths to feed in Alabama’s receiving corps. last season, as DeVonta Smith, Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs III all finished with more receptions, yards and touchdowns.

However, things should be different in 2020 with both Jeudy and Ruggs having moved on to the NFL.

The door is now wide open for Waddle, who is best known for his elite quickness, to assert himself as one of the top options in Alabama’s passing attack, which should make him a top-five wideout in next year’s draft.

Here’s a scouting report for Waddle, courtesy of Jordan Reid of The Draft Network.

Pros (+): Waddle plays the game in one mode and that’s full throttle. Debunks the 0-60 saying. Instead, he starts out in 60 mph and can continue to floor the gas pedal and increase speeds at any moment. Catch radius is high and wide. Able to extend well outside of his body structure in order to haul in passes. His right now speed and breakaway capabilities make him a tough assignment for anyone to cover. When given free releases, he assesses the technique of matchups and incorporates stutter steps at the top of routes in order to freeze defenders and turn them into guessers prior to quickly making moves to get into routes. Adds a tremendous boost to special teams as both a kick and punt returner (3 career TDs) Waddle is a slice and dice runner that bobs and weaves his way through defenses with ease all while maintaining max speed. 

Cons (–): Serving as the fourth man in the chain of command as a sophomore, he saw a limited slot only role that only allowed him to run shallow crossers, bubble screens, quick slants (off of RPOs), 4 step outs, and pivot routes back across the middle of the field. With an expanded role in 2020, he could show that he’s capable of consistently adding more branches to his route tree. When running routes in the intermediate area, he has trouble with suddenly throttling down. Waddle often drifts a few more steps up the field past designed landmarks and this results in allowing more recovery time for matchups. 

Aside from being a potential impact receiver at the next level, Waddle will also bring his ability as a returner to the NFL. In 2019, he averaged 24.4 yards per punt return with one score, and 35 yards per kick return with another touchdown.

Hopefully the Titans don’t pick as high as Easterling has them, but if so Waddle would be a very nice get in the middle of the first round.