Who Do Tavon Austin and Cordarrelle Patterson “Model” Themselves After?

On NFL AM, long-time WR Nate Burleson hosted two players that have been regularly linked to the St. Louis Rams over the last couple of months; Cordarrelle Patterson and Tavon Austin.

Ramblin’ Fan has done our best to analyze each player, both in terms of weaknesses and strengths, as well as how they fit within the current wide receiving corps on the St. Louis Rams. In fact, here are several of those posts, just in case you missed them…

1. The Chris Givens Debate: Is The St. Louis Rams Receiver Better On The Outside Or In The Slot?
2. The Risk/Reward Factor With Cordarrelle Patterson
3. St. Louis Rams 2013 NFL Draft: A Case Against Tavon Austin
4. Writing On The Wall: Signs Point To The St. Louis Rams Drafting Tavon Austin
5. The St. Louis Rams: Cordarrelle Patterson Vs Tavon Austin

Analysts, writers, and fans can “project” all they want about these two players. However, there is nothing better than getting into those receiver’s heads and seeing what they think about their play. In Burleson’s interview he asks them several “typical” interview questions, like “What do you think you will bring to a team”? While both gave solid answers, the real intrigue came from a question about who they “model” their game after.

In the case of Austin, he mentioned Percy Harvin, an explosive player out of the University of Florida that just cost the Seattle Seahawks their 2013 1st rounder. Harvin is dynamic, regardless of his where he is lined up on the field. Unlike Harvin though, Austin is not a “headache” in the locker room (pun intended), and has the work ethic and clean injury history to be a huge contributor in the NFL in a number of different areas.

Patterson, on the other name, compared his game to two players; Randy Moss and Julio Jones. That is an interesting combination of players, both sharing the innate ability to pose as a consistent threat down the field or, for that matter, any time the ball is thrown into the air. With uncommonly large frames and top-tier, straight-ahead speed, both Moss and Jones were (and, for Jones, are) matchup nightmares on the outside. They demand the attention of anyone lined up on their side of the field, and their mere presence on the outside can open up the middle of the field, as defensive coordinators shy away from stacking the box and leaving those receivers one-on-one on the outside.

Either player would be a fine addition to the St. Louis Rams offense, especially with the addition of Jared Cook, the return of Chris Givens, and the hopeful progression of Brian Quick. The real question is… do the Rams want a Percy Harvin or a Julio Jones?