NFL Draft 2021: Top 7 LA Rams prospects from MWC

San Jose State WR

Another worthwhile prospect from the Mountain West Conference is a wide receiver from San Jose State named Bailey Gaither (5.61-grade per NFL.com).  He is not going to make you jump and down in your chair if the LA Rams land him. He simply checks all of the boxes without much glitz, without a dose of pizzazz, and without a trace of lights-camera-action about him.

He just does football as football should be played. The problem is that he is a six-year senior, and that will pull him down on some draft boards. He was a redshirt freshman, but an Achilles Tendon rupture in 2018 limited him to just four games. He came back with a vengeance in 2019, and he applied for another year of NCAA eligibility and was approved.

This 6-foot-0 188-pound receiver played in 37 games and put up 135 receptions for 2,227 yards and 18 touchdowns. Before his injury, he was also active in kick and punt returns. In spite of the injury, he put up a 4.45-second 40-yard dash.  And that speed is something that nobody is talking about. He has a draftable grade from NFL.com, but neither the Draft Network nor PFF draft boards acknowledge him, which is a bit curious.

He’s as competitive as other players we’ve seen drafted before. In his lone draft profile, he is described as a player with linear speed and special team potential. A curious factoid is that half of his touchdowns were scored in plays of 40+ yards from the line of scrimmage. Talk about a big-play weapon?  Still, nobody is talking about him, and that’s okay with me. I have no doubt that the LA Rams know all about this guy.