Feb 24, 2013; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson waits his turn to do a drill during the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Shortly after the NFL draft combine Cordarrelle Patterson was locked in as the top receiver in the draft.
Two months later his draft stock has slipped drastically, possibly pushing him to the second round.
Recently it was revealed that Patterson scored an 11 on the Wonderlic test. The Wonderlic, which has had it’s importance questioned at times, is considered to be the measuring stick for the intelligence of young draft prospects.
Patterson’s former teammate, Justin Hunter, scored a 12 on the test.
To put Patterson’s score in perspective here’s some past test scores:
- Frank Gore – 6
- A.J. Green – 10
- Robert Griffin III – 24
- Chris Johnson – 10
- Julio Jones – 15
- Colin Kaepernick – 37
- Andrew Luck – 37
- Eli Manning – 39
- Peyton Manning – 28
- Hakeem Nicks – 12
- Aaron Rodgers – 35
- Alex Smith – 40
- Tim Tebow – 22
As you can tell typically quarterbacks score higher on the test than the other skilled offensive positions. I don’t think Patterson’s Wonderlic score should be a cause for great concern.
What I do think should concern folks is that some teams are looking at Patterson as more of a project player rather than a “plug-and-play” guy.
Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal quoted one team’s personnel as saying:
"Running routes, he doesn’t know how to do any of that stuff. You may have to keep it simple for him, but this is football. It’s not building a super glider or anything."
On top of that there have been some other troubling rumors about Patterson’s behavior during team interviews.
Team had Cordarrelle Patterson visit. Texting during meeting. Didn't maintain eye contact. 'Not sure he get this is the big leagues'
— Chad Forbes (@NFLDraftBites) April 18, 2013
Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com has Patterson as the second wide receiver off the board in his latest mock draft. Jeremiah as Patterson going 22nd overall to the Rams, he has Tavon Austin as the first receiver being taken in the draft.
Hopefully Patterson will be able to get past some of issues that he’s perceived by teams to have. The former Vol has an incredible amount of talent and could one day be a star in the NFL if he can figure it out between the ears.