Justin Hunter Working To Eliminate Drops

Nov 10, 2012; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Justin Hunter (11) catches a pass against Missouri Tigers defensive back E.J. Gaines (31) during the second half at Neyland Stadium. Missouri defeated Tennessee 51-48 in quadruple overtime. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

If there was anything that caused Justin Hunter’s draft stock to slip, it was the amount of drops he put on film during his junior season at Tennessee.

Hunter had several drops during key moments of games in 2012. The most memorable may have been his drop just before hafltime against Alabama, with the Vols down by 13. Hunter had wide open field in front of him and simply took his eyes off the ball. While it’s doubtful that catching that pass (and possibly scoring) would have altered the outcome of that game (Alabama won 44-13), it definitely killed any momentum the Vols were hoping to build.

Coming into the 2012 season Hunter was a consensus first round draft pick. After his struggles with drops, his grade slipped to a second rounder by several teams, but not by all.

The Tennessee Titans were one of the teams that had a first round grade on Hunter before the draft. When he was available early in the second round, the Titans made the move to trade up to select him.

Eliminating those dropped passes will no doubt be at the top of the former Volunteers receiver this summer.

According to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean, Hunter looked very smooth during the Titan’s opening rookie minicamp. Wyatt said that after an early drop, Hunter made several “twisting” catches, including one where he snagged he ball several inches from the ground.

After practice Hunter told reporters “As the day went on my nerves kind of calmed down, it felt good to be out there.’’

Hunter will be competing against incumbent starters Kendall Wright and the much maligned Kenny Britt, as well as veterans Nate Washington, Kevin Walter and Damian Williams, for playing time this fall.

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