Vele leaning…

[UtesRule]

NFL vs returning

Makes sense, he’s older and has played well of late. Good luck and THANK YOU for all you have done at Utah!!!

[Tony (admin)]

He has been really playing well late this season. Rising targeted mostly tight ends, but Barnes hit WR’s quite a bit so that has helped Vele shine.

[Utehomer42]

When I was talking to his dad at the UCLA vs Utah game at the Rose Bowl last year, he was saying that he wants to go the NFL and soon. He was saying, he served a mission so he’s mid-20s and if he continues to wait, he’ll probably not get his chance. I really like Vele and he’s going to be missed.

[Xanthis]

Vele should go even with a late round grade. Staying at Utah another year probably won’t increase his stock, but it will increase his chance of getting injured.

[UtesRule]

And he’d be a year older

[Yergensen]

Doesn’t have a great stat sheet and his lack of speed will hurt his chances. More likely UDFA, which can work out well.

I don’t know that another year in this system does anything for him. Makes sense to move forward.

[Rick]

I love Vele but he is not an NFL caliber receiver. He does not have the speed and his size advantage in college will not play as well in the pros. He is not a guy who uses his size much in his play on the field.

[Rick]

You may be right but Vele is a near carbon copy of Tim Patrick – big, great hands, runs good routes. I think he may be a possession receiver for the right team. He probably is an undrafted free agent as suggested above. Let’s hope his agent gets him with the right team because I think he could get a few years.

[Rick]

Tim Patrick is a lot faster than Vele. Or he runs better routes in order to get open more. Either way, he gets separation and Vele typically does not. Also, while at Utah, Tim had much less QB talent playing with him so it is hard to compare. The real question is what would Tim look like with Rising throwing to him? I think much better than Vele.

I have nothing against him but to put him in the same category as Patrick is very generous.

[stbone]

I’d be surprised if Patrick (4.47 at the combine) is more than 1/10 of a second faster than Devaughn, and I’d guess that the speed difference is less than that. Also, speed is an extremely overrated attribute in creating separation as you can scheme for speed. (Jerry Rice was a 4.7 40 and always created separation, while Rocket Ismail was a 4.28 40 and seemed only to run straight lines). It seems like Devaughn is frequently creating separation, he is just lacking a QB who delivers into those windows.

[Yergensen]

Before you shared Jerry Rice’s 40 time, I was thinking Vele might be close to 4.7 territory. If you saw that catch and run he made against UW, he was slow. He had separation at point of catch and should have scored on that play. On the other hand, Vaki same game had 2 tacklers with an angle on him and blew past them untouched.

You can argue that speed is an overrated WR quality, but the reality is it is measured and valued, even emphasized in player evaluation, selection and scheme (see Dolphins).

[stbone]

I have never understood why speed translates differently to the field for some players vs. others. For example, Clark Phillips ran a 4.5 40 at the combine, but was frequently catching people from behind and closing on receivers. Other players have fast 40 times, but it doesn’t translate to their game play.

I 100% agree that speed is important (it would be hard to argue that it isn’t). I frequently see fans (myself included) throwing out measurables as if they end all conversations. For example, anytime the NFL draft is discussed, somebody always points out that Kuithe is undersized and won’t make it in the NFL for that reasons. But frequently, the best players ever at their position don’t have the right measureables (Jerry Rice’s 40 time, Shannon Sharpe’s or Barry Sanders’ size).

Because of TV camera work, I am not sure how often Devaughn creates separation, but I think he is much better at creating separation than his reception statistics indicate because of the QB situation. At the end of my measurables rant, I agree with you and think Devaughn is likely an UDFA type guy, kind of like Patrick was, which probably makes decisions regarding his future very difficult.

[Charlie]

Vele is older and that does work against him. However, this year was not the last year he needed to move to the NFL. Leaving now gives him the longest possible career, having a senior year with Rising gives him a better chance to get looked at. Since it is possible he may not have a year in the NFL, another year in college with NIL may just be the best option. A safe bet is as much college as he can get for next steps.

[chinngiskhaan]

Vele leaving increases the odds of us landing a legit receiver in the portal. Still bad odds, but possible.

[ayoriver]

New WR Commit

Imaging this guy with Mikey Matthews, David Washington, Money, Kuithe, Yassmin, Micah Bernard, and if we manage to get Xavier Jordan. Pepper in some Vaki. Give that to Cam to work with. That sounds fantastic!