2024 NFL Draft: Malik Washington is the most underrated wide receiver in the class

• Malik Washington is an impressive sleeper: Washington was inarguably one of the nation’s best receivers in 2023. His 5-foot-8 frame confines him to the slot nearly 90% of the time, but he was as explosive as any receiver in the country. Many of his gaudy statistics were only surpassed by LSU’s Malik Nabers, who is likely to be a top-10 pick.

• Not just a gadget weapon: He is also one of just 14 receivers this season to post a perfect 99.9 deep receiving grade. That group includes many of the top names in this year’s class.

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This year’s draft class includes an incredibly talented wide receiver group that could be among the best we’ve ever seen. There’s a variety of types of players that fit any team's needs and even second-generation stars who appear able to fill rightfully large shoes.

One player who recently rose on PFF’s big board is Virginia’s Malik Washington. His placement at 90th on the board indicates a borderline talent who could be selected on Day 2 or Day 3, but this class is so loaded that he ranks 20th among wide receivers.

Washington spent his first four years at Northwestern before exploding onto the scene this year at Virginia. An increase in volume in a more open offense allowed Washington to be one of the best receivers in the country,

Malik Washington, 2023 receiving stats (with FBS rank):

*Regular Season only

Washington was inarguably one of the nation’s best receivers in 2023. His 5-foot-8 frame confines him to the slot nearly 90% of the time, but he was as explosive as any receiver in the country. Many of his gaudy statistics were only surpassed by LSU’s Malik Nabers, who is likely to be a top-10 pick.

Two questions immediately arise for Washington: Is he simply a one-year wonder who had a great senior season? And how manufactured is his overall production?

While Washington had his breakout year in 2023, he was a solid player stuck in a poor situation at Northwestern. Across the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Washington posted a 72.9 PFF receiving grade and totaled 1,276 receiving yards, more than double the total of any other Wildcats wide receiver and eighth-most in the Big Ten.

He only dropped three passes during those two seasons and his 25 forced missed tackles in 2022 was the fifth-highest total in the nation. Too often, he had to create for himself, as Northwestern’s 40.4 team PFF passing grade during those two seasons was the worst mark in the Power Five and the fourth-worst in the FBS.

In what was a dysfunctional situation, Washington did everything he could to succeed. His new situation at Virginia, a flawed team that won just three games, may not have been ideal, but Washington again made the most of his situation.

A knee-jerk thought could be that his production is manufactured through screens and short passes. While Washington did rank inside the top 20 in the FBS in screen catches and yards, production on those plays wasn’t really his strong suit. His statistics on screens are in the same neighborhood as other prospects like Xavier Worthy.

As for his prowess in the dropback passing game, Washington’s 11.9-yard average depth of target is low, but it is in the neighborhood of other slot weapons in the draft such as Ainias Smith and Malachi Corley. He is also one of just 14 receivers this season to post a perfect 99.9 deep receiving grade. That group includes many of the top names in this year’s class.

Once again though, success in these situations isn’t new and his production during his three years as a starter matches up with nearly every one of his peers.

Non-Screen Receiving Grade, 2021-2023:

Washington is a spectacular route runner who can win at all levels of the field. He can also make people miss after running traditional routes. He leads the nation with 50 forced missed tackles on non-screen passes since 2021. For comparison’s sake, Malik Nabers has 35 in that same span.

So we’ve established that Malik Washington’s production has been real for an extended period of time. He also wasn’t schematically aided to the point where his statistics are inflated and he certainly wasn’t given elite supporting casts to work with. At times this season, including Virginia’s massive upset of North Carolina, Washington was a singular force who could not be covered.

That leaves one final question: Can he really succeed at 5-foot-8? Recent players such as Tank Dell, Cole Beasley and Taylor Gabriel have proven that it's possible.

Three things come to mind when considering the disadvantages of such a diminutive stature.

The first is long speed, but Washington proved his to be good enough with a 4.47-second 40-yard dash and his ability to win downfield this season. The second is his catch radius. Washington’s 2.5% career drop rate is the best of any wide receiver in this class with at least 150 targets, and while his short stature could be a disadvantage, his freakish 42-inch vertical leap ability at least somewhat makes up for that.

The third factor is play strength. We’ve established already that Washington is a master at making tacklers miss. He is of similar height to Tank Dell but has a much thicker running back-esque build that allows him to play physically.

Maybe most astounding is the fact that he has used his toughness and leaping ability to haul in 56.7% of his contested targets in his career, a rate better than the vast majority of receivers in the 2024 class.

Washington may be the most underrated wide receiver in the 2024 class. His diminutive stature will naturally lead many to be surprised if he succeeds in the NFL. He’ll continue to be considered an underdog, but his talent and production so far say he shouldn’t be.