With the 2012 NFL Draft four months away, teams are already in the process of scouting and evaluating prospects.
The (4-9) Cleveland Browns are one of the teams in need of a playmaker at wide receiver to help their second-year quarterback Colt McCoy attack downfield in 2012-13.
Names such as Alshon Jeffery of South Carolina, Michael Floyd of Notre Dame and Justin Blackmon of Oklahoma State have been at the top of mock drafts and NFL draft boards since August.
Other names that have been mentioned include Ryan Broyles of Oklahoma, Juron Criner out of Arizona and Dwight Jones of North Carolina will surely rise up boards once the NFL Scouting Combine starts.
One name that may be overlooked is Mohamed Sanu of Rutgers.
Currently ranked as the seventh best wide receiver prospect by Walters Football, Sanu, a 6’2 215 pound junior out of South Brunswick, New Jersey—via Sierra Leone—may be one of the most underrated wide receivers in college football.
Sanu would lead all Scarlet Knight receivers in receiving with 1,144 yards and receptions with 109. Sanu would also lead Rutgers in receiving touchdowns with seven.
A three-year starter at Rutgers, Sanu would catch 51 passes for 639 yards as a true freshman for three touchdowns in 2009 and 44 passes for 418 yards as a sophomore in 2010 before breaking out in 2011.
With Cleveland rumored to be looking to go various directions of taking either a running back, offensive line and possibly quarterback—depending on the recovery of McCoy from a concussion—the Browns may look to take a wide receiver in the later rounds.
Due to Cleveland waiving former second-round pick, wide receiver Brian Robiskie, the Browns would be wise to cut injury-prone and inconsistent Mohamed Massaqoui and move wide receiver/return specialist Joshua Cribbs back to his natural position to maximize his effectiveness.
With The Scarlet Knights running a pro-style offense, Sanu would be a great fit for the Browns West Coast Offense with his reliable hands and an excellent ability to gain separate. Sanu has also shown the ability to run good routes and is not afraid to go into traffic and make tough catches.
With Greg Little entrenched as Cleveland’s number one wide receiver and Jordan Norwood staking his claim to the slot receiver, Sanu could hypothetically emerge as a solid number two wideout opposite Little for the Browns.
Sanu may now get the limelight and exposure of Floyd, Blackmon or Jeffery, but he may end up being a second-round steal for the Browns.
If Cleveland does indeed decide to address wide receiver in the later rounds, you can bet that Sanu is one of the names on the Browns draft board in Berea.
Follow me on Twitter, @Dawgfather_76 and Browns Central, @Browns_Central
Buy Cleveland Browns Tickets | Buy Cleveland Browns Apparel
So you want another WR who is exactly like Greg Little? No thanks. I’d rather have a burner like Kendall Wright instead who is a much better compliment to Little. This is a terrible hypothetical. Don’t quit your day job because you have no future as a blogger.