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Arizona Cardinals fourth-round selection Hakeem Butler has been knocked for his all-around receiver abilities, but there is one area where he is elite, on the deep ball.
According to Pro Football Focus, Butler had 19 explosive plays on deep targets during his time with the Cyclones, which was the most in the 2019 wide receiver class.
Hakeem Butler was a MONSTER when targeted deep at Iowa State! pic.twitter.com/RH7k6BwDuS
— PFF (@PFF) May 23, 2019
This type of deep threat receiver is a must in coach Kliff Kingsbury's high flying offense and his 4.48 40-yard dash speed should allow him to blow by secondaries, even in the NFL. The rest of Butler's game is very raw and it's probably not likely that he is going to be ready to go right away during his rookie year, but a few years down the road he could be one of the steals of this draft.
Butler has heard the concerns about his route running and his issues with drops during college, but as he points out, he has always been doubted.
“Everything to this moment, I feel like people have tried to make an excuse for why not me,” Butler said via the Cardinals team website. “I’ve always just shut people up like, ‘Yeah, it’s me, and it’s supposed to be me.’ That’s how my life has gone, and I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
There have been a lot of great quarterback-wide receiver duo's and although it might take a few years, maybe Kyler Murray and Butler will be the next great thing in the NFL. Even if the rest of the skills don't develop, his deep threat ability should keep him around the league for a while.
