Baylor NFL Stock Report: Dominance in the Desert Against ASU Showcases Five Bears
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The Baylor Bears had yet another nationally televised game this past weekend against Kenny Dillingham and the Arizona State Sun Devils. It was a late game (starting at 9:30 PM CT) but NFL scouts undoubtedly tuned in to watch DJ Lagway play, and many other Baylor players likely caught the attention of those same scouts.
DJ Lagway (QB) - Stock Up
Big 12 Player of the Week for a reason, DJ Lagway could seemingly do no wrong in the game against ASU. Completing 25-40 passes for 306 yards, 4 touchdowns through the air, and even running for an 11 yard touchdown, this is the exact kind of thing that the preseason hype around Lagway was all about. Even though he had a couple of passes overthrown that I'm sure he'd want to try again as a couple of them would have assuredly led to touchdowns had the timing been just a little more in sync, Lagway showed tremendous speed and accuracy on his throws throughout the rest of the game.
Traevon "Slug" Mitchell (DL) - Stock Up
An absolute force on the defensive line, #91 Traevon "Slug" Mitchell is not who I would want staring through me if I were an opposing lineman or quarterback. With credit for 4 combined tackles (2 solo, 2 assisted), 0.5 quarterback sacks, and 2.5 tackles for loss Mitchell's presence disrupted ASU the entire evening.
Despite his nickname "Slug" Mitchell is surprisingly quick off the line and is deceptively elusive for a defensive lineman, and when Mitchell gets into the backfield, quarterbacks tend to have a bad time. Mitchell might be slightly undersized for a defensive lineman, but that hasn't stopped him from drawing double-teams and extra focus by the opposing offensive lines.
Jadon Porter (WR) - Stock Up
It would be a disservice not to mention Jadon Porter this week as his stock jumps way up after his performance against the Sun Devils. 4 targets, 3 catches, 2 touchdowns, and 1 highlight tip-toe catch. Porter has the size, hands, balance, coordination, and route-running ability that could see him playing and excelling on Sundays.
Palmer Williams (P) - Stock Up
Palmer Williams is the best punter in college football and he proves it with every punt. Punting three times against ASU with each being longer than 50 yards a piece, with a long of 72, Williams' ability to flip field position has been invaluable to the Bears successes this season. NFL scouts also would have surely taken notice of Willams' control and accuracy in pinning an opponent inside their own 10 yard line. Any NFL team looking for or needing a punter should have Palmer Williams' name at the top of their lists.
Gavin Freeman (WR) - Stock Up
7 receptions on 9 targets for 115 yards with a long of 31, Gavin Freeman put in another impressive performance against ASU. Here's the thing though; as fantastic of an outing as it was for Freeman (even with adding another hurdle over a defensive player into his highlight reel for the year), that's just it; Gavin Freeman is a walking highlight reel ready to happen at any time.
Stats that most receivers would dream of are becoming an every week occurrence for Freeman, and whether he's fighting for extra yards or simply catching nearly everything that comes his way, NFL scouts should be taking notice of Freeman by now if they haven't yet.
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Brad is a writer and contributes to the Baylor Bears on SI, with aspirations to share his own unique thoughts and perspectives with fans. Whether through the facts and figures of the past or the untold potential and triumphs of the future, sports have always been a large influence on Brad's storytelling and life overall. His inspiration to write began while watching sports when he first noticed the highs and lows of each game, each quarter, each play; there's a story in each of them worth telling, and he wanted to tell them.
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