DeVonta Smith Ranks Calvin Ridley as a Top-3 Alabama WR
Few programs have put out wide receiver talent in recent years like Alabama.
The Crimson Tide have had 11 different wide receivers enter the NFL pipeline via the draft since 2011, including first-rounders like Julio Jones, Amari Cooper, DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, Jerry Jeudy, Jameson Williams, and Jacksonville Jaguars star receiver Calvin Ridley.
As a result, it is hard for anyone to rank the receivers Nick Saban has seen become stars at the NFL level. But that didn't stop Smith, a former Heisman Winner, from giving his top-5 during his appearance on the 'Big Play Slay' podcast with Darius Slay on The Volume.
Ridley was given the ultimate sign of respect by Smith, with Smith placing the Jaguars and former Atlanta Falcons receiver above him at No. 3, below just Jones and Cooper.
In three years at Alabama, Ridley caught 224 receptions for 2,781 yards (12.4 yards per catch) and 19 touchdowns, including a 63-catch final season alongside a freshman Smith.
"My freshman year, like, just watching Rid work. Like, Rid was different."
Ridley, the No. 26 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, caught 217 passes for 3,061 yards and 26 touchdowns in his first three seasons. He played in five games in 2021 before stepping away from the team, catching 31 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns.
The Jaguars traded for Ridley at last November's trade deadline, acquiring the former Pro Bowler for a 2023 fifth-round pick and a conditional 2024 pick. Now, Ridley figures to be one of the most important pieces in an upstart Jaguars offense.
“Yeah, one of the biggest things when I was watching was noticed they’re good, but maybe starting off a little slow. Getting a little behind and then making a big comeback. What if you started off so amazing in the beginning and finished off like that?" Ridley said last month.
"Like wow, what a team could be. I was thinking that I know the player I am and the systems I’ve been in, I’m one of those players that they try to get the ball to, sometimes, on the first play of the game. I’m always pretty much ready to crank it open, get it open, and I feel like I could help start that energy and start moving the ball right away as soon as the game pops off.”
