A.T. Perry 2023 NFL Draft profile: Scout report for the Wake Forest WR

A.T. Perry, Wake Forest: 6’4”, 200 pounds.

A.T. Perry was a three-star recruit who caught just 19 passes for less than 300 yards (and two TDs) through his first two years. He exploded onto the scene in 2021 with 71 grabs for just under 1,300 yards and 15 touchdowns, earning himself first-team All-ACC.

He repeated those honors this past season, with slightly worse numbers in one fewer game, whilst not having starting quarterback Sam Hartmann available to throw him the ball for stretches.

A.T. Perry scout report: Strengths

A.T. Perry - Duke v Wake Forest

+ A.T. Perry has very quick feet for a guy his size and he’s so good at manipulating corners off the snap.

+ Can gain inside leverage against corners shaded that way by quickly hopping towards the sideline and then jumping underneath, or nodding inside and creating more room for himself down the sideline.

+ While elusive and flexible for a big receiver, he can also become the enforcer on his releases and attack the DB’s chest, in order to give himself a clean runway.

+ Continues to work the hands, trying to stack guys vertically and will extend the inside arm as DBs try to pin it.

+ Perry may need some room to build up, but once he’s rolling, he can run by corners on post routes when getting matched up with them down the field. He does a great job of opening up that area of the field for himself with the way he stems vertically.

+ Will change up speeds on the fly and be deceptive with his body-language.

+ There’s not many 6’4” guys who teams ask to run blaze-out as drive-starters, but Perry is one of them.

+ Does well to pro-actively lean into contact to create separation with subtle chicken-wing moves at the break point. He really eats over the middle of the field on dig routes that way.

+ Is able stop his momentum by sitting in the chair better than almost any receivers his height. He runs beautiful curls and comeback routes, where he really sells that take-off down the sideline and then sticks his foot in the ground as the corner flips his hips, before actively working back down the ladder.

+ Such a fluid mover and was asked to run some pretty intricate double-moves, where he could naturally sink his hips and come back out.

+ Against zone coverage, he drifts slightly to eliminate ancillary defenders frequently.

+ Tracks the ball exceptionally well, arriving across the inside and towards the outside shoulder on those touch passes from QB Sam Hartmann.

+ Presents a massive catch-radius with the wingspan that would amount to the average 6’10” person and plays above the rim as well as anybody in this class (hauled in 11 of 25 contested catch opportunities).

+ Fluidly pirouettes around for back-shoulder catches, snatching and pulling it into his body, combined with a subtle swipe-bay of the defender.

+ Understands where hits are coming from and how to turn away from them to protect the ball, really pinning it against his chest at times when needed.

+ Instantly gets upfield for positive yardage after the catch and seems to have those eyes in the back of his helmet, with the way he gets around that safety driving down on him as he hauls in the pass. The same is true on dig routes, when he reverses back out to the sidelines as the corner tries to chase him down.

+ Perry has a real knack for drawing flags, not only by forcing DBs to grab cloth against him running routes, but also the way he makes them engage in contact at the catch point. He got four huge ones in the Clemson game, which allowed them to take that contest to overtime, where he scored the touchdown that initially put them ahead.

+ Watching him against Army last season, they basically bracketed him on every single snap when he was the single receiver from the second quarter on.

+ Chooses good angles and breaks down in space to shield defenders in the run game.

+ Consistently is able to gain the inside position and force corners to work around him if they want to make an impact in that regard.

+ Surprised a lot of people in a positive sense, with a 4.47 in the 40 and an 11’1” broad jump (96th percentile among WRs).

A.T. Perry scout report: Weaknesses

A.T. Perry - Wake Forest v NC State

– Presents more of a gangly frame and I’m not sure how much muscle he can still pack on.

– Lacks that extra gear once the ball is in his hands to run away from the defense.

– And that also shows up when he can’t hit that last notch to get under those high-arching passes that appear to be a step too far out in front.

– Wake Forest’s odd offensive system certainly played its part in this, but Perry doesn’t bring the same type of urgency on every single route and blocking assignment.

– Slightly leaves his feet on some passes that he really doesn’t need to and can drop the ball because of it (eight drops on 89 catchable targets last season).

A.T. Perry scout report: Grade

A.T. Perry - Clemson v Wake Forest

A.T. Perry is a pretty unique guy in this wide receiver class. He doesn’t have the top-end speed to just run by people or dance around defenders after the catch. However, he has enough of both to be effective and he’s an extremely savvy player.

His suddenness to win off the line at that height, how he creates separation later in the route and the way he can win on high-point passes are all tremendous. I don’t think he’s dynamic enough to be a legit number one, but if he’s your secondary receiver option (who can play either outside and win through contact to start or finish), I think he can be a very productive player.

For a really small group of receivers this year, A.T. Perry brings some qualities you don’t really find otherwise.

Grade: Second round.

You might like other 2023 NFL Draft Scouting Reports: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (WR), Ohio; Zay Flowers (WR), Boston; Jordan Addison (WR), USC; Jalin Hyatt (WR), Tennessee; Jordan Addison (WR), USC; Quentin Johnston (WR), TCU; Zach Charbonnet (RB), UCLA; Bijan Robinson (RB), Texas.

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