Cleveland Browns: Keep your eyes on Damion Ratley
By Randy Gurzi
Many wide receivers keep getting attention for the Cleveland Browns this offseason, but rookie Damion Ratley doesn’t look like a player to sleep on
Names being thrown into the wide receiver mix for the Cleveland Browns include guys like Jarvis Landry, Corey Coleman and of course, Josh Gordon. These are the usual suspects and should be the top three to get snaps.
That is assuming of course that Coleman can keep rookie Antonio Callaway at bay. Callaway was suspended all of 2017 while with the Florida Gators, but his talent is undeniable and the Browns are very high on him.
He’s not the only rookie with a lot of potential in the Cleveland wide receiver corps though.
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With the first pick in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft, the Browns took Texas A&M Damion Ratley, a deep threat with great height at 6-foot-3. What he doesn’t have is a lot of stats for his career, but that doesn’t mean he’s not someone to keep an eye on. In fact, Andrew Gribble of the team’s official website said in his mailbag that Ratley’s a player to watch in training camp:
"“The sixth-round selection didn’t put up a bunch of big numbers in college but was seen as a late-bloomer with a ton of upside. He got better and better as OTAs and minicamp unfolded and will look to find a niche during training camp.” — Andrew Gribble, ClevelandBrowns.com"
In three seasons for the Aggies, Ratley had just 47 receptions. He was a late-bloomer as Gribble said, recording 30 of his catches in 2017. Most impressive though was Ratley’s ability to get downfield. As a senior, he averaged an impressive 23.1 yards per catch and finished with 694 yards and six touchdowns.
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In Cleveland, he could find plenty of soft spots in the defense with so many focused on bigger names like Gordon, Landry and either Coleman or Callaway. It’s a perfect situation for such a player to thrive as Ratley could prove to be a steal for Cleveland.