Pros and cons of Los Angeles Rams picking Texas football’s Jordan Whittington in NFL draft
The next chapter of Jordan Whittington's football story will be written in Los Angeles.
The Texas receiver was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the sixth round of the NFL draft on Saturday. He was the 213th overall pick.
Whittington was the 11th Longhorn taken in the 2024 NFL draft.
What Whittington brings to Rams in 2024 NFL draft
Once a highly-touted five-star recruit, Whittington struggled with injuries throughout his five years at Texas. But over the past two seasons, Whittington became a mainstay in the starting lineup despite catching just two touchdown passes.
Why did Whittington see so much playing time? His blocking abilities and hustle. Whittington even publicly campaigned for an invitation to the dinners held by the UT offensive linemen after an early-season block against Alabama.
"He's not afraid to throw himself in there. Even if it's not the prettiest block, he gets the job done," Texas offensive lineman Christian Jones said in September.
This is unbelievable from Jordan Whittington.
Watch #13 at the bottom of your screen miss the first tackle on an INT, get up, and chase down the defender to force a fumble.
Two plays later, Ewers and Worthy connect on a 45-yard pass. #HookEm pic.twitter.com/yyh1FhY3JS— Carter Yates (@Carter_Yates16) November 12, 2023
Then there was the TCU play. During a trip to Fort Worth in November, Whittington ran down a Horned Frog defensive back to force a fumble after TCU had intercepted a deep pass. That fumble recovery by Texas was a key play in its 29-26 win.
NFL.com ranked Whittington as the No. 47 receiver in this draft class.
Whittington strengths, weaknesses at Texas
On its list of pros and cons for Whittington, NFL.com said it liked the toughness and frame of the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Whittington. Whittington also "displays a solid feel for route structure and how to sell it."
The NFL.com analyst wrote that he was unimpressed with Whittington's acceleration and burst.
In a statement released by the school, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said that "Coach (Sean) McVay and the Rams are going to absolutely love Jordan Whittington. He’ll be a do it all player on the field and in the community for LA. There’s nobody on our team that was more valuable than J-Whitt in helping us build our program and culture in our three years at Texas. ... He has a great mentality and football IQ in addition to his tremendous combination of strength, speed and explosiveness."
Whittington stats with Texas
Over 37 career games, Whittington recorded 123 catches and 1,586 receiving yards. He scored five times. During the 2022 season, he grabbed a career-high 50 catches.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Rams take Jordan Whittington in 2024 NFL draft: Pros, cons of pick
