Draft Grade: Skilled WR Tyler Johnson falls to Buccaneers in fifth-round

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected their second Minnesota Golden Gophers player in the fifth-round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Here’s our grade for the pick.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers came into Day 3 of the 2020 NFL Draft knowing that they needed to address the wide receiver position.

Though the Buccaneers had to wait for the majority of the early portion of the day without a fourth-round pick, the patience seemingly paid off when they had the opportunity to draft WR Tyler Johnson with the No. 161 overall pick in the draft.

Here’s a look at our draft grade for the fifth-round selection.

Fifth-Round Draft Grade: Tyler Johnson, WR

Johnson was the highest-graded wide receiver in all of College Football last year, according to Pro Football Focus.

When looking at his film, he’s the type of guy that you absolute salivate over pairing with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.

Johnson doesn’t have elite top-end speed. He’s likely around a 4.5 guy, but chose not to run at the 2020 NFL Combine.

Though some analysts have knocks on his game, the truth of the matter is this: He’s one of the best slot receiver options in this draft class. He dropped to the fifth-round because he didn’t participate in the combine, but his high upside can clearly be seen.

Johnson is a crisp route-runner and a guy who isn’t afraid of contact or making a catch in traffic. He’s able to high-point the ball and adjust to make plays in the air. His hands are off-the-charts, as well.

When looking at his overall body of work- and the fact that the Buccaneers will be pairing him with Evans and Godwin- you can’t have anything but love for this pick. Johnson is going to be the perfect third-option at wide receiver for the Bucs and is going to take that WR core to the next level because of his play-making ability.

Grade: A

I love the prospect and I love the pick. You couldn’t have asked for a better competitor to fall into Tampa Bay’s lap in the fifth-round and they’ve addressed the concern of replacing Breshad Perriman with this pick.