From an early age, the Ravens’ first-round draft pick Breshad Perriman has been around the game of football. The love for the game runs through his blood.
His father Brett played 10 seasons (1988-97) in the NFL, while playing stints in New Orleans, Detroit, Kansas City and Miami.
“It played a major role, just growing up around football, period,” said Perriman on learning the game of football from his father. “Football has always been in my blood, and now it’s my turn to play on the highest level of competition.”
While it’s way to early to predict whether Perriman will carry on the success of his family name, the Georgia native is elated to be a Baltimore Raven.
It’s certainly clear the feeling is mutual for the team, as Ozzie and company selected the Central Florida standout in hopes of providing a smooth transition to life without Torrey Smith.
The speedy 6-2, 212-lb wide receiver, who clocked a 4.24-4.25/40 at his pro-day, has drawn comparisons to Smith, Perriman, however sees himself as more of Julio Jones type of player.
“For the most part, I compare myself to Julio Jones,” responded Perriman when asked which NFL player he sees himself as similar to. “He’s kind of a big receiver like myself, but he can play as a small receiver as well. Vertically, he has great quickness and he’s versatile.”
Ravens wide receiver coach Bobby Engram echoed Perriman’s words about the type of player he is and went as far as saying the big-bodied wideout reminded him of the Chicago Bears’ Alshon Jeffrey.
“There are a lot of bigger receivers in the league, To me, he looked like you could take him as his own guy for his skill set and his ability,” Engram said. “He’s got great size. He bends really well for a big guy. He’s a hard worker. … He has the ability to take a short gain and take it to the house.”
While Ravens fans would be estatic if the 26th overall pick turned into a Jones- or Jeffrey-type player, draft gurus and talent examiners have noted Periman’s dropped catches as his most glaring weakness.
The former All-American Athletic Conference First Team player stated he will use those sentiments as motivation to prove his critics wrong.
“That’s definitely something that I have a chip on my shoulder about,” Perriman said. “But at the end of the day, I know what I can do. I know that I can catch.
“I did have some lack of concentration, some mental drops in this past season. And that’s something that I’ve been working on tremendously. I don’t really see it as a weakness, but I will use it as a motivation.”
In his final season at Central Florida, Perriman recorded 50 receptions for 1,044 yards and nine touchdowns including an impressive 51-yard game winning Hail Mary catch to seal a victory over ECU.
While the Ravens have received some critcism for their selection of Breshad from a few around town the coaching staff feel as if Perriman can overcome his drops.
“We went through all his catches, all his non catches, all of his workout tape that we had, and we came away feeling very good about his hands,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said. “I know the question regarding his hands, and he has a certain number of drops, but most of those drops are last year and early this year. This is a developmental receiver who has gotten a lot better in the last two years.”
It’s natural to second guess an organization that has struggled with grooming a wide receiver (22 draft picks since 1996), but the Ravens brass seem content that Perriman will finally be that guy that proves himself worthy of a first-round pick.
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