Draft Analysis: Bru McCoy

February 8, 2025 /
  • Height: 6’3″
  • Weight: 220 lb
  • College: Tennessee
  • Tape watched: NC State, Oklahoma, Alabama, Vanderbilt
  • NFL Comparison: Jauan Jennings

Pros

  • Size/Strength

Its one thing to be big and tall in the NFL, its another to maximize the potential. Bru McCoy plays big and strong. He invites contact, both in press, and at the top of his routes. He is sneaky with his hands and arms, using his upper body strength to keep defenders at bay.

With the football in his hands, he routinely drags defenders for extra yards. He is built like a running back and has the tenacity to match.

  • Hands

Touting some of the best natural hands in the draft, Bru McCoy rarely drops the football. McCoy has 4 drops in the last three seasons, offering consistency and reliability to NFL quarterbacks. McCoy uses his thick frame to shield defenders and has great body control on the sideline. He is an above average contested catch target.

Midline

  • Blocking

McCoy has the tools and traits to be very special as a blocking receiver. His stalk and effort can continue to improve, however.

McCoy is at the top of the screen. His effort and strength is noticeable
  • YAC

Despite very little wiggle in his game, McCoy can slip arm tackles and physically challenge defensive backs. McCoy has middle of the road yards-after-catch statistics, with 4.6 in 2024. You can expect extra yards to come from him falling forward, rather than making defenders miss. McCoy forced 10 missed tackles in 2024.

  • Release

McCoy really shines when he can work his way into the defenders body. He has a strong base and upper body that bullies corners through his route. When defenders mirror at the line of scrimmage, McCoy struggles to move them with foot-fire and fakes.

Cons

  • Speed

A devastating knee injury forced McCoy to miss the majority of his Junior campaign. This put a huge set-back in capitalizing on an impressive sophomore campaign where he eclipsed 600 yards. McCoy isn’t a deep threat, but he can still win downfield with his tenacity and strength. The season after the comeback from knee injuries seems to be the sweet spot in terms of getting back to ‘normal’. McCoy could find an extra gear with a healthy offseason ahead of him.

  • Route Tree

McCoy worked in a vertical route tree at Tennessee. Playing almost exclusively the X receiver in Josh Heupel’s offense includes a lot of vertical-hitch choice routes. There is not a lot of tape of McCoy winning creatively, setting defenders up with his stems, or fluid bends in his routes. When he wins, he puts his head down and gets to his spot with authority.

Overview

A cherry picked draft comparison, Jauan Jennings and Bru McCoy simply share too many similarities to pass up. Jennings, a former 7th round draft pick out of Tennessee, touting the same number, had very similar skills as Bru McCoy. Jennings has made a huge role for himself in San Francisco as a player with no funny business. He does whatever is asked of him with a high motor.

Expect all of the same from Bru McCoy. If he can provide value as a big-slot role, he can unlock a totally new opportunity in the NFL that was not utilized in college. McCoy has traits to be a useful special teams player as well.