NFL Draft: 10 best wide receivers available in 2023
By KC Proctor
9. Xavier Hutchinson, Iowa State
The 2020 Iowa State Cyclones took second in the Big 12 with a 9-3 record (8-1 in conference) and finished the season as No. 9 in the college football rankings. For anyone who doesn’t stay tapped into the Big 12, hindsight makes the falloff between the 2020 and 2021 seasons purely inexplicable. Breece Hall was RB1, Brock Purdy — the runner-up for the 2022 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year — was QB1, and Xavier Hutchinson topped wideouts on the depth chart. These two years of ultimate failure for the Cyclones will haunt fans for years to come as each of the aforementioned build their legacies in the NFL.
Although I couldn’t avoid it entirely, we’re not here to dog on Iowa State, rather, this space is intended to explain why The X-Man, Hutchinson is the ninth-ranked wide receiver in this year’s draft class.
Once more, proven commodities take the cake on draft day. Xavier Hutchinson was a workhorse for Iowa State in his three seasons, hauling in 254 receptions and racking up over 2,900 receiving yards. His 15 receiving touchdowns simply round out the potential he has to offer at the next level.
Spending the majority of his collegiate career out wide as the X, Hutchinson — per PFF — also accounted for nearly 300 snaps out of the slot in his three-year career. Much like Rashee Rice, he brings a big body and a rounded skillset to the draft. His route tree is expansive, although his near-exclusive involvement in Iowa State’s short-pass game shows up clearly on tape. At 6-foot-3 and weighing over 200 pounds, his breakaway speed is impressive, and he is always a threat for positive yards after the catch.