Texas A&M Football: Making the Case for Undrafted Free Agent Ricky Seals-Jones
Former Texas A&M football wide receiver and undrafted free agent Ricky Seals-Jones has what it takes to thrive in the NFL.
Not all of our favorite Aggies were drafted this past weekend. Fan favorite Trevor Knight, despite an extraordinary performance at the NFL Combine, didn’t hear his name called. When the draft ended he was quickly signed as a free agent by the Arizona Cardinals. There was another former Aggie that was also picked up by the red birds: Ricky Seals-Jones.
Must Read: Tracking the Undrafted Aggies
Who is Ricky Seals-Jones?
The 6-foot 5-inch tall wide receiver was recruited as an athlete out of Sealy, Texas by Clarence McKinney and David Beaty. He was the No. 2 recruit in the state of Texas. Texas A&M fans were more than excited to land this man-child and thought that he would help replace the holes in the system after Ryan Swope and Mike Evans got drafted. He projected to be a red zone threat and exceptional blocker due to his size and strength.
He was an exceptional blocker. However, that wasn’t the case when it came to being a threat in the red zone. His production numbers were average and he never got the targets in order to prove he could be a reliable target at the next level. Yet I still think there’s something to be said about him.
How Does he Fit the with Cardinals?
Assuming he makes the team, which I think he will, Seals-Jones will finally be playing with a mature and refined quarterback who knows the game. We all know that the Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald is getting a little long in the tooth. He can’t play forever, and Arizona has plenty of good receivers to compliment him. The problem is that they are rather small.
All but one of the other receivers besides Fitz are six foot or shorter. The only one who is over six feet is Marquis Bundy who didn’t even get targeted last year and only had 50 catches in college. In comparison Seals-Jones had 123 receptions and 10 TDs in his 34 games at Texas A&M.
I don’t think he’ll have a problem taking the inexperienced Marquis’ spot especially since Ricky has an inch and 30 pounds on him. To me, this is a logical fit. RSJ is another big man with tons of potential that’s yet to be uncovered.
Why Haven’t You Heard of Him?
Seals-Jones played with six different quarterbacks at Texas A&M. Two of them were true freshmen, and you could say three if you wanted to count Kenny Hill. He’s never had the opportunity to establish the right chemistry that a quarterback and his wide receiver needs in order to be successful. Plus, only a few of those six were worth a rip.
Johnny Manziel was obviously the best. It gets controversial as who comes in second. Really, it doesn’t matter since three of the hotshot freshmen that came in eventually transferred.
This never allowed him to reach his ceiling and explode onto the scene that the Aggie fans were hoping for. At Arizona, not only will he have All-Pro veteran Carson Palmer to sling him the pill, but he’ll also have Fitzgerald to coach him up and teach him the ways of an NFL receiver.
Is he Too Big?
The knock on the big boy is that he might be a nickel too slow off the line of scrimmage. He only ran a 4.69 according to NFL.com who also calls him a “coverage magnet.” This can still be used as a positive though. If he never gets any faster, that’s okay. His huge frame should allow him to put his hand in the dirt as a tight end if need be.
Next: How each Aggie draftee fits with their new team
I think if Ricky Seals-Jones can lose some weight, get quicker and faster, he’ll get open more out wide. If not, then he’ll play great as a tight-end. If you pair those things with learning from one of the best receivers to ever play, then there could be big things to come from the undrafted kid out of Sealy.
***Stats from 247 Sports, AZCardinals.com***