Indications throughout Friday were that the St. Louis Rams would select a wide receiver with the 33rd pick in the draft. LSU’s Rueben Randle, Georgia Tech’s Stephen Hill, and South Carolina’s Alshon Jeffery were the big-name guys remaining after the draft’s first day. But St. Louis drafted small-schooler Brian Quick at No. 33.
Appalachian State’s all-time leader in receptions (202), receiving yards (3,418), and touchdown catches (31), Quick is a long-armed former basketball player who generated surprisingly little buzz in draftnik circles. He was considered to have had a poor Senior Bowl and didn’t play in the SEC or Big 12.
Quick was among the Rams’ pre-draft visitors, however, and he had first-round grades from several NFL area scouts. In St. Louis, Quick will be tasked with helping to turn around a receiver corps that has been among the league’s worst since the days of Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt.
It’s a lot to ask of the largely unheralded prospect, but Quick possesses ideal size (6-foot-4, 220) and downfield playmaking ability, averaging 16.9 yards per catch in his college career. Quick has drawn some comparisons to another small-school product, Saints receiver Marques Colston.