Alabama Football: Ranking Alabama’s top 2021 NFL Draft prospects

4. DeVonta Smith, WR, Senior

Many were surprised that Smitty decided to return for his senior season, myself included. He has been a part of plenty of superstar moments, but he has also just been a reliable receiver for the Tide offense. His production exploded last year, leading the team in receiving yards and touchdowns.

Smith’s speed gets overlooked in the Tide offense, but that makes sense. When you line up with Jaylen Waddle and Henry Ruggs, you’re going to look slow. That’s not the case, though. He’s a speedster. His hands are solid, he has great body control, and he is set to have another stellar season.

With Ruggs and Jeudy out of the picture, Smith will likely get a larger portion of touches in the Tide offense. Even though there will be fewer passes to go around, I would be surprised if he didn’t have a big year alongside Waddle.

He likely decided to return due to how stacked the 2020 draft class was at receiver, but I’ve got news for draft fans. The receiver class in 2021 is going to be just as loaded. He will compete against Waddle, Rondale Moore, Tylan Wallace, Justyn Ross, and Ja’Marr Chase. We’ll see how his stock pans out, but he has the traits of a first-round receiver.