2022 Dynasty Draft Profile: Treylon Burks

To kick off each dynasty profile from the 2022 skill position draft class, a dated positional ranking will be presented, relevant to that prospect’s position. As the profiles have been published, the rankings have evolved. The number of WRs that are either declared underclassmen or seniors exhausting their eligibility – at least the ones that have publicly declared their intention to pursue a career in the NFL – currently stands at a crowded 168. And that isn’t even an exhaustive number since the WRs who have zero chance of being drafted have already been filtered out from the very long list of those testing at a collegiate Pro Day. Without further delay, here are the top-25 WR rankings from the 2022 class as of publication:

Like a windup toy, Treylon Burks took off the moment his feet hit the field for Warren High School. As a 15-year-old freshman, this mere child managed to accrue a 41/815/12 receiving line (19.9 YPR). It was enough to earn him three scholarship offers following the season: Memphis, USF and Arkansas – the first Bret Bielema ever extended to a HS freshman. Very clearly an early-bloomer, Burks was reported to already be capable of a 4.66-second 40-time at that early age. Keep in mind, Treylon wasn’t your typical everyday progeny. He was a 6-foot-2, 198-pound prepubescent.

Burks prepped for his sophomore year on the gridiron by taking home AHSAA 4A All-State on the baseball diamond. And he had special plans for the Lumberjacks. Burks assisted Warren to a perfect, 15-0 record after capturing the AHSAA 4A Centennial Bank Championship with a 54-37 victory over the Pea Ridge Blackhawks. He posted a 3/95/0 receiving line, forced a fumble and converted an INT into a pick-six during the title game. Space for his 57/1,354/17 line (23.8 YPR) on the AHSAA All-Sophomore team was a foregone conclusion.

Just more examples of the career in Arkansas that Treylon fashioned into his legend, he collected another AHSAA 4A All-State honor in baseball the following spring after generating a .471 batting average, 1.258 OPS and stealing 12 bases. But the first real hiccup during his athletic career came while attempting to repeat as AHSAA 4A Centennial Bank Champions during his junior year. By all accounts, Burks deserved that victory over Arkadelphia, accounting for 18/116/2 rushing, 4/178/2 receiving, 16 tackles and an INT.

After Burks took a handoff to set the Lumberjacks up for a go-ahead, 25-yard field goal attempt with less than 10 seconds remaining, a student ran onto the field with the thumbs down gesture directed at the Arkadelphia sideline. It turns out that misplaced youth was one of Warren’s own. The antics were very costly, as officials penalized Warren 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct. The student was obviously arrested and, as you can find him buried at the bottom of the photo below, the foolish child did not need to look very far to find those wishing to pick a bone with him:

Rather than attempting a 40-yard field goal, Warren QB J’Malachi Kinnard’s throw into the end zone wound up being picked off, handing Arkadelphia the 28-27 victory. Burks’ AHSAA 4A All-State and Player of the Year selections just couldn’t fill in the wound that defeat had left behind. Regardless, the numbers Burks put up as a junior must be addressed. Yeah, just a cool 45 receptions, 1,090 receiving yards (24.2 YPR), 12 receiving TDs, 114 attempts for another 936 yards on the ground and an additional 27 rushing TDs. As a linebacker, he accounted for 111 total tackles, 14 TFLs, one sack, two batted passes, a forced fumble, five INTs and three pick-sixes. Tossing in the four TDs he scored on returns, Burks hit paydirt 46 times that season. Burks fueled his team with 18.4 PPG on his own!

To bide his time until football started again, Burks immediately took to the basketball court a few months later, taking home, you guessed it, AHSAA 4A All-State honors. Just setting the stage for Burks to cap off his Warren career in style. That’s until, four games into his final football season, Treylon tore the ACL in his left knee. Oddly enough, Burks’ offer list only grew by six from the three he received after his freshman season. Didn’t matter. The only one that made a difference to Burks was the one that would take him to Fayetteville.

Burks rehabilitated his left knee in time to be selected to the SEC All-Freshman Team and All-SEC Second Team as a returner. Burks really came into his own as a sophomore, producing a 51/820/7 line that brought him All-SEC Second Team honors… for his efforts as a WR, this time around. We’ll dive into Burks’ ‘21 season in depth during his evaluation, but the performance that stood out above all was his career-best 8/179/2 line against Alabama. Along the way, Burks became only the fourth Arkansas receiver in its history to post 1,000-or-more receiving yards. He also established a team record with six games where he collected at least 100 receiving yards.

His 66 receptions from last season are tied for second-most, 1,104 receiving yards are third-most and his 11 TDs are tied for the second-most in a single season in Razorbacks’ team history. Treylon was recognized with an All-SEC First Team selection. Burks led his team in receiving yards in all three seasons he was on campus. His 146 career receptions are sixth-most, 2,399 receiving yards are sixth-most and his 18 TDs are tied for the fifth-most in Arkansas history. Finally, his 10 career games with at least 100 receiving yards stands as the second-most in program history.

NFL franchises must have been giddy with excitement feasting their eyes on Burks’ physical dimensions (table above). He certainly cast quite an imposing shadow onto interior collegiate defenders who were consistently forced to deal with the considerable mismatch he presented. The population has become intoxicated with sub-4.4 expectations. At Burks’ height and weight, historical success expectations require him to provide us with anything under a 40-time of 4.57 and a 10-yard split under 1.67 to hit his thresholds. It doesn’t matter how close his 4.55-second 40-time (52nd percentile) falls under that threshold, he has the functional speed to compete at the next level, period. And we should all be very happy with his 1.55-second 10-yard split (60th). You can find his other testing percentiles in the table below:

Diving head first into grading Burks’ receiving tools, his release at the snap is the first on the docket. Treylon frequently displays the same mini-hop prior to his get-off that we see from Drake London. For Burks, this could be tied to his previous baseball work in center field. Outfielders employ a small jump, termed a crow hop, to gather one’s self prior to a throw and to assist with momentum. In any case, it must be eliminated to compete in the NFL game of seconds. After driving himself off the line, Burks adequately attacks a defender’s midline. He offers decent arm, hip and knee movement to sell the defender away from his route. While sufficient, nothing that really stands out as sudden.

Moving on to the precision of Treylon’s routes, as anticipated from his disappointing results in the pro shuttle and 3-cone, the footwork we see is raw and undisciplined. His breaks give the appearance that he’s changing direction on a frozen lake. Defensive backs are already on him by the time he manages to begin regaining his momentum. If we didn’t know any better, we might simply assume Burks’ route-running was extremely raw. He needs considerable coaching, but it’s much deeper than that. Burks needs considerable training with his footwork, which should clean up his route mechanics.

As a kid who split his time in HS between linebacker, Wildcat QB, running back and wide receiver, watching the sloppiness of his footwork this far into the game is, while disappointing, unsurprising. He dominated all takers at Warren. And he’s used his considerable size, competitive speed and powerful core to win collegiately. But Treylon will be waking into a rude reality in the NFL. His breaks lack explosion in their entirety. It’s impossible not to wonder how significant of a role the ACL repair he received in HS to his left knee is playing into the issue. If struggles to gain separation using route mechanics are present in college, the troubles are only just beginning.

Burks is far more dangerous on patterns with multiple breaks. Even building in a slight bend prior to the primary turn affords Burks the opportunity to create a bit of space by influencing his coverage into spinning their hips in the wrong direction. That said, Burks came on very strong over the second half last season, particularly in the 9b (back-shoulder fly) territory and specifically against Alabama. The 9b affords Burks with the freedom to freestyle his entry, provided he hits his landmark. The vertical work opened up the field for him underneath where his lackadaisical footwork had failed him. It certainly made a huge difference that KJ Jefferson finally came through with some improved accuracy later in the year.

Next up, separation and tracking. And for a kid weighing in at 224 pounds, separation concerns are natural. For a perfect example of his ability to create space, skip to the play around Q2 2:38 in Week 4 at Texas A&M using this footage.

We find Myles Jones in man coverage over Burks. For some context, Jones had been freshly awarded the Aggies’ Top Conditioned Athlete award — taking into account the insanely stacked athleticism on the A&M roster, that information should not be taken lightly. When you allow it to play through, the results are clear. Jam destroyed, separation gained, stack employed, throw collected, separation maintained and house call accomplished.

At his size, in order for Burks to be an option on the perimeter in the NFL – as far as separation is concerned – he will need to check the following boxes:

1. Ravages press coverage
2. Stems off-coverage efficiently and effectively
3. Stacks over the top with aggression

Treylon has no trouble whatsoever destroying press attempts. He’s so capable at leaving a defender regretting a press attempt that he will capitalize on the mistake as its own separation tool. Once Burks has a step on his defender, the stack is coming and with all of the aggressiveness that could be expected. His future will continue to keep him inside the slot, taking advantage of LBs in coverage, but he also has the capability of kicking outside to employ his vertical gifts when presented with the proper matchup.

1Two seasons of data from Long Beach Poly High School and three seasons from the University of Southern California

2Two seasons of data from DeSoto High School and three seasons from the University of Colorado

3Four seasons of data from Allen High School and three seasons from the University of Arkansas

Shifting over to the ball skills department, it was impossible not to come away disappointed. Is that an indication Burks isn’t a playmaker? So far from reality that it’s comical. Keep in mind, the tape from the ‘20 season for Burks was already broken down for last season’s draft guide. It was already clear he carried an NFL skillset. Further development is the name of the game.

Treylon has excellent hands, so he has no excuse whatsoever to be a ‘some of the time’ body catcher. But the most disappointing aspect of his ball skills surrounds his lack of physicality. It appears expecting a kid with what appears to be one of the most imposing physicalities to actually return physicality back onto physical corners is asking too much. Feast your eyes on the Georgia tape. They tossed him around all game. Nothing in return. Check out the LSU game. Tossed him around. Nothing in return. News flash, Treylon, your future NFL life will consist of weekly interactions with Georgia- and LSU-levels of physicality.

All is not lost for the potential first-rounder. Burks is capable of going high-or-low to save his QB from their off-target throws. And Burks made a constant pattern of doing that last season for Jefferson. Go recheck those vertical and broad jump numbers. Below average hops, no need to beat around the bush. Just more indications of his lack of explosion. However, the Inspector Gadget arms that hang down to his knees enable him to go up and get it with anyone. That is, however, unless he’s going up against corners determined to get physical with him.

Easily Burks’ worst category, his mark for improvisational skills is partly related to limited opportunities. But a poor grade would not be applied where poor play wasn’t identified. Burks only put a handful of examples of scramble drills on tape, but they all brought absolutely nothing of value to his offense. Burks is quick to identify his QB moving out of the pocket; that much is positive. Rather than finding a path to work back to his QB, Burks keeps working further downfield. He compounds the issue for his QB and denies presenting him with a reasonable target.

He’s unrefined. His speed is only serviceable. And Treylon never uses any jump cuts. Just a little hip wiggle, occasional slants and turns from Burks’ single-speed repertoire. When his game is on, he looks like Forest Gump returning a kick for his Mobile faithful. And he never lowers his pads to punish defenders with his thick frame who annoyingly get in his way. But Burks is extraordinary at identifying and attacking zone creases. He makes his living out of punishing the switch-off between individual zone responsibilities where Burks can go right after a fresh defender.

In addition to his high-pointing prowess, Burks packs a disgustingly nasty stiff-arm. Truly the stuff of nightmares for those who were bullied as children. In fact, that stiff-arm using his 76th-percentile telephone poles and 65th-percentile mitts may just be Burks’ finest attribute. When he’s not using his long arms, Burks is shedding his tackles with impressive balance. Make sure to apply a solid hit if you’re going to go high. And NEVER attempt to tackle Burks at thigh-level. Tackle attempts around his thick quads make up the majority of his broken tackles.

Burks has a good amount of work to do in his future, particularly in developing his footwork, tightening up his route breaks and learning how to help his scrambling QB. He also needs considerably more experience attacking on crossers and outs – two of the top-three most important patterns for slot WRs in the NFL. Far from his fault, since the two routes were rarely employed by Arkansas coaches.

This to-do list is not an indication that Burks will fail to develop into a considerable talent at the next level. However, depending on how the evaluations proceed for the remaining wideouts in this truly stacked top-15, Burks will be at risk of dropping further down the ranks. At the same time, Treylon has made a career out of exceeding expectations. Not a project, not a finished design. Staying in school for another year would’ve been the preferred option, but we certainly shouldn’t ignore his list of skills in our rookie drafts. Unsurprisingly, his landing spot will be crucial to project his immediate impact.

2021 Video Recommendations: Week 2 vs. Texas, Week 4 at Texas A&M, Week 5 at Georgia, Week 6 at Ole Miss, Week 7 vs. Auburn, Week 10 vs. Mississippi State, Week 11 at LSU, Week 12 at Alabama and Week 13 vs. Missouri

Optimal Landing Spots: Green Bay Packers, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Chargers and New Orleans Saints

Film Review Comp (2021): JuJu Smith-Schuster

Overall Comp (Factoring size, athleticism, tape and level of collegiate production): Laviska Shenault Jr.