DYAMI BROWN

NORTH CAROLINA 

POSITION: WIDE RECEIVER

RECRUIT RATING: 4-STAR

SIZE: 6’1″ 195LBs

BMI: 26

BIRTHDATE: November 1, 1999 (21)

YEAR: Junior

CAREER STATS: 123 REC / 2,306 / 21 TDs / 18.1 AVG

2020 DOMINATOR RATING: 30.65%

2020 YARDS PER TEAM PASS ATTEMPT: 3.08

DROP %: 6.78% (4)

BACKGROUND 

Rated as a 4-star recruit in the 2018 recruiting class, Dyami Brown ranked as the eighth-best athlete in the nation according to 247Sports composite rankings. He held 15 offers that included Alabama and Florida. During his time at West Mecklenburg High School, Brown accumulated 1,630 yards and 24 touchdowns in his final two seasons.

As a true freshman, Brown started in six games catching 17 balls for 173 yards and a touchdown. He didn’t have a game with more than three receptions and 40 yards but contributed in every game he played.

As a sophomore, he broke out with just over 1,000 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. He had the most targets of his Tar Heel career with 90 and averaged over 20 yards per reception. Brown posted over 200 receiving yards against Virginia while adding three touchdowns.

As a junior, Brown continued to dominate the deep ball, again averaging 20 yards per reception. He accumulated 269 yards after the catch, which helped him successfully complete 46 first downs. With another 1,000-plus yard receiving season, Brown proved to be a consistent producer as a deep threat.

STAR-RATING SCOUTING KEY

Lacks the ability to beat NFL competition with a backup talent and skillset

Below-average ability to beat NFL competition with backup talent and skillset

Average ability to compete against most NFL competition with a starter talent and skillset

Above-average ability to compete and win against most NFL competition with starter talent and skillset 

Rare ability to compete and win consistently against all NFL competition with starter talent and skillset 

IMPORTANT POSITIONAL FACTORS

ATHLETICISM

Dyami Brown shows very good quickness off the line of scrimmage while displaying disciplined acceleration into his route stem. No build-up speed is needed as Brown offers excellent acceleration through his second and third-level stem. When breaking at the top of his route, he displays fluid change of direction without losing speed on breaking routes and quick pivot on routes such as hitch and comebacks. He’s explosive out of his breaks, whether sharp or rounded, timing his breaks with synergy to his eye deception to throw off defenders. He maintains good body control and balance when making adjustments in his stride, changing direction, or adjusting himself to the ball at the catch point.

MENTAL PROCESSING 

In Zone coverage, Brown has a nose for exploiting the soft spots and navigating himself to the open field. Whether it’s a post, slant, or post corner route, he is able to manipulate the assigned zone defender with his eyes and shoulders to make them think he is staying vertical. Still, Brown will attack the inside with a subtle break between the hash marks and find the open zone.

He has good awareness at the line of scrimmage, but he can struggle to identify second-level tackle angles and put himself in a position to have a defensive back knock the ball down that he could not identify. This will be an area he could struggle with if he faces Cover 2 or Cover 3 Man in the NFL. 93% of Brown’s snaps came on the left side, out wide, so his transition to the next level could take some time if he is asked to play on the right side or asked to move around the offense and get acclimated to different positions.

PLAY SPEED

The majority of Brown’s routes were hitch-and-go routes in 2020. Understanding that play speed consists of not only the speed of the player but how quickly they process information in conjunction with their athleticism, Brown enters the NFL above-average. The discussion of how he processes in different defensive coverages needs development, but Brown attacks the route with strategy.

In 2019, Brown matched up against A.J. Terrell of Clemson at that time. Terrell was a first-round pick to the Atlanta Falcons in 2020. Brown executed a subtle bam step that completely threw off Terrell, allowing Brown to win deep for a long touchdown. This play is an example of how Brown uses his understanding of manipulation by quickly processing his situation while also igniting his above-average long speed to get deep. Brown may not have an extensive route tree, but he understands how to execute route combinations and blueprint his breaks with footwork and body gestured manipulation.

COMPETITIVE TOUGHNESS / PLAY STRENGTH

As a route runner going vertical, Brown will use active hands and fight his way down the redline. He is competitive at the line of scrimmage and throughout his route stem, using his speed and tenacity in route to stack the defender. In contested situations, Brown lacks consistency. He is much more dominant against smaller defenders than defenders that play as competitive or more competitive than him at the catch point. He will attack the ball but doesn’t possess the strong hands needed to haul in the catch over what will be NFL competition. He is much more comfortable in space and tracking the deep ball than attacking the ball in contested situations.

Where Brown is competitive is his ability to be a locker room leader and play at a high level consistently. He is also a functional blocker, whether stationary or in-movement blocker. Brown won’t hold the block for long as he lacks the functional strength to maintain leverage but will be disruptive enough to be successful in his assignment. He is more effective with a bump and go block but can sustain a functional block against the competition with his same or less amount of mass.

POSITION SPECIFICS

RELEASE

Brown displays the essential toolbox for a receiver in regards to his release off the line of scrimmage. He executes a solid speed release with a mix of a single and double move with initial foot fire. His space release is effective, but his lack of active hands against press coverage will be something he will need to develop to beat the jam. This is not a massive detriment to him as he has mastered the speed release with initial foot fire, but for him to not get washed out due to his lack of release strength, he will need development with his hands and upper body moves.

SEPARATION QUICKNESS

Brown effectively uses a brake and plant step to quickly change direction and clear the defensive back at the top of hitch and comeback routes, working himself in position for the ball. He does tend to take too many steps to initiate his brake step. Brown is fluid in his speed cut, not reducing speed and offering head nods before the cut to deceive the defender into thinking he’s maintaining a vertical stem. He also uses bam and pressure steps to gain leverage on the defender to continue vertical or cross the defender’s chest on the break. Within the limited routes Brown executed, he created separation fairly easily for what he was asked to do.

HANDS

As previously discussed, Brown is an excellent tracker of the ball, extending his arms out and catching outside his frame with ease. He attacks the ball at the catch point with good extension when the ball is outside his frame proximity. His adjustment to balls thrown above or below his normal extension is good as he identifies the ball’s trajectory and frames his hands to the catch point.

His struggles come in contested situations. He lacks competitive consistency when catching the ball in traffic situations or vertically competing for the ball with another defender at his back. For Brown to reach his upside at the next level, he will need to become more tenacious in contested situations as he won’t always have the benefit of stacking defenders and catching the open pass in the NFL.

YARDS AFTER THE CATCH (YAC)

As a vertical threat in college, Brown was above-average after the catch on go routes. On quick, 45-degree angle routes such as comebacks, he showed good ability to change direction quickly and accelerate upfield for additional yards. When catching the ball in stride, he displayed good ability to secure the ball in the intermediate areas of the field and add additional yards with his speed and athleticism. Brown won’t break many tackles with his play strength which will need to be improved at the NFL level, but he puts in the effort to break tackles regardless if he is unsuccessful.

STAR PROJECTION 

– Day 1 Projection

– Day 2 Projection

– Early Day 3 Projection 

–  Late Day 3 Projection

– UDFA

DYAMI BROWN DRAFT PROJECTION

Brown projects as an NFL starter with WR3 potential and WR2 upside. He projects as a mid to late third-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. His athletic upside as a vertical threat will provide his big-play ability with inconsistency as a fantasy starter. He fits best in a vertical, play-action offensive scheme where he can be used outside to stretch the defense. Brown is a solid dynasty starter but could come with some weekly inconsistency as he serves more of a rotational type of role.