ESPN: Stacy Coley One Of Draft’s Biggest Steals

We’re a couple of weeks removed from the 2017 NFL Draft, but there are still plenty of things being written about it for us to talk about.

Behind the great E$PN paywall, writer Mike Sando asked a group of four talent evaluators who the biggest steal of each round of this year’s NFL Draft was, and while running back Dalvin Cook was in the group of biggest steals of Round 2, he wasn’t named as the “biggest steal” of that round. The honor for Round 2 went to offensive tackle Cam Robinson, who wound up in Jacksonville.

However, for the biggest steals of Round 7, the name that rose to the top was that of Miami (FL) wide receiver Stacy Coley, who the Vikings took with the first selection of the final round.

A longtime evaluator with experience as a GM said he thought there was a good chance Coley would become a starter in the NFL. Other voters weren't as excited. As one of the dissenters pointed out, evaluations on receivers frequently vary more than for players at other positions.

"I see him as your fourth or fifth guy, a special-teamer who is going to make your roster," one of the evaluators said of Coley.

Even that would be good value for a seventh-round wideout.

When you get to the seventh round of the draft in any given year, just about any contribution that you can get is a pretty big deal. If the Vikings could develop Coley into a significant part of the team. . .and given his skill set, it’s not out of the realm of possibility. . .it would give the Vikings an added dimension on offense. Coley also has the ability to contribute as a returner, so that’s a possibility as well.

It’s always nice to see a player that was drafted late labelled as a “steal.” We’ll see if Coley can prove these talent evaluators right.