Who has the edge? Auburn portal WR targets KeAndre Lambert-Smith vs. Sam Brown
Auburn is working to land at least two receivers that we know of: Houston transfer Sam Brown and Penn State transfer KeAndre Lambert-Smith. We have broken down the traits of each and compared the two as well as given one the edge.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6-foot-1 188 pounds
CAREER STATS: 126 catches, 1,721 yards, 11 touchdowns
KEY TRAIT: Lambert-Smith’s football IQ as a receiver shows to be strong on film. He consistently finds holes in zones, but not just by play design. You can see him settling in the holes and finding the soft spot. He’s played a lot of football so this makes sense. He uses his hands well, runs smart routes and does a lot of advanced things at a high level.
ROUTE RUNNING: He is a strong route-runner. Not elite, but strong. Bottom line, he knows where to be, his positioning is good, and he can get open over the middle of the field.
HANDS: So far I have not seen any drops from Lambert-Smith on film, nor have I seen any spectacular catches. He’s usually open, so his hands haven’t been in the spotlight much. It’s safe to say he is solid here.
PLAYMAKING ABILITY: Lambert-Smith has had plenty of plays where he has space to run after the catch, but that is usually because he’s good at getting open. His playmaking ability goes along with the IQ to get open and have space to make a play.
Sam Brown
HEIGHT/WEIGHT: 6-foot-2 195 pounds
CAREER STATS: 113 catches, 1,394 yards, 7 touchdowns
KEY TRAIT: His vertical. Brown is liable to go up and get the ball over defenders at least once a game.
ROUTE RUNNING: Most of what he does is drag over the middle, some screen work, and intermediate routes like crossers. Brown can beat defenders and create enough space to make tight catches.
HANDS: Brown has elite hands. He goes up and grabs the ball and always seems to pluck it out of the sky, sometimes while showing off an impressive vertical.
PLAYMAKING ABILITY: Brown goes up in traffic and makes tough plays look routine sometimes. He can hold on to the ball when being hit, too. He can break free after the catch, but his leaping ability and high-pointing ability is elite.
Who has the edge?
**This is one man’s opinion after film study
HEIGHT/WEIGHT/FRAME – DRAW: Both Brown and Lambert-Smith are big guys with good length at receiver. They’re built similarly.
ROUTE RUNNING – LAMBERT-SMITH: He simply just gets open. In a skills competition, Brown probably wins in change of direction and agility, but route running is about getting open and Lambert-Smith does that.
HANDS – BROWN: Brown is too flashy not to win this one. Lambert-Smith is consistent with his hands, but Brown can go up and get the ball. He’s really good at it.
PLAYMAKING ABILITY – BROWN: He’s shifty after the catch, but can go up and make the big play. Again, not to say that Lambert-Smith cannot, but Brown does this a good bit. Brown is a big play waiting to happen because of his skillset. Lambert-Smith is more about getting open. Brown is probably a little bit more dynamic with the ball in his hands.
FINAL CALL – LAMBERT-SMITH: This may be a personal preference, but I give Lambert-Smith the nod for the football IQ reasons. I think Auburn needs that the most. Cam Coleman lands in the playmaker role, at least for now. Lambert-Smith is an important piece for a lot of reasons and can provide more for the room than Brown in my opinion. Brown, of course, would be a massive get as well.
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