Can Leonard Fournette be a receiving weapon in the NFL? OTAs have the Jaguars optimistic
By Will Ogburn
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During his time at LSU, Leonard Fournette was rarely utilized as a pass catching threat out of the backfield. That will change now that he’s in Jacksonville, however, according to Fournette and his new coach Doug Marrone.
While at LSU, Fournette only caught 41 balls for 526 yards – but according to the star running back, that was a function of the LSU offense. Fournette told First Coast News that he’s a “natural catcher.”
“I’ve always been a natural catcher, it’s just the school I went to, we ran the ball a lot. I don’t put too much on it. When they throw me the ball, I just want to catch everything that comes my way,” Fournette said.
Fournette doesn’t want to just catch simple swing routes; he says that he’s been working on the finer points of wide receiver skills to become a well-rounded pass catcher no matter where he’s used.
“I think I’m doing a good job catching the ball, catching it at its highest point, concentrating on it,” he said. “As running backs, we work on that every day. [Running backs coach Tyrone Wheatley] might throw a high-point, low-point, but ‘Just keep your eye on the ball.’”
While at LSU, Fournette displayed a thirst for contact, and that lack of fear will make him an effective option in the passing game according to Jags’ coach Doug Marrone.
“When people were talking about can he catch and the one thing I have been impressed with is he’s caught the ball well, I’m excited about that.
“But, again, I say that in the same sense in the back of my mind because maybe it’s where I’m from, I’m always thinking about devious things sometimes. At the end of the day, I’m thinking well if I can go out there and catch a ball, I know no one’s going to hit me, it’s not contact so maybe it’s easy, but all of a sudden when someone can hit me maybe I won’t catch it as well. That’s always in the back of my mind, but it doesn’t look that way so I give him that.”
Several solid NFL running backs are effective with power and great vision, but in order for Fournette to become one of the best backs in the league, he’ll have to become a complete player. And his receiving ability is a massive part of that.
A former resident of both Baton Rouge and the heart of Crimson Tide country, Will Ogburn handles multimedia content and news coverage for Saturday Down South.
