Chris Autman-Bell is next up in Minnesota's wide receiver pipeline to the NFL
Following Tyler Johnson and Rashod Bateman, Chris Autman-Bell is the next Golden Gophers' wide receiver with the NFL in his future.
If not for the 2020 class being so deep at wide receiver, Tyler Johnson would have (and maybe still should have) been drafted before the fifth round to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He left Minnesota second in school history in receptions (213), and first in receiving yards (3,305) and touchdowns (33).
If not for an abbreviated 2020 season, opting out when it looked the Big Ten season wouldn’t happen and then opting out again before it ended, Rashod Bateman would have threatened some of Johnson’s marks. As it is, in three seasons, he’s sixth in Golden Gophers’ history in catches (147) and yards (2,395) as well as fifth in touchdowns (19). Bateman was drafted in the first round (27th overall) by the Baltimore Ravens this year.
In his first three seasons at Minnesota, Chris Autman-Bell shared a receiver room with Johnson and Bateman. So he has yet to top 450 yards or 30 catches in a season. In 2020, he was tied for second in the Big Ten in yards per catch (19.5).
With a hat-tip to Saturday Tradition, the Gophers’ spring game on Saturday was Autman-Bell’s first chance to shine as the clear-cut No. 1 receiver.
At 6-foot-1, 215 pounds, Autman-Bell’s physical build is close to both Bateman (6-0, 190) and Johnson (6-2, 206). And he might be faster than both, with similar skills to win in contested catch situations.
Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck has built a pipeline of wide receivers who’ve gone on to the NFL, including two first-round picks. Autman-Bell is next in line, with a good chance to make it back-to-back first-round wide receivers out of Minnesota in 2022.