Kansas City Chiefs: 5 2015 NFL Draft Sleepers to Target

Justin Hardy, WR, ECU

Oct 4, 2014; Greenville, NC, USA; East Carolina Pirates wide receiver Justin Hardy (2) runs with ball after his 1st quarter catch against the Southern Methodist Mustangs at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The East Carolina Pirates defeated the Southern Methodist Mustangs 45-24. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

After not completing a single touchdown pass to a wide receiver throughout all of last season, the Chiefs have an obvious need at the wide receiver position. The addition of Maclin will clearly help them, but they need to surround him with more talent throughout the receiving core.

Justin Hardy is a very smooth and natural wide receiver who has been connected to the Chiefs for a while now. Hardy is a bit undersized at 5-foot-10, 192 pounds, but he has a very strong track record at the college level.

Hardy was incredibly productive as the number one receiver at ECU. He hauled in 387 career receptions, which is an FBS record. Also, his 4,541 career receiving yards is the third most all-time. While it may not have always been against the toughest competition, Hardy was an incredibly consistent and productive receiver in college.

While he is fast, Hardy does not have elite straight-line speed, which prevents him from being much of a deep threat. That being said, Hardy is very quick and has impressive change of direction abilities. When he gets the ball in his hands, he is a threat to make tacklers miss.

With incredibly consistent hands and near perfect route running abilities, Hardy did the bulk of his damage in college in the short passing game. Crossing patterns, quick outs, slants and short fades are Hardy’s bread and butter. With Smith not exactly possessing the strongest throwing arm in the NFL, Hardy would be a great fit for the Chiefs, as they like to use the short passing game a lot.

Hardy also shows great footwork along the sideline and in the red zone, and his ability to catch the ball in traffic is almost unrivaled in this draft class. While he does not have ideal size, Hardy will be a red zone weapon in the NFL.

The Chiefs would be wise to consider Hardy in the second or third round of the draft. He is one of the most productive receivers in college football history, and his skill set fits the team like a glove. He could be a huge value to Kansas City at a major position of need.

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