2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Ricky White III (WR – UNLV)

FantasyPros will be taking a look at early NFL Draft scouting reports before the Combine in March. Here’s a look at UNLV wide receiver Ricky White III. And check out our entire 2025 NFL Draft Guide.

2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Ricky White III

Ricky White III (WR – UNLV)

6-foot-1 | 190 Pounds

Background

Ricky White III was a four-star recruit who originally attended Michigan St., where he caught 10-223-1 (22.3) as a freshman before redshirting the following season. Ended up transferring to UNLV after that, taking over a starting role right away and posting 51-619-4 (12.1).

White had a monster 2023 season, posting a line of 88-1,483-8 (16.9). Concluded his collegiate career with a 79-1,041-11 (13.2) line. Also blocked four career punts on special teams.

Positives

White was a productive three-year starter with two big seasons to conclude his collegiate career. Lanky receiver who primarily plays flanker, but about a quarter of his career snaps have come from the slot. Shows pretty clean footwork to release at the line of scrimmage against press coverage. Can freeze defenders at the stem on some shorter routes to create separation for quick completions.

Smooth athlete with pretty good top-end speed to threaten downfield, catching 20 passes that traveled 20+ yards over the past two seasons. Can run away from defenders at times on routes like overs and posts. Shows good body control to adjust to throws. Can catch away from his frame.

Shows the ability to hold onto throws through contact. Has impressive agility to make defenders miss in space when he catches the ball. Can rack up yards after the catch with room to work on routes over the middle of the field. There are flashes of good competitiveness to stick with his man through the whistle when blocking. UNLV would occasionally line him up from a tight alignment to block. Outstanding special teams player on punt block units.

Negatives

Spent five years in school, so he’s slightly older than other prospects. White’s frame is on the thin side. Route tree was relatively simple, consisting primarily of something like a curl/comeback, hitches, overs and post routes. Also ran some flats/outs from the slot. Attention to detail as a route runner is lacking. Doesn’t have the most snap or explosiveness at his stems and doesn’t get a ton of separation out of his breaks when working against man.

A lot of White’s work came underneath off-coverage. Had trouble working through physicality/contact. Struggles to come down with contested catches. Has had some issues with drops throughout his career (24 against 227 catches) and also fumbled three times. Doesn’t survive contact as a runner. Lacks functional strength and can get overwhelmed on contact when stalking. Doesn’t give the most effort on the back side of the play.

Summary

A smooth athlete with pretty good speed and the ability to play both inside and outside, White has put together back-to-back 1,000+ seasons, showing off his agility and creativity after the catch and his ability to threaten downfield.

As it currently stands, White will likely have to improve his functional strength and route-running to see significant playing time on offense, but his special-teams value could allow him to make an immediate impact. Looks like a mid-to-late-round option.

Projection: Round 5/Round 6

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Tetairoa McMillan (Arizona)

A very big, smooth, savvy receiver with an incredible catch radius and a graceful game, McMillan established himself as one of the best wide receivers in college football over the past two seasons. May never be the fastest or most explosive wide receiver, but has a great understanding of how to use tempo, nuance and technique to create separation.

Is capable of coming down with contested catches even in tight coverage, with rare size that makes him a mismatch for most cornerbacks. May not have quite the same strength and physicality as Mike Evans did coming out, but is a similar prospect and should go similarly high in the first round, likely within the first five or 10 picks.

Projection: Round 1

Check out the full 2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report for Tetairoa McMillan

Luther Burden III (Missouri)

A dynamic player with the ball in his hands, Burden’s combination of speed, quickness, vision, balance and physicality led the Tigers to scheme up ways to get him the ball, whether on underneath throws, sweeps, screens or otherwise. He also offers some impressive traits as a receiver, with good stop-start quickness to create separation, impressive tracking and body control and a strong pair of hands.

As it currently stands, he doesn’t have a ton of recent experience playing outside and will need to continue diversifying his route tree and polishing his route-running technique, but that doesn’t look like it will stop him from being a first-round pick.

Projection: Round 1

Check out the full 2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report for Luther Burden III

Emeka Egbuka (Ohio State)

Another highly-polished Buckeyes receiver prospect, Egbuka’s excellent combination of acceleration, quickness, route-running savvy, hands and toughness should make him a highly reliable pro receiver.

Likely would have been a first-round pick last year had he stayed healthy. Coming back to put together the season he did gives him a very good chance of going there this year if everything checks out medically during the pre-draft process. A nice reliable, pro-ready big slot option.

Projection: Round 1

Check out the full 2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report for Emeka Egbuka

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