Keyarris Garrett certainly looks the part. But until recently, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound receiver rarely stood out.
Garrett, who went undrafted despite leading the nation in receiving yards at Tulsa last fall, was barely noticeable during Carolina Panthers' offseason workouts. Same thing for most of training camp. Then, something seemed to click during the final few days in Spartanburg.
A week since returning to Charlotte, Garrett on Wednesday had his best practice yet as a pro.
"He had a big day," coach Ron Rivera said. "Believe me, I was talking about it. I called some coaches over and pointed it out."
Wednesday's practice was on the lighter side, with players in shells two days before their preseason game against the Patriots. So while many guys seemed to be going half speed, Garrett used the opportunity to make plays.
First came a leaping grab over the middle against the first-team defense. Then, Garrett fought off cornerback Robert McClain for a big gain down the sideline. The rookie may have been guilty of pushing off, but it was still a nice grab against the team's hottest corner. Finally, Garrett wrapped up a long drive with a short touchdown reception over linebacker David Mayo.
"At first, I had a couple of drops in practices and stuff like that," Garrett said afterward when asked about his first three months in the NFL.
"When we were doing OTAs and minicamp, they threw so much at me. I wasn't used to that, so when I went home for the break, I was really in my playbook a lot just studying. So now I'm just basically going out there. I've been more relaxed and just playing."
Unless you were watching closely Saturday, you might not have even known Garrett was playing against the Titans. He saw no targets in 15 snaps, seemingly a step back from his 19 plays, four targets and two catches in Baltimore.
"It's not just what they do on game day," Rivera reminded, "but it's what they're doing during practice."
And on Wednesday, at least, what Garrett did in practice was make a good argument for why he's worth keeping around on the practice squad. According to Rivera, Garrett's route running is already improved, and it's worth remembering that most rookie wideouts need a good bit of seasoning.
"He's a ways away from being a guy that can go out there and make a lot of things happen for you," Rivera said, "but right now, where he is, it kind of reminds me of where (Devin) Funchess was a year ago. Still learning, still trying to get an understanding and feel for it.
"Like I said, he's a young guy that could have a good future."