Former NFL scout scoffs at idea Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith is a generational talent
The term "generational talent" gets thrown around far too often, but there seemed to be a consensus that Ohio State freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith qualified. Known to be a freak of nature with a legendary work ethic already, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound playmaker dominated college football upon arriving on campus. Totaling 76 receptions for 1,315 yards […]
The term "generational talent" gets thrown around far too often, but there seemed to be a consensus that Ohio State freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith qualified. Known to be a freak of nature with a legendary work ethic already, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound playmaker dominated college football upon arriving on campus.
Totaling 76 receptions for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns, it doesn't get much more impressive than Smith's resume to be labeled as a generational receiver presence.
However, former Maryland general manager of recruiting, NFL scout, and Alabama football player Gerald Dixon emphatically believes he's not a generational talent. Watch what the 247Sports guest said.
Dixon's reasoning becomes better as he explains, noting that in pure ability and skill set, Smith checks a lot of boxes but doesn't have Calvin Johnson's or Julio Jones' athleticism. He said he wants to see a player he's never seen before, and he's seen guys like Smith.
That doesn't mean he's not a future No. 1 pick or he's Andre Johnson, per Dixon.
Frankly, though, Dixon misses the mark here. He says he's seen Smith caught from behind and doesn't have Johnson's insane vertical explosiveness. Those might be true, but it's not like Johnson, Jones, or Tyreek Hill are impossible to stop players.
It's also strange to compare Smith to one NFL Hall of Famer in Johnson but say he's also not Jones. By nature, if you're an NFL Hall of Famer, you should qualify as a generational talent. Sure, there's only one Shaquille O'Neal, but some can also consider a generation as a decade's snapshot since that's a generation of football players.
A generational talent label isn't meant to say there's only one of these players in your entire lifetime. Sorry, but athletes don't work like that. Nyck Harbor is the athlete Johnson was, but he's not in the same stratosphere as a player. By Dixon's definition, Harbor's athleticism means Johnson was not a generational athlete.
Dixon joined the Maryland football staff as General Manager in charge of recruiting in March 2022.
He came to College Park after serving as the director of scouting at Vanderbilt during the 2021 season. A former All-SEC cornerback, Dixon previously played in the XFL.
He was part of the three-member personnel team for the D.C. Defenders in the XFL, working alongside Matt Cooper and Greg Gabriel. Together with Pep Hamilton, they were responsible for assembling the team. In the summer of 2019, Dixon attended NFL training camps to scout talent for the XFL draft. The Defenders started the 2020 season with a 3-2 record before the league suspended operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Before his XFL stint, Dixon worked for four years as a pro scout with the Buffalo Bills, contributing to the team's 2017 playoff appearance and a roster overhaul in 2018.
In college football, Dixon spent six years at The Citadel from 2008 to 2013, coaching cornerbacks, defensive linemen, safeties, and outside linebackers.
Dixon earned his bachelor's degree in communications and anthropology from Alabama in 2002. While at the Crimson Tide, he was the starting cornerback for all four years and was part of the team that won the SEC championship in 1999. He was recognized as a Freshman All-SEC selection and received all-league honors as a senior.
In 2002, Dixon signed as a free agent with the Detroit Lions and was part of the organization through 2003 before moving on to the Buffalo Bills. He also played for the Scottish Claymores in NFL Europe and later joined the Edmonton Eskimos from 2005 to 2007, where he won a Grey Cup.
