Colts 2023 Draft Interviews: Jalen Moreno-Cropper, WR, Fresno State
Jalen Moreno-Cropper is a former four star recruit that committed to Fresno State over Utah and Cal out of high school. He had a fascinating high school career, as he saw time at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive back, and kick returner in his younger years.
I asked him about his experience playing multiple positions in high school and how that helped round out his overall game:
It was a lot of fun, man. Getting to experience every position in high school is something that helped me out in various ways. The two biggest positions that actually helped me are when I played corner and quarterback. As a receiver, I was able to understand what the quarterback is looking at, while also being able to understand what DB's are looking at on the other side of the ball.
Obviously it was just fun playing those positions, but at the same time, I was able to slow the game down for myself by understanding others areas of the sport.
I also asked him if he had any regrets whatsoever in the position that he did end up picking to stick with (wide receiver):
No, I definitely picked the right one. It's fun playing receiver. It's fun scoring touchdowns and being able to make people miss. It is definitely one of the most fun positions to play on the field.
Cropper definitely picked the correct position to play in college, as he had an outstanding collegiate career at Fresno State. He totaled 220 receptions for 2,701 yards and 21 touchdowns in four seasons with the team.
One aspect that I respected the most out of Cropper's game is how he was able to improve each and every season in college. His receiving yards total increased every year at Fresno State, and he was able to steadily climb from All-Mountain West Honorable mention in 2020 to Second Team in 2021 and eventually to First Team honors in 2022.
I asked him how he was able to continually grow his game throughout his college career:
I would say it is more of an experience type of thing. You hear a lot of quotes about "experience being the best teacher" but I feel like throughout my career, I was able to experience certain things that helped me grow as a person and as a player.
Another thing that helped me was just being able to build up my confidence. I always knew that I was an athlete and that I belonged on the the field, but being able to continually progress every single year has a lot to do with my confidence. Going into every year, my number one goal was to be better than what I was last year.
That is really how I look at my everyday life as well. Today, I am going to be a better person than I was yesterday. There's going to be certain things that I always want to improve on and fix in my everyday life, my goal is to wake up the next day and get to work on being better.
Another thing I want to add is just how confident I became as a leader. I wasn't much of a leader during my freshman and sophomore years, but I really stepped into that role during my junior and senior seasons. There's a lot of players on my team that I respect and they respected me, so it became a transparent thing where I was able to say something and other people would listen.
All of these things led to me building my confidence and building my game to be better each and every year.
Shrine Bowl Experience
At the conclusion of his strong collegiate career, Cropper was invited to participate in the East-West Shrine Bowl in Las Vegas last week. He had a strong week, according to many in attendance, as he was able to show off his impressive speed and footwork.
I asked him about his overall experience during that week:
Just being able to be on the field with all of the top players in the country was a big achievement for me. I was able to see that all of my hard work had paid off, and I was able to be out there with an amazing coaching staff in the Atlanta Falcons. Coach Marquice (Williams) was amazing and that was a great relationship to build.
It was great to just experience that level of football. Everybody always says I'm "just a Mountain West receiver", but I was able to go out there and show that I could compete at the highest level and that I could compete with players from the SEC. Football is football, regardless of conference. That is how I think about it at least.
I'll always have confidence in myself and being able to see that different level of speed last week was something that I was able to adapt to really quickly. I feel like once I was able to adapt, I was very comfortable and I showed that there was a reason why they chose me to go there.
More than a Deep Threat
Cropper may not be the biggest receiver in this class, but he has always been able to win with his elite speed and agility. I wanted to dig a little bit deeper into his game, though.
I asked him what about his style of play separates him from being just a traditional deep threat that can outrun people vertically:
I feel like the thing that separates me, and what a lot of teams see, is my ability after the catch. The ability to make things happen with the ball in your hand is a big factor in today's game. Certain NFL offenses like to get the ball to their playmakers in space, and that was certainly something that we wanted to do at Fresno State this past season.
I am somebody that can get a fly sweep three yards behind the line of scrimmage and take it 70 or 80 yards. I can catch a five yard slant and turn that into a plus 20 yard gain. I take pride in making the most out of my catches. Taking a two yard slant and turning that into a 15 yard gain is not something that everybody can do.
With me, a team is getting a guy that can make people miss and move the chains from wherever I catch the ball. This is something that elevates me in this draft and helps me fit in today's game of football.
NFL Draft Outlook
I finished off the interview with the same way I finish all of them. I asked Cropper how he would sell himself to a team this offseason. I asked him what my team would be getting, on and off the field, if they draft him:
They are going to get a hard worker and somebody that pours their heart into the game. I love this game and I have so much passion for this game. Obviously, performing on the field is a different part to this.
I feel like once I do step on the field, I always feel like I have to make plays and make the most of my opportunities. I'm somebody that is going to be consistent everyday. Coaches want somebody that is going to go out there and compete everyday, and that is something that I will always do no matter where I am at on the field.
Jalen Moreno-Cropper is an athletic wide receiver prospect that can make some things happen after the catch. He may be a tad small for Chris Ballard's historical tendencies at the position, BUT he has big time playmaker written all over his film.
Don't sleep on this talented receiver prospect come April.
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