NFL player comparisons for Pittsburgh Steelers WR Calvin Austin III

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Calvin Austin III in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Here are his high-end, low-end, and most likely NFL player comparisons.

When the 138th overall pick rolled around for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Calvin Austin III was one of the best players left on the NFL consensus board, as many draft experts had a third-round grade on the athletic receiver. Austin had an extremely productive career at Memphis, but his lack of size no doubt caused him to slip in the NFL Draft.

Despite being an elite athlete, Austin measured in at the NFL Combine at just 5’7 3/4”. Finding comparisons that fit his athletic skill set, size spectrum, and play style were difficult, but here are my high-end, low-end, and most likely NFL player comparisons for Calvin Austin:

High-end NFL comparison: Tyler Lockett

It was tough to make this comparison. Though Tyler Lockett is still an undersized receiver, he’s still 5’10” and was 12 pounds heavier than Austin coming out of college. However, this is the player that Austin personally compared his game to, and it’s not hard to see why.

Both Austin and Lockett can win from the slot as well as outside the hashes, and they can create separate with their quickness or beat you with speed down the field. While Lockett has a size advantage here, Austin tested as the better athlete and could help make up the difference.

Still, we rarely see sub-5’8” receivers succeed in the NFL. Lockett has had three straight 1,000-yard seasons with the Seahawks and was an All-Pro return specialist as a rookie. This is the best case for Calvin Austin and one that all fans should be rooting for.