UNC’s Dyami Brown picked by Washington in the NFL Draft
The Washington Football Team selected North Carolina receiver Dyami Brown in the third round of the NFL Draft on Friday night.
The 6-foot, 189-pound Charlotte native is the Tar Heels’ third pick in the draft after running back Javonte Williams went to Denver in the second round while linebacker Chazz Surratt went to Minnesota in the third round.
Brown was arguably the best deep threat in the ACC last season and one of the best in the nation. He was named third team All-America by the Associated Press after leading the ACC with 1,099 receiving yards. He was also first team All-ACC, and UNC coach Mack Brown believed his numbers would have been bigger.
“The thing that gave people fits is if they tried to double cover Dazz (Newsome) in the slot, then then you got Dyami one-on-one,” Mack Brown said before UNC’s pro day last month. “And nobody really covered him all year one-on-one.”
Dyami Brown became the first player in UNC history to record two 1,000-yard seasons and he did so while leading the team with 55 catches last season. He averaged 20.0 yards per catch, which also led the league among those with more than 50 receptions. During the draft process, Brown said he concentrated on letting scouts know he has more to his game than just running deep routes.
There were two pro receivers in particular that Brown said he studied while preparing for the draft: Green Bay Packers’ Davante Adams and the Dallas Cowboys’ Amari Cooper.
“I watched Davante Adams and (studied his) releases, I pretty much got that from him,” Brown said before his pro day last month. “And then Amari Cooper, I feel like we have the same build and run, so his route running is a great aspect for that.”
Brown could be paving the way for his brother, Khafre, to one day join him in the league. Khafre Brown is a rising sophomore for the Heels who caught 15 passes for 337 yards and two touchdowns last season. Mack Brown believes he was the fastest player on the team, to the chagrin of his older brother.
This story was originally published April 30, 2021 at 10:41 PM with the headline "UNC’s Dyami Brown picked by Washington in the NFL Draft."