Denzel Mims says he was “very scared” when he first visited Philadelphia

Denzel Mims has been frequently linked to the Philadelphia Eagles leading up to the 2020 NFL Draft. The Baylor wide receiver has done multiple radio interviews where he’s said the Eagles are among the teams showing the most interest in him. There’s some thought he could and should be the pick at No. 21.

If Mims is indeed selected by the Eagles, his next trip to Philly will likely go better than his first. Check out what Mims had to say when asked about his experience previously visiting the city with former Temple and former Baylor head coach Matt Rhule, via an interview with Inside The Birds:

“I went with a couple teammates and my head coach. We went up there and just spent a lot of time together. And the experience I had, I was very scared. I wasn’t familiar with the whole city and, um, it was a lot going on. You see a lot of people that look scary. And, you know, I’m not part of that, I don’t like that. I mean, I had a bad experience, you could say, going up there that first time. But I feel like if I go there more and if I get familiar with it, I’ll have a great time.”

Interesting answer.

Perhaps Mims just wasn’t used to being in a big city. He’s a native of Daingerfield, Texas, which the internet tells me has a population of 2,380. Baylor’s campus is located in Waco, Texas, which has a population around 138,000. That’s obviously still much smaller than the 1.5 million people located in Philly.

While Mims might not been so keen on the city life, he did have good things to say Philly’s NFL team.

“As far as the coaching staff, I feel like the coaching staff is great, I feel like they’re unbelievable. I feel like they’re the same kind of coaching staff that I had at Baylor. Very loving, cares about you, and just wants the best for you. And so I feel like if I go there it’d be a great fit for me because I feel like I’m home with them.”

Mims’ stock has seemingly rose throughout the pre-draft process. Draftniks were talking about him as a Day 2 or Day 3 prospect at the Senior Bowl and now there’s buzz that he’s going in the first round. BGN’s Michael Kist has Mims as his fourth ranked receiver in this year’s class.

I think Mims has really done everything he can since the season was over to answer questions about his game. For instance, Baylor had him run a very limited route tree and he comes out for the Senior Bowl and nobody can cover him on a variety of routes.

If you were wondering about his deep speed, he shuts that up by running a 4.38. He’s got some real stiffness in his hips on film, like, they don’t move, it’s kind of comical, but he checks in with a 90th percentile 3-cone so he’s even got you questioning what you thought you knew.

Now Mims is a legit track athlete at 6’3” 207 and I think he mastered the technique in those drills so those times may be a bit misleading, especially the 3-cone, but there isn’t a box that he hasn’t checked and wide receiver coaches are going to be raving about his ceiling...”

There’s still some projection involved with Mims, but if he can continue on this track you’ve got a game-changer that can be effective from both “Z” and “X” alignments. His elite athletic profile and prototypical size should equal a first round selection.

Others aren’t so sold on Mims as a Day 1 guy. Former NFL personnel executives like Daniel Jeremiah and Gil Brandt, for example, have Mims as their 46th and 49th ranked prospect, respectively. In that vein, Mims could be considered a reach at No. 21.

We’ll soon see if Mims is the guy the Eagles truly want or if they go in a different direction at receiver. The Baylor product just might have to get used to playing in a city that contains “a lot of people that look scary.”