Name: Alec Pierce

School: Cincinnati

Year: Sr

Position: Wide Receiver

Measurables: 6’3 1/8"  211 lbs.

Stats: 

General Info:

Pierce started at Glenbard West High School in Illinois. He was a consensus 3-star prospect. He played both offense and defense. He also played volleyball, basketball, and track. His father Greg played at Northwestern and his mom played volleyball there also. For his freshman year at Cincinnati, he played mostly special teams, collecting six tackles. For 2019 he played in all 14 games, starting 13. Pierce was second on the team with 37 receptions, 652 yards, and two touchdowns. He averaged 17.6 yards a catch. He also played on special teams and recorded three tackles. For his junior season, he only played in six games due to injury. He had arthroscopic surgery on his knee. In those six games, he had 17 catches for 315 yards, 18.5 yards a catch, and three touchdowns. In his final season, Pierce played his best. He had a career-best 52 catches for 867 yards, eight touchdowns, and 17.34 yards a catch. The former Bearcat was selected to and played in the Senior Bowl. Pierce also attended the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. He measured in with 9” hands, 33” arms and ran an official 4.41 with a 7.13 3 cone and a 4.28 short shuttle.

Positional Skills:

Strengths

Pierce is a big-bodied-muscular receiver with long arms. The senior receiver uses his long arms to catch balls over defensive back's heads. He shows good tenacity and technique as a blocker. On film, he shows very good straight-line speed. Pierce is one of those receivers that has ‘sneaky’ speed. He gets on top of defensive backs before they know it. The former Bearcat has positional versatility. He has lined up on both the left and right side and in the slot as well. Pierce does a good job of finding the holes in zone coverage and slowing or settling down in those holes to give his quarterback a throwing window. On film, he does a good job of showing late hands making it hard for defensive backs to knock the ball away in man coverage. Pierce shows strong hands, good concentration, and rarely drops a ball. He has shown some route release head bobs and outside release fakes. His 40” vertical and 10’9” broad jump show up on film where he can leap high and get those 50/50 jump balls. His background in volleyball also helps this. He is a good slot receiver due to his size and speed, he is too big for most slot defensive backs or too fast. On film, the former Bearcat shows some strength after the catch.

Weaknesses

Pierce has very average foot quickness, which shows in his route running where when he is making his cuts he can sometimes round off his routes or he gets too choppy. His route running overall still could be better and more precise. He is also not much of a yards after the catch threat. The 6’3 Receiver usually gets what is there and that’s pretty much it. His route release package is somewhat limited. For as big as he is you would like to see him use his strength more after the catch, he goes down a little too easy sometimes. While he ran a fast 40 time, it does take Pierce a few steps to get up to full speed. The former volleyball player comes off the line too tall, negating some of his explosiveness. They did not run the most complicated route tree at Cincinnati. He did jump for a few balls that he didn’t have to with his speed thus losing momentum and a possible chance at YAC.

Fit with the Packers:

Pierce would be a great fit with the Packers. His strengths line up with what they prefer at wide receiver. He is big, tall, has long arms, is fast, an effective and willing blocker, has special teams experience, and can line up at any receiver position. He has been compared to Jordy Nelson a lot, and he is probably the best comp for him. There are some differences though. Jordy was quicker and a better YAC threat; Pierce though has better straight-line speed and is a better leaper. His upside may not be as high as Jordy’s, but he can be a high-quality #2 receiver.