[FULL EPISODE] Some Headlines & DeVonta Smith Profile

**James Koh** (0:01)
We've got our Taycan is loaded and ready.

**Matt Harmon** (0:03)
Absolutely dominant on deep routes, absolutely dominant on short routes.

**James Koh** (0:07)
The boys are backbanging.

**Matt Harmon** (0:08)
Excellent separation against Mancoury. This is Reception, Reception, The Show.

**James Koh** (0:15)
Yo, what's cracking everybody? James Koh, Matt Harmon here with you, your listener of Reception Perception, The Show. We got a great show lined up in front of us today. I'm excited, I'm pumped, as you should be as well because we've got training camp. Training camps have opened up all across the NFL. We got real news to talk about here, Matt Harmon.

**Matt Harmon** (0:33)
Yeah, we've got realish news. We're definitely getting some receiver alignment stuff, which I'm excited about. That's obviously in our wheelhouse as the alignment bros. But I'm hoping, James, that we're changing, I'm going to say something that's just so ridiculous and I realize I'm self aware that it sounds ridiculous. I hope that we're changing the culture in NFL analysis at the wide receiver position to really over index on alignment. But I am definitely seeing people talk about X receiver versus Z receiver more than ever this year, which again, I am certainly not going to buy in. By no means am I going to take credit for that at all. However, pretty pleased about it because I've been saying for about four to five years now, but especially, honestly, probably even longer than that. Five plus years now, we'll just go ahead and call it.
That I think the football world, and especially in the fantasy space, has just been behind on how much alignment really matters.
We all know slot versus outside, but even just how different some of the outside receivers are and what you're categorizing those players as, it's a huge difference, especially when you're trying to break down and project these players and certainly pair them to each other. And yeah, I definitely think we're in a good spot. Feels like people are really talking about that stuff. So I'm excited to really be getting, I'm unironically actually legitimately excited to be getting all of these receiver alignment updates from training camp, especially one that with the Patriots that I was calling for, I was hoping to see it. So very excited.

**James Koh** (2:11)
Yes, we will definitely talk about AJ Brown, Romeo Doubs there in New England, Dontayvion Wicks in Philadelphia. But let me just also say, look, this show in particular has been hyper focused on alignment since day one. Since day one, I know that alignment has, even before teaming up with Matt Harmon, I know alignment for me was a big focal point of my work in regards to talking about matchups. Got to talk about matchups, like what a slot versus slot corner look like, what does outside versus outside corner look like? How much of these guys play in the slot? How much of it are these guys playing outside? A lot of that stuff matters.
And you and I have been... Look, I don't think it's an exaggeration that I think that you and I in this show in particular have been at the forefront of talking about wide receivers and really hyper focusing on alignment. I'm totally with you. This is the year that it seems like that alignment for wide receivers has really kind of sort of like made that leap, like made the jump where it is very much at the forefront of a lot of people's minds. And yeah, I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that again, we're not the only people obviously that have talked about that. But to say we're at the forefront of it, I don't think that's an exaggeration, dude.

**Matt Harmon** (3:25)
I'll let you say it.

**James Koh** (3:26)
Yeah.

**Matt Harmon** (3:27)
I think we've definitely hyper fixated on it to the correct degree really for a long time now. And I do think it's been refreshing to see more and more folks, again, especially in the fantasy space, talk about this because, and you're right to say sort of with the inception of Reception Perception, The Show, because when we started the show is when we started the website, which was beginning of 2021 You know, and I think for me, this is kind of fresh on the mind because I actually just was at the Fantasy Football Expo this weekend and got to spend a lot of time with the fantasy footballers. They were there for their first expo, Andy Holloway, Jason Moore and Mike Wright. And I was talking with them, we were on the same flight out of Canton, Ohio, where the expo is. And I was talking with those guys because obviously I worked with them for a long time with Reception Perception in their Ultimate Draft Kit, which is still an incredible product and people should definitely check it out. They're obviously a fantastic group of guys and a great show. But around, I was kind of talking with them about this that just, there are things that I said based on Reception Perception in those early days, that I would never say now because the sample size is just so much bigger. The historic database is so much bigger. And I think you need that to really, you're never going to be 100% accurate in terms of predicting outcomes, but be more accurate in the way you're analyzing and kind of categorizing these players. And one of the biggest things that informs that is that I pretty much just think every conversation with the receiver has to start with their alignment to the point that I think, I put six guys up on the site this morning, six new profiles are on the site. Two of those guys are Amanra St. Brown and Nico Collins. And while, and I go into this in the Amanra profile, I think it's actually one of the more interesting ones just because I think there are parts about his game that probably aren't getting highlighted enough.