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Former Alabama receiver Slade Bolden makes undrafted free agency decision

Chandler Vesselsby:Chandler Vessels04/30/22

ChandlerVessels

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Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Alabama receiver Slade Bolden has signed as an undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens, he announced Saturday evening in a tweet. Touted as an excellent route runner after his four seasons with the Crimson Tide, he hopes to take the same precision with him in the NFL.

“God is Good!!” Bolden wrote in his tweet. “I will be a Baltimore Raven! Can’t wait to be a part of this great organization. Big Trussss!!”

Bolden had the best season of his college career in 2021, finishing with 42 catches for 408 yards and a touchdown. He saw an increased role in the College Football Playoff Championship against Georgia after Jameson Williams went down with injury, finishing with 44 yards on a team-high seven catches.

A three-star prospect in the 2018 class, Bolden ranked as the No. 94 receiver and No. 502 overall player according to On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average. He chose to attend Alabama over offers form LSU, Tennessee and TCU among others.

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NFL.com scouting report on Alabama receiver Slade Bolden

As good of a route runner as he is, Bolden doesn’t have the speed or athleticism to make the plays as some of the other receiver prospects from the draft. NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein noted this in his analysis of the Alabama product, and it is likely one of the reason he went undrafted in the first place.

“Slot target who will catch and gain what is available but is unlikely to do much beyond that,” Zierlein wrote. “Bolden has adequate quickness for the Alabama scheme but isn’t an explosive separator. He has the hands and toughness to work in the middle of the field but will see diminishing catch windows the further he gets from the line of scrimmage. He doesn’t have the speed or catch radius to help inaccurate passers and he doesn’t appear to have enough talent to shine outside of the Alabama juggernaut.”