Brown -- who is also the NFL's leader with 2,299 yards on in-breaking routes since being drafted in 2019 -- is among the biggest factors in Philly becoming the NFLs first team to clinch a playoff spot this season. He was on a torrid pace yet again when healthy. That good deep speed, with elite agility and acceleration shows up on tape as well. He is also a much tougher and higher-effort player than I had previously realized, able to hang on to make contested catches, and often reaching forward after contact to gain a few extra yards. In 2020, he caught 87 passes for 1,118 yards and 4 touchdowns and now Washington has gotten him even more help. Offenses are based on timing and need to get the ball out quick. Then Richardson makes a great leaping catch, highpointing the ball and securing it at maximum extension away from the DB. The Rams are simply not the same team when Kupp is off the field. 1. His most impressive area of improvement was in his catching ability. Panthers saddled with another odd pick in latest NFL.com mock draft. PanthersWire. [12:06] This is the second of two plays that are representative of how Cooper gets open on many occasions. Golladay will finish his Giants career with 43 receptions for . Andrew is a self-taught film analyst with a pretty impressive resume. Darby is a much better (and faster) CB than Douglas and runs with McLaurin down the sideline, but Terry turns back at just the right time, quickly locates the ball in the air, tracks it, and reaches out to make a very tough contested catch. The wide receiver landscape in the NFC East has changed dramatically over the past couple of seasons. Lastly, no discussion of Terry McLaurin is complete without discussing his blocking and special teams value. Although McLaurin isnt able to get much separation from Slay, he is able to body Slay out and break open just as the ball reaches him. Jose Joaquin (JJ) Arcega-Whiteside was born in Spain, the child of two professional basketball players. Eagles fans were decrying their lack of receivers in the latter half of 2019, and hope that the addition of first-round pick Jalen Reagor will be a partial answer to their concerns, even as they hold out hope that the light will come on for last years second-round selection J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, and that the aging speedster Desean Jackson can remain healthy for more than the opening week game against the Redskins. Unless Eli Manning, who has averaged 3,800 yards, 20 TDs and 12 INTs over the past two seasons with OBJ on the field with him for 16 games, can find some magic in his 38-year-old arm, the Giants receivers are unlikely to make a big dent in the league receiving statistics. This is an example of the trouble Cooper has when facing off against top CBs who are as athletically gifted as he is and arent afraid of getting beat deep. The Commanders are interviewing former UCLA receiver and head coach Karl Dorrell for their WRs coaching vacancy, per source. Be the first one to comment on this story. Cooper releases as if hes running deep down the sideline. March 1, 2023 6:03 am SBNation TomahawkNation. Slayton was taken by the Giants in the 5th round of the 2019 NFL draft. Taking a closer look at his peers we can see Jalen Reagor the Philadelphia Eagle's 21st overall pick in the previous draft is experiencing regular rookie growing pains. [7:59] McLaurin lines up opposite Jalen Mills at the top of the screen. You can see Reagors style with the ball in his hands is similar to a RB, with sharp cuts and good vision picking out running lanes to get 19 yards after the catch. Giving him an easy pass like this and clearing his way also makes things easy on their freshman QB. I think smart, physical CBs will give JJ trouble in the NFL as well, at least early in his development. Again, Slayton does the basic job necessary to run his route and make a play, but doesnt employ any subtlety or counters to beat a CB as athletic as he is. Jonathan Mingo - Mississippi Feb 2, 2023; Mobile, AL,. AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, (select parishes), MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY, CA-ONT only.Eligibility restrictions apply. Reagor was selected by the Eagles in the 1st round of the 2020 draft. 300 routes run). [9:18] Tate lines up outside this time, fakes an out route, but then redirects to run deep and accelerate quickly while CB Anthony Browns head is turned to the QB, allowing him to get yards of separation and an easy catch that he turns into a TD. Watching Reagor play, I would describe him as explosive, sudden, fast, smart (good at recognizing coverages and exploiting soft spots in zones), and a good route runner. Dealt from Chicago to Baltimore, Roquan Smith was one of the biggest names to change teams before the NFL trade deadline. Best Wide Receiver Duo (Douglas DeFelice-USA TODAY Sports) There are many potential choices for the best receiver pair in the game today. He is a smart, high-effort player and among the best in the NFL at his position. Buy Seahawks Tickets 25. St. Brown has also provided a safety blanket for Goff when teams blitz (which they often do). Last years 3rd round pick, Michael Gallup adds a speed element to the teams receiving corps, which was further bolstered this off-season when the Cowboys signed former Green Bay Packer Randall Cobb during the veteran free agency period. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). 4. As an aside, I think this play also highlights problems with how the Eagles scheme up their secondary. Gambling problem? He had two years remaining on his $72 million contract. In an unusual season that, due to global pandemic, may turn out to be unlike any other, the wide receiver position seems to offer an interesting and potentially exciting year to fans of the NFC East. The Packers' offense has faltered for most of the season without Adams to create explosive plays. In a sport that is as physically demanding as football, one in which player injuries are common, the unit depth is as important a factor as the skill of the star players. Hes not moving to the slot; the ball gets snapped while hes in the process of transitioning, allowing him to catch the ball in the backfield while the other two WRs act as blockers for him. But those wide receivers that have been most successful of late early in their career are the Route Runners. These are guys who are exceptional coming out of their breaks without losing too much speed, have repetitive and repeatable routes time after time so their quarterback knows where they are going to be and can create separation by setting up a cover man and making every route look the same from the beginning. Updated Jan 5, 2023 at 10:27pm. In 2018 tape I thought he was severely lacking as a run blocker, sometimes just phoning it in or getting brushed aside by a DB, but in 2019 he looked much improved in both effort and technique. To put that in perspective, he is currently the only player in the Next Gen Stats era (since 2016) to average over 3.3 yards per route in a season (min. Behind every great quarterback, there's an excellent wide receiver, or two, or three. The second-year wideout has been the Lions focal point in high-leverage situations, gaining a first down on 15.2 percent of his routes on third and fourth down this season (third-highest rate, min. If you look at all the players at this position that have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, you might be shocked that a good percentage of them are not elite speedsters. This season, the division is up for grabs yet again. Here, well take a look at the top of the depth chart for each team the pool of players from which the ones on the final 53 seem likely to be chosen. [4:15] This is a well designed and executed pick play where Richardson springs Vernon Davis open for a huge gain. And, sure, Reagor had a disappointing rookie season in 2020 but its way to early to write him off, especially with a new offensive scheme coming to town. Although the ball is placed right on his hands, he makes an ugly drop and misses out on a big play. Well, they are often doing battle with excellent man coverage cornerbacks. Dallas Cowboys tight end Blake Jarwin was a sleeper candidate to take this award going into this season but has sadly been sidelined with Injuries. The Cowboys are 6-1 with an NFL-leading average of 35.7 points per game since Dak Prescott returned from injury in Week 7. The NFC East was a historically bad division in 2020, which is why all four teams were in the race deep into the season. Former Pro Bowl wide receiver Brandon Marshall made a plea to the Packers star via Instagram on Tuesday, during which he implored Rodgers to drift on into retirement. That is a difficult habit to unlearn at this point in his development, though I saw enough hands catches to think he can develop. Cooper isnt weak, but hes not especially physical, and pressing him at the line can disrupt his routes. The Indiana DB matched up on him seems to sniff out the run play right away and immediately tries to break through for the tackle. Richardson also has good hands, and I think his somewhat low career catch percentage (58.7%) is more a function of running deep routes than any lack of pass catching ability. 1 receiver. The Cowboys receivers may have the most talent and productivity potential of any group in the NFC East, but, with the Cowboys' run-centered offense, and Dak Prescott 's limited pass production . You cant teach speed. 0 Comment. Golden Tate has consistently been one of the NFLs most underrated WRs. Douglas is not the fastest of CBs and is playing a few yards off, so he cant jam McLaurin at the line to disrupt his route. Everyone can ignore this (and more to follow). [1:24] Great job by McLaurin turning a simple out route into a first down with yards to spare. Marshon Lattimore buys it at first, and gives enough cushion to allow Cooper to get open when he redirects outside. 1. Sterling Shepard, the Giants 2016 second-round pick, has probably not yet lived up to the high expectations that surrounded him when he was drafted, but he went for 872 yards and 4 TDs in 2018. In his rookie year in the NFL, he did an excellent job reaching out and catching the ball away from his body (hands-catching), which is critical to keep the ball safe from DBs that rarely allow as much separation as in college. Its really impressive. PFF's George Chahrouri said on a July episode of the "PFF Forecast" podcast that McLaurin was the most valuable receiver in the division based on his 0.6 Win Above Replacement (WAR), which is the best among all NFC East receivers. Wide receiver Kenny Golladay's time with the Giants is reportedly coming to an end.Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Giants will cut Golladay when the new league year begins on March 15. Very few players in NFL history have immediately dominated the way Jefferson has since entering the league in 2020. But the NFC East likely has the next four best players, and has greater depth. Overall, it seems like he relies on out-athleting his opponents, beating them with deep speed or strength rather than using the nuances of the WR position to win, which wont be enough at the NFL level. Many make the mistake that if a wide receiver is big and fast that he immediately becomes a top NFL prospect. Once Tate has the ball in space, he is truly hard to bring down. The formula uses each individual's percentile score across a series of key metrics to create one composite score, indicating which players at that position performed best. This shows how much the Cowboys trust Cooper to be a red zone weapon. One major reason for that success has been Lambs consistency, as the third-year wideout has posted 70-plus receiving yards in five of those seven games. The Philadelphia Eagles have been active in the trade market under general manager Howie Roseman. Los Angeles' running backs are in . Where does he land in the Next Gen Stats analytics team's ranking of the top 10 off-ball linebackers right now? It's difficult to separate the top two receivers in 2022, but when taking into account career production and capability, Jefferson just barely gets the top spot. Ceedee Lamb is the best performing rookie by some distance. The Raiders have faced Cover 6 at an outlier rate this season (17 percent, the only team over 13 percent), as defenses "cloud" Adams' side of the field, drawing a safety farther away from the ball. Dallas Cowboys. Gilmore is on top of him the whole way and cuts back just as hard as Slayton, wrapping him up as the ball gets to him and knocking the ball away. Neither WR got consistent separation against those CBs, but McLaurin was harder to jam and had stronger hands wrestling away 50/50 balls. Who's the more explosive ball-carrier, Justin Fields or Lamar Jackson? Thats insane. The suddenness with which Cooper changed his direction and the degree to which the CB committed deep make it impossible for the CB to redirect in time, and Cooper gets open for an easy catch. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. McLaurin is an ideal Z receiver, though not quite big enough to play X and not able to consistently beat the best CBs in the NFL. St. Brown has been a revelation for the Lions -- and his impact has played a big role in the teams opportunity to end its five-year playoff drought. There's one NFC East receiver on the list, and the problem . Without missing a beat, Richardson sees the wide open endzone in front of him and runs across, accelerating so quickly that the safety cant keep up in order to get the easy TD. The NFC East has three new head coaches and a young group of quarterbacks; its probably no surprise that it has more young and promising receivers than older established veteran receivers. NFC East. Last month, the former LSU star surpassed another legendary Vikings receiver -- none other than Hall of Famer Randy Moss -- for the most receiving yards in a player's first three seasons, and he has only added to that total over the last couple weeks. Meanwhile, the veteran wideout has scored a league-high eight touchdowns on deep targets for his new team, two more than any other player. On tape, Richardsons quickness and speed stand out. He does a great job turning on a dime to locate the ball in the air, then boxes out the deep safety Marcus Gilchrist to keep him out of the play (though Gilchrist isnt able to change direction in time anyway). And J.J. Arcega-Whiteside seems like he was chosen to be the eventual replacement for Alshon Jeffery. Not only did the Giants sign Golladay to a four-year, $72 million contract this offseason, but they also used their first-round pick on Toney, the explosive rookie wideout from Florida. He is not just the first read on this play, hes the only read. I thought he wasnt as shifty as one might expect for a player so fast, he was a body-catcher rather than a hands-catcher, and he relied too much on out-athleting his opponents using speed or physicality to get open, which wouldnt necessarily work at the next level. Jefferson caught 128 passes for . Five-time Pro Bowl receiver Keenan Allen could be a surprise cut this offseason with the Los Angeles Chargers sitting at $19.9 million over the salary cap.It was a luxury to have both Allen and Mike Williams on the same team, but the time might have finally arrived for the Chargers to settle in with one player being the No. Jhabvala didn't specify when the interview was taking place, but the team was expected to . I wanted to include this play for 2 reasons. Except for those teams with the transcendent signal-callers like Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, and Tom Brady. Cooper is the true No. Where do Eagles' receivers rank among NFC East. Get the comprehensive list of every Wide Receiver for each NFL pro football team. Cooper and McLaurin must receive extra praise for overcoming below average QB play, the Cowboys and Football Team's QB play has been down right terrible this year. After the Chiefs traded Hill in the offseason, he presented an ideal case study for how important an elite receiver can be to an offense. Such questionable play at the QB spot led me to wonder how the dependent receivers are fairing under such unsteady conditions. This play shows Slaytons deep speed, ball tracking ability, and ability to haul in long passes. He makes the catch (though its a body catch, not a hands catch) and shows great strength and body control breaking the initial tackle to run for several more yards. Slayton doesnt fake inside before breaking outside, he doesnt fight for inside leverage while running down the sideline, he doesnt body out Gilmore when he jumps for the ball, he doesnt grip the ball strong enough that Gilmore cant knock it out of his hands. He has enough deep speed that he can completely blow past most CBs given a few seconds to run in a straight line, though he doesnt have the lateral agility to juke a DB out of his shoes, nor does he utilize fakes to misdirect opponents and get free early. Since joining Josh Allen and the Bills, Diggs leads the NFL with 2,953 receiving yards when aligned wide, and his 1,077 yards on hitch routes over that span are 370 more than the next-closest player (Tyler Lockett, 707). With this improved play expect a jump in production for all NFC East receivers in the upcoming 2021 season. Still, this was overall a very positive play for Reagor. 0 Rate. If Carson Wentz can return to his 2017 form and stay healthy for 16 games, this Eagles receiving crew could lead the division in statistical production. Waddle has reached 20+ mph on four offensive touches this season, tied for the third-most among all wide receivers (behind Christian Watson and teammate Tyreek Hill). These traits were evident in his game tape as well; he plays more fast than quick, and uses physicality or deep speed to get open more often than agility. As miserable as that 2020 season was for the Cowboys, he still had 92/1,114/5. Opposing defenses either shadowed him with their best CB or shaded coverage in his direction to account for him. The "Cheetah" has put up historic efficiency numbers this season, gaining 3.7 yards for every route run. He suffered a 2nd torn ACL in 2014, and, in the 5 years he has been in the NFL, he has only played 16 games once (2017, his contract year with Seattle). Still, he forces teams to respect the deep game, and I often saw him get an easy completion on a crossing or out route because the DB gave him a lot of cushion in order to defend the deep routes. Look how much cushion the CB opposite Reager (bottom of screen) gives him, clearly afraid of getting beat deep. Cooper did a poor job on the few plays I saw him used as a blocker, and seemed to get pulled from the field by the coaching staff on many running plays. Up next in the divisional depth chart review is the NFC East wide receivers. He got off to a strong start to the season thanks to his dominance in the short game, as his 457 receiving yards on passes of fewer than 10 air yards from Weeks 1 to 9 were 68 more than any other player recorded in that span. Derek Barnett has a very similar skillset to Brandon Graham. McLaurin shows good body control, contorting his body around in the air to make the catch despite his momentum. Love is draped all over JJ, trying to muscle him even having the awareness to reach out when the ball is in the air to break up the pass. He then changes direction uphill so suddenly that Lewis overshoots him on the tackle attempt. [1:43] This is why the Redskins drafted Terry McLaurin. 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