The NFL is a passing league, but that also means it’s a receiving league. The NFL’s receiving talent might be at an all-time high in breadth and depth. Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson has the most receiving yards and catches of any player in his first three seasons. The Rams’ Cooper Kupp won a receiving triple crown in 2021—just the fourth receiver in the last 50 years to do so—and added a Super Bowl MVP trophy just for funsies. Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, aside from his earth-shattering regular season statistics, has 16 touchdowns in 18 career playoff games. Add in Davante Adams, Stefon Diggs, Tyreek Hill, Ja’Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb, A.J. Brown—the list goes on and on—and we might have more elite receiving talent in the prime years of their careers right now than ever before.
But the depth across the league is also impressive. Take a look at the first round of this year’s draft. The first receiver taken, Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, is slated to be Seattle’s third receiver. The guys taken directly after Njigba, TCU’s Quentin Johnston to the Chargers and Boston College’s Zay Flowers to Baltimore, are each expected to be the fourth option (at best) in their respective offenses to open the season.
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All this top-end talent and roster depth makes judging each team’s pass catchers harder than ever, but also crucial for assessing which teams are truly competing for a championship. With that in mind, let’s look at each team’s group of pass catchers—not just wide receivers, but all pass catchers—and rank them. Let’s establish the ground rules:
- We’re looking at all pass catchers across all positions: wide receivers, slot receivers, tight ends, running backs, and whatever position Taysom Hill plays.
- We’re looking at the 2023 season only. If we were looking several years into the future and factoring in age, 23-year-old Ja’Marr Chase would run circles around 30-year-old Cooper Kupp. But we aren’t, so they are essentially a wash.
- We’re not factoring in contracts. We’re just talking ball.
- To the best of our ability, we will try to separate pass catchers from their quarterbacks and coaching staff. We’ll approach this exercise as if every single group of players were catching passes from Kirk Cousins.
- These rankings are 100 percent objectively correct.
Let’s get to it, starting with …
32. Houston Texans
WR: Nico Collins
WR: Robert Woods
WR: Noah Brown
WR: Tank Dell/John Metchie III
RB: Dameon Pierce
TE: Dalton Schultz
The formerly rudderless but now rebuilding Texans have barely invested in their pass catchers and it shows. Woods is the only wide receiver on this roster with at least 45 catches in a season. Relatedly, Woods is 31, suffered a season-ending knee injury in 2021, and had just 527 yards in 17 games with the Titans in 2022. There’s potential here with Dell and Metchie, but there are not many players expected to do much this season to help rookie QB C.J. Stroud.
31. New England Patriots
WR: JuJu Smith-Schuster
WR: DeVante Parker
WR: Kendrick Bourne
WR: Mike Gesicki
WR: Tyquan Thornton
RB: Rhamondre Stevenson
TE: Hunter Henry
“Stink, stank, stunk” was how Boston Sports Journal reporter Mike Giardi described the Patriots pass catchers early in training camp. By all accounts, receiver remains a problem that Bill Belichick has been unable to solve. Smith-Schuster has had a few disappointing years. Gesicki is a tight end on paper but in reality a glorified (and ineffective) receiver. Thornton is a speed demon who has yet to contribute in meaningful ways. This group’s only hope is to be rescued by new coordinator Bill O’Brien—if he can remove the stench that Matt Patricia left on this offense.
30. Carolina Panthers
WR: Adam Thielen
WR: D.J. Chark
WR: Jonathan Mingo
WR: Terrace Marshall Jr.
WR: Laviska Shenault Jr.
RB: Miles Sanders
TE: Hayden Hurst
Thielen is the big name here, but he was dust in Minnesota last year. He’s essentially a seasoned veteran, hired to teach young players how to be professionals. Chark, the other veteran signing, has played in just 15 games and recorded 656 yards over the last two seasons. That is hardly a reliable top-end duo, but the youngsters aren’t sure things either. The Juniors—Terrace and Laviska—are both former second-rounders who have been maddeningly disappointing (neither has cracked 620 yards in a season). They are just 24 and 23, respectively. Carolina drafted Mingo no. 39 this year—another second-rounder—to pair with new quarterback Bryce Young.
29. Arizona Cardinals
WR: Marquise Brown
WR: Rondale Moore
WR: Greg Dortch
WR: Michael Wilson
RB: James Conner
TE: Zach Ertz/Trey McBride
Brown was the first receiver taken in the 2019 draft, and the only question about his game was related to his smaller stature at just 5-foot-9 and 170 pounds. But there might be times this season when Brown is Arizona’s biggest receiver on the field. Dortch and Moore are both 5-foot-7. This team is rebuilding, something that became especially clear after they cut no. 1 receiver DeAndre Hopkins this offseason. Arizona’s best hope is that Wilson combines with tight end McBride, their second-rounder last year who could overtake the veteran Ertz this year as the starting TE, to become a solid young core to build around.
28. New York Giants
WR: Darius Slayton
WR: Isaiah Hodgins
WR: Parris Campbell
WR: Sterling Shepard
WR: Wan’Dale Robinson
WR: Jalin Hyatt
RB: Saquon Barkley
TE: Darren Waller
Waller and Barkley have near-elite receiving chops for their positions. Everything else here is a mess. New York’s plan at receiver seems to be to stack slot receivers on top of each other in trench coats and hope nobody notices. Shepard, 30, endured the Klay Thompson—tears to both the ACL and Achilles in two years—and at this point in his career likely brings savvy leadership more than slashing ability. Robinson is also returning from a torn ACL. Hyatt, the rookie third-rounder who had 207 receiving yards and five touchdowns against Alabama last year, has a massive opportunity here.
27. Green Bay Packers
WR: Christian Watson
WR: Romeo Doubs
WR: Jayden Reed
WR: Samori Toure
WR: Dontayvion Wicks
RB: Aaron Jones
TE: Luke Musgrave
The Packers have perhaps the least experienced quarterback room in NFL history (the only QB on the roster who has started an NFL game is Jordan Love, and he has done it just once). With this receiving group, Green Bay’s offense is basically in day care. Outside of Jones, everyone else listed here is in either their first or second NFL season. This group would rank much higher if we were factoring in future seasons.
26. Chicago Bears
WR: DJ Moore
WR: Chase Claypool
WR: Darnell Mooney
WR: Equanimeous St. Brown
RB: Khalil Herbert
TE: Cole Kmet
In Chicago’s first four games last year, the Bears threw for just 390 yards, which was fewer than the Navy Midshipmen in the same span. In response, the Bears traded away their second-rounder—no. 32 overall—for Claypool at the deadline. As a Bear, Claypool delivered just 14 catches for 140 yards over his final seven games. To undo this great pox upon their house, the Bears traded for Panthers receiver Moore in their move down from the first overall pick and have him under contract through 2025. Now that Chicago has dealt away the first pick of the first two rounds, maybe they are ready to outdo the Midshipmen.
25. Indianapolis Colts
WR: Michael Pittman Jr.
WR: Alec Pierce
WR: Josh Downs
WR: Isaiah McKenzie
RB: Jonathan Taylor
TE: Jelani Woods
TE: Mo Alie-Cox
TE: Kylen Granson
TE: Will Mallory
TE: Drew Ogletree
TE: Pharaoh Brown
TE: Michael Jacobson
TE: Nick Eubanks
TE: Ricky Seals-Jones
Yes, the Colts have nine tight ends on their roster. It’s hard to fathom what that means until you see them all written out. At this point in the preseason, NFL teams have 90-man rosters, which means the Indianapolis Colts are currently 10 percent tight end. They could run an entire offense with a center to snap the ball, a quarterback, and nine tight ends.
At receiver, Pittman has done his best with Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan, and Sam Ehlinger at quarterback the past two years. Pierce is tall and fast while Downs is short and quick—in theory, they pair nicely. Taylor, currently embroiled in a contract dispute with the team and not practicing, is a strong runner but has not been the most fluid in running routes out of the backfield in the receiving game. Owner Jim Irsay does not want to give Taylor a raise. Taylor is upset that he isn’t getting more money, which is understandable considering Irsay is literally planning to pay $20 million to fly an orca from the Miami Seaquarium back to the sea. It’s a weird thing for Irsay to do. Why pay that much money to fly the whale to the ocean when the tight ends could just carry it?
24. Denver Broncos
WR: Jerry Jeudy
WR: Courtland Sutton
WR: Marvin Mims Jr.
WR: Kendall Hinton
RB: Javonte Williams
TE: Greg Dulcich
This is an odd group to evaluate after Russell Wilson’s epically embarrassing debut season in Denver. Jeudy, the second receiver drafted in 2020, is entering his fourth season and perhaps can finally deliver on his pedigree. Sutton is now a couple of years removed from an ACL tear and has his best—and perhaps last—chance to get his career back on track after going for 1,112 receiving yards in 2019. Sean Payton’s first draft pick as Broncos coach was trading up to the second round for the enigmatic Mims, a big-splash-play receiver at Oklahoma. Dulcich is a talented former third-round tight end who looks like he’s playing Orlando Bloom’s character in a Broadway edition of Pirates of the Caribbean.
23. Tennessee Titans
WR: DeAndre Hopkins
WR: Treylon Burks
WR: Nick Westbrook-Ikhine
WR: Kyle Philips
RB: Derrick Henry
TE: Chig Okonkwo
The current Titan with the most career touchdown catches is Hopkins, obviously. But the person with the next-most scores is … head coach Mike Vrabel, who snagged 12 career touchdown catches moonlighting on offense for the Patriots. But there’s potential here, even if Burks and Okonkwo are raw as cookie dough; they are both bursting with athleticism and fire after the catch. Okonkwo was no. 1 in yards per route run and yards per catch among qualifying tight ends last year, albeit in limited snaps.
22. Los Angeles Rams
WR: Cooper Kupp
WR: Van Jefferson
WR: Ben Skowronek
WR: Puka Nacua
WR: Tutu Atwell
RB: Cam Akers
TE: Tyler Higbee
Whether you agree with this ranking or not is essentially a referendum on Kupp, because without him, the Rams would be bottom three. Jefferson is ostensibly the no. 2 receiver and doesn’t have 1,400 receiving yards in his three career seasons combined. Skowronek’s claim to fame is moonlighting at fullback. Nacua is intriguing but was the eighth player Los Angeles selected in this year’s draft. Atwell has 18 catches in two seasons. Akers doesn’t even average a catch per game at running back. Higbee, 30, is the only player here beyond Kupp who could submit something resembling above-average play for his position.
21. Kansas City Chiefs
WR: Marquez Valdes-Scantling
WR: Kadarius Toney
WR: Skyy Moore
WR: Justyn Ross
RB: Jerick McKinnon
TE: Travis Kelce
TE: Rashee Rice
TE: Richie James
It’s hard to imagine what this group, especially Kelce, would look like without Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. But the short answer is probably a lot worse. Kelce is a future Hall of Famer still in his seemingly never-ending prime. And McKinnon reeled in eight touchdown catches in his final six games of the 2022 regular season. But Kansas City’s wide receivers are a mixed bag. Toney played eight snaps in the Super Bowl but scored two touchdowns; then he got injured in training camp before the beginning of the first practice this season. Moore essentially redshirted last season with just 22 catches as a rookie. Like the Rams with Kupp, if Kelce were to go down, this group would be ugly.
20. New York Jets
WR: Garrett Wilson
WR: Corey Davis
WR: Allen Lazard
WR: Mecole Hardman
RB: Breece Hall/Dalvin Cook
TE: Tyler Conklin
Wilson won Offensive Rookie of the Year last year, but Hall may have won it if he hadn’t torn his ACL. Hall had 100 yards receiving in just his fifth game of his rookie season last year. The Jets signed Aaron Rodgers’s former Packers pal Lazard for $11 million a year even though he never topped 800 yards in a season in Green Bay. Davis, a former top-five pick and a willing blocker, might get cut. Hardman brings speed and little else. The Jets, uh, jettisoned talented receiver Elijah Moore, who might have been their second-best receiver had he stayed. By almost any measure, this group is more valuable to Rodgers than it would be to anyone else.
19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
WR: Mike Evans
WR: Chris Godwin
WR: Russell Gage
WR: David Moore
RB: Rachaad White
TE: Cade Otton
Evans has had nine straight 1,000-yard seasons and might throttle Baker Mayfield and/or Kyle Trask if it doesn’t happen again in 2023. Godwin had surgery to repair his ACL and MCL in January 2022 and spent most of last season looking not quite himself. White is a talented receiver out of the backfield who usurped a depleted Leonard Fournette last season. Cade Otton had a promising rookie season and also has a fun name to say out loud. Try it right now. Cade Otton. Charming, no?
18. Buffalo Bills
WR: Stefon Diggs
WR: Gabe Davis
WR: Trent Sherfield
WR: Khalil Shakir
RB: James Cook
TE: Dalton Kincaid
Buffalo didn’t have a reliable underneath option last year behind Diggs, leading them to rely on Cole Beasley in their embarrassing divisional-round loss to the Bengals. Enter first-round tight end Kincaid out of Utah. Long term, Kincaid is a potentially fantastic addition. But rookie tight ends must learn to block NFL defensive ends and get open against NFL defenders, so they rarely contribute early. If Josh Allen ever checked it down, we might be looking at Cook as one of the best receiving backs in the league.
17. New Orleans Saints
WR: Chris Olave
WR: Michael Thomas
WR: Rashid Shaheed
RB: Alvin Kamara
RB: Jamaal Williams
TE: Juwan Johnson
Taysom Hill: Taysom Hill
What a strange collection of players. Thomas led the NFL in receiving yards and set the record for catches in 2019. He’s played just 12 total games since. Kamara is suspended to begin the season. He lost his burst last year, but after reconditioning his body following a bizarre discovery that one of his legs weighed two pounds more than the other (?!), he says his burst is back. Olave had an unreal and underrated rookie season that was marred by a scary concussion. Hill is getting $10 million in cash this season despite not playing half of the team’s offensive snaps in even a single game last year, which should lead to an IRS audit.
16. Baltimore Ravens
WR: Odell Beckham Jr.
WR: Rashod Bateman
WR: Zay Flowers
WR: Nelson Agholor
RB: J.K. Dobbins
TE: Mark Andrews
This group is too young to be so old. Oldell—sorry, Odell—had 4,122 yards and 35 touchdowns from 2014 to 2016, one of the best starts to a receiving career ever. But he’s missed 20 games over the last two seasons. Bateman, who is just 23, has already missed 16 games in his career. Behind them is Flowers, a talented first-round rookie, but he is just 5-foot-9. If Agholor had been on the team last year, he may have been Baltimore’s no. 1 receiver. Now he’s competing for the third job. Andrews is the only player here who can be considered a steady hand.
15. Detroit Lions
WR: Amon-Ra St. Brown
WR: Marvin Jones Jr.
WR: Josh Reynolds
WR: Jameson Williams
RB: Jahmyr Gibbs
TE: Sam LaPorta
Gibbs and LaPorta were first- and second-rounders this year, and boast tons of upside. But only Gibbs is likely to reach his potential this season while LaPorta will have to learn the ins and outs of blocking. Williams is a speedy former first-rounder, but he’s suspended for six games. Amon-Ra is second to Justin Jefferson in the NFL in catches since Thanksgiving of 2021.
14. Washington Commanders
WR: Terry McLaurin
WR: Jahan Dotson
WR: Curtis Samuel
WR: Dax Milne
RB: Antonio Gibson
TE: Logan Thomas
McLaurin is an exercise in nature vs. nurture. He’s caught passes from Kyle Allen, Garrett Gilbert, Dwayne Haskins, Case Keenum, Taylor Heinicke, Alex Smith, Colt McCoy, and Carson Wentz. Perhaps with a better group he’d be considered an elite receiver. Dotson already looks like a younger DeAndre Hopkins, standing 5-foot-11 but playing like he’s 6-4. Samuel is a gadget player, while Gibson is a receiver turned running back geared for lists like these. Milne is infinitely more notable for his relationship with Zach Wilson than for his play.
13. Jacksonville Jaguars
WR: Calvin Ridley
WR: Christian Kirk
WR: Zay Jones
WR: Jamal Agnew
RB: Travis Etienne Jr.
TE: Evan Engram
Last year, Kirk, Jones, and Engram had among the best individual seasons of their careers. Now the Jags must integrate Ridley into the fold. Ridley has barely played in two seasons but was elite in yards per route run when he last saw extensive action, ranking in the top 10 among all pass catchers in yards per route run in 2020. Kirk may have had a career year in 2022, but he will be even better suited as a no. 2 behind Ridley.
12. Pittsburgh Steelers
WR: Diontae Johnson
WR: George Pickens
WR: Allen Robinson II
WR: Calvin Austin III
RB: Najee Harris
TE: Pat Freiermuth
Judging solely by highlights and bravado (which is an inaccurate but extremely fun way to judge players) Pickens is already a top-five wide receiver in the NFL. It’s hard not to wonder what he could do in an aggressive scheme with a better quarterback. Ditto for Johnson, who had no touchdown catches last year but separates from defenders with ease. Perhaps a pattern of pairing great receivers with less-than-elite QB play is why the Steelers signed the ghost of Robinson. Freiermuth is already this generation’s Jason Witten—the lovable, lumbering white tight end destined to be with his team for 15 years.
11. Las Vegas Raiders
WR: Davante Adams
WR: Jakobi Meyers
WR: Hunter Renfrow
WR: Tre Tucker
RB: Josh Jacobs
TE: Michael Mayer
Adams made first-team All-Pro while leading the NFL in touchdown catches in his first season away from Aaron Rodgers. Jacobs, who has not signed his franchise tag and is currently holding out, led the NFL in rushing yards but also had a career-high 400 receiving yards. Meyers comes over from New England this offseason but has been helping the Raiders win since last season. Tucker is the Al Davis memorial “really fast receiver” draft pick. Mayer is the berserker from Helm’s Deep.
10. Atlanta Falcons
WR: Drake London
WR: Mack Hollins
WR: Scott Miller
RB: Bijan Robinson
RB/WR: Cordarrelle Patterson
TE: Kyle Pitts
TE: Jonnu Smith
The Falcons are in the unique spot of having used three top-10 picks on three skill players in the past three years in Pitts, London, and now Robinson. With this embarrassment of riches at the skill positions, the Falcons would rank much higher in rankings that looked beyond 2023 or included contracts. For just 2023 though, what stands out about this group is the positional versatility. This offense is like a “switch everything” lineup in basketball. Robinson is the best running back prospect in years and can legitimately line up in the slot (that’s often a trope, but he can do it). Patterson is one of the best kick returners of all time and has played running back and receiver the past couple years. Pitts can be a true tight end or a wide receiver. Even Smith, their backup tight end, tested in the 94th percentile in explosiveness among tight ends at the NFL combine back in 2017. Despite playing both football and basketball at USC, London is somehow the least versatile of them all. This group may be too young to be elite in 2023, but they may be way higher in these rankings next season.
9. Cleveland Browns
WR: Amari Cooper
WR: Donovan Peoples-Jones
WR: Elijah Moore
WR: Cedric Tillman
RB: Nick Chubb
TE: David Njoku
This is a weirdly deep team. Cooper is perpetually underrated, plays through injury, and just had one of the best seasons of his career. Moore might explode in this new offense after escaping the Zach Wilson drama in New York. Peoples-Jones has elite explosiveness and is somehow in his fourth NFL season at just 24 years old. Chubb is the best pure runner in football and may figure into the passing game with Kareem Hunt gone.
8. Miami Dolphins
WR: Tyreek Hill
WR: Jaylen Waddle
WR: Braxton Berrios
WR: Robbie Chosen
RB: De’Von Achane/Raheem Mostert
TE: Durham Smythe
The epitome of a top-heavy group. Miami’s offensive strategy is to collect the fastest players in the league and then just figure it out. With Hill and Waddle at receiver, that works—Hill averaged over 100 yards per game last season and says he wants to reach 2,000 yards this year. But after those guys, it gets tough fast with Berrios and Chosen, who were playing together for the Jets four years ago. With Raheem Mostert and Achane at running back, they have cigarette-boat speed in the backfield, although their pass catching is iffy.
7. Dallas Cowboys
WR: CeeDee Lamb
WR: Brandin Cooks
WR: Michael Gallup
WR: Jalen Tolbert
RB: Tony Pollard
TE: Jake Ferguson
Lamb led all receivers in yards from the slot in 2022. Cooks not-so-quietly-quit on the Houston Texans as they were tanking last season, but had 1,000 yards in six of the previous eight seasons (a feat matched only by Travis Kelce and Mike Evans). Pollard is one of the most electric players with the ball in his hands in the entire NFL, but he’s coming off a broken leg from January.
6. Los Angeles Chargers
WR: Keenan Allen
WR: Mike Williams
WR: Quentin Johnston
WR: Josh Palmer
RB: Austin Ekeler
TE: Gerald Everett
Ekeler is as good as it gets as a receiving option out of the backfield and has led the NFL in total touchdowns in each of the last two seasons. Allen, 31, averaged 84 yards per game once he returned from a hamstring injury last year, which is more than he averaged per game in each season from 2018 to 2021. Mike Williams could thrive in new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore’s system, which will likely feature far more downfield shots than what the Chargers did last year. Ditto for Gerald Everett, as Moore made Dalton Schultz look good in Dallas. Johnston, the rookie first-rounder, is raw for a speedster but is a helluva depth option.
5. Minnesota Vikings
WR: Justin Jefferson
WR: Jordan Addison
WR: K.J. Osborn
WR: Jalen Reagor
RB: Alexander Mattison
TE: T.J. Hockenson
Jefferson is the best receiver in the NFL and has the most catches and yards of any player through three seasons ever. By the numbers, by the eye test, by Randy Moss’s testament, he is the elite of the elite and is entering his prime. Addison, Minnesota’s first-rounder out of USC, won the Biletnikoff Award as college football’s best receiver in 2021. He is undersized but is the perfect complement to work underneath. Hockenson had a career-high 914 yards last season and had approximately 700 broken tackles in a playoff loss to the Giants.
4. Seattle Seahawks
WR: DK Metcalf
WR: Tyler Lockett
WR: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
RB: Kenneth Walker
TE: Noah Fant
TE: Will Dissly
Where were you in the fall of 2017? That was the last time Lockett had fewer than eight touchdown catches. The only players with more receiving scores than Lockett since 2018 are Davante Adams, Tyreek Hill, Mike Evans, and Travis Kelce. Since Metcalf entered the league in 2019, Lockett and Metcalf have each scored 35 receiving touchdowns and are tied for the sixth most in that span. Seattle already had one of the best receiver duos, and then added Smith-Njigba, the top receiver in this year’s draft, giving them one of the best trios in all of football. Fant is hardly an elite tight end, but with his ridiculous athleticism as a former first-rounder, he is hardly your average player as a fourth option. Dissly has had horrific injury luck but is beloved by his coaches. The weak point here may be Walker out of the backfield, as Seattle’s best receiving backs may be two rookies who might not get much playing time: second-rounder Zach Charbonnet and seventh-rounder Kenny McIntosh.
3. San Francisco 49ers
WR: Deebo Samuel
WR: Brandon Aiyuk
WR: Jauan Jennings
RB: Christian McCaffrey
TE: George Kittle
FB: Kyle Juszczyk
If you ranked all the skill players in the NFL by pure athleticism, the 49ers might have four of the top 15 guys. That makes this an odd group to separate from head coach Kyle Shanahan. Shanahan has an elite ability to elevate his players through his scheme and play-calling, but he also seems to collect top-tier athletes (even by NFL standards) and let them learn how to play receiver later. It worked wonderfully with Samuel, who had 1,770 scrimmage yards and 14 touchdowns while moonlighting as the team’s running back two seasons ago. Now, fourth-year receiver Aiyuk looks poised for a breakout. Kittle is the best tight end in the NFL when factoring in receiving and blocking. He also decided one day he just wouldn’t get tackled anymore. For all the credit that quarterback Brock Purdy gets, the 49ers went 12-1 last season with McCaffrey in the starting lineup. He averaged five catches for 44 receiving yards. And yet, if you ask all of these guys who the best athlete on the team is, they might say left tackle Trent Williams. If Williams ever gets more time at fullback, we’re moving this group to no. 1.
2. Philadelphia Eagles
WR: A.J. Brown
WR: DeVonta Smith
WR: Olamide Zaccheaus
WR: Quez Watkins
RB: D’Andre Swift
TE: Dallas Goedert
The Eagles nearly won the Super Bowl in part because of their strength at receiver. My Ringer colleague Steven Ruiz likes to compare Brown’s role as a slasher over the middle of the field to prime LeBron James’s cuts to the basket—he is either bigger or faster (and often both) than anyone who will guard him. Brown dominates over the middle, but also on deep routes; he leads the NFL in targets on double moves. From Weeks 13 to 18 last year, Brown led all wide receivers in receiving yards (665). Right behind him in second place was … Smith (587). Goedert has deadly efficiency in the screen game and ranked third in yards per route run and first in yards after the catch per reception among the 45 tight ends who ran at least 200 routes last year. Swift, acquired for peanuts during the draft, is one of the league’s best receiving backs and should flourish here if he can stay healthy. This group is so good that Eagles fans have gotten over the team’s drafting of Jalen Reagor instead of Justin Jefferson.
1. Cincinnati Bengals
WR: Ja’Marr Chase
WR: Tee Higgins
WR: Tyler Boyd
WR: Trenton Irwin
RB: Joe Mixon
TE: Irv Smith Jr.
Chase ranks fourth in yards per route run among players with at least 1,000 routes over the last two seasons—behind Tyreek Hill, Davante Adams, and Justin Jefferson—which is incredible for a player in his first two seasons. Chase combines the best skills of two players who made up one of the top receiver duos of this century: He leaps like Larry Fitzgerald at the catch point but turns into Anquan Boldin with the ball in his hands. Chase is a burner, jump-ball specialist, and ankle breaker all in one. Across from him is the 6-foot-4 Higgins, who would be WR1 on plenty of other teams. What gives Cincy an edge over Philadelphia is the depth behind these two. Boyd is a seasoned veteran in the slot, and while he doesn’t have eye-popping numbers, his thigh injury in the AFC championship game helped turn the tide toward the eventual Super Bowl champion Chiefs. With a trio this good, the Bengals might make their way back to the Super Bowl sooner rather than later.
