[12:06] This is the second of two plays that are representative of how Cooper gets open on many occasions. The Packers' offense has faltered for most of the season without Adams to create explosive plays. The Hill-Waddle duo has been a handful for defenses all season long, and as a result, Miami has a chance to earn its first playoff berth since 2016. Coopers ability to sell a fake will still get him open against younger DBs, which is why it really takes an experienced and fast DB playing press man to shut him down. This play highlights Coopers ability to sell the deep route as well as his short area quickness to stop and turn on a dime to get open. He looks, to me, a lot like a poor mans Julio Jones. McLaurin keeps track of the play, and when he sees Peterson coming to his side of the field, does a great job blocking Mills out of the play. 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. As miserable as that 2020 season was for the Cowboys, he still had 92/1,114/5. Commanders; Cowboys; Eagles; Giants; . NFC East Positional overview. 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. Safeties play a critical role in today's NFL. 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. Not many teams can present such a matchup, but the NFCE faced two such DBs last year in Darius Slay and Stephon Gilmore, each shadowing Cooper in their respective games. Also, Coopers ability to keep both feet inbounds as he secures a catch right on the edge of the sideline showcases his body positioning and control. 1 option. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. Tate only has good speed, but has elite quickness, and plays like this highlight his ability to get separation quickly when in tight coverage if the DB doesnt maintain constant eyes and leverage on Tate. He then changes direction uphill so suddenly that Lewis overshoots him on the tackle attempt. . 10 pick in Smith, who will become their No. But the NFC East likely has the next four best players, and has greater depth. [4:48] This time McLaurin (bottom of screen) is matched up with Ronald Darby 1-on-1. Which game-wrecking unit reigns supreme right now? The NFC West has some very good wide receivers in the division. Sometimes we look around the NFL and see how a quarterback is only as good as his wideouts. The NFL's top 16 wide receivers Teams AFC East Bills Dolphins Jets Patriots AFC North Bengals Browns Ravens Steelers AFC South Colts Jaguars Texans Titans AFC West Broncos Chargers Chiefs. 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. The browser you are using is no longer supported on this site. Despite having plenty of separation, McLaurin extends his hands to catch away from his body, showing better form than the hands-catching I noted in his college tape. This time, instead of Mike Hughes, Cooper (top of screen) is facing off against Darius Slay. Here, the CB decides to take the flag on pass interference rather than risk Jeffery getting loose behind the secondary. McLaurin does a good job turning around and locating the ball in the air, but the ball is again underthrown, so he has to slow down, allowing the CB and an assisting safety to catch up. NFL Wide Receivers 2021 : For a division that is considered one of the weakest in the history of the NFL, the NFC East boasts one of the best receiving groups in the whole league. Slayton doesnt have much in the way of counters, tricks, or physicality to get open if his athleticism isnt enough. Tier 1: Elite 1. JJ is also a good route runner and solid (though not aggressive) blocker. He built on that success his sophomore year in 2018, with 72 receptions for 1,061 yards. Often at the college level, receivers see very little in-your-face physical man coverage, so watching what we can and analyzing it very closely is extremely important. -- Mike Band, Keegan Abdoo and Cole Jacobson contributed to this piece. 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. Reagor again runs a good route, faking outside as if to run down the sideline and getting the CB to turn outside, but then breaking inside to take advantage of the cushion with nobody near him. Ball Skills is a combination of how a pass-catcher uses his body to shield defenders and put himself in the best position to haul in the football combined with showing soft, reliable hands to catch the ball away from his frame. [5:06] The Eagles had no answer for Slayton in this game and it may point to why they prioritized adding speed to their defense in the offseason. Instead of taking a step back, Hill has elevated an entire offense and been the key to third-year quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's breakout season. His routes are smooth and fluid, and once he turned on his jets near the endzone, the safety couldnt keep up. It is well known in the scouting community that when watching tape of college wide receiver prospects, it is imperative to analyze every snap against press man coverage. Dorrell was most recently the head coach at the University of Colorado. Despite pass interference from the CB (and what looks like an uncalled facemask penalty), McLaurin fights through the contact to make a tough catch and get the first down. In our continuing series of ranking the players at different positions in the NFC West and also ranking the teams at each position, we now take a look at the four teams . NFL passing games want quick-hitting routes rather than long developing ones downfield. [10:15] Richardson absolutely blows past his CB running deep. Tight ends. [0:32] Richardson runs a deep route, subtly faking outside to get inside leverage on the CB, then turning the route back inside to split the CB and S, get open, locate the ball in the air, and dive for the catch. However, he also ended this play with a mistake I saw him make a few other times too by slipping and falling without contact. Look how much cushion the CB opposite Reager (bottom of screen) gives him, clearly afraid of getting beat deep. Jared Goffs comeback season has been a lot prettier when St. Brown has been on the field -- he averages +0.22 EPA on those dropbacks, a number that would only trail Patrick Mahomes in the category this season. NFL and the NFL shield design are registered trademarks of the National Football League.The team names, logos and uniform designs are registered trademarks of the teams indicated. Hes still only an average run blocker, but thats a step up from what he was and traditionally means a lot to the Cowboys offense. He will put that analytical brain to work this off-season helping to analyze some of the top players in the NFC East. 100 routes). 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. 3. 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. NFC East . On the short end of the NFC East receivers, the Giants and Eagles have an average height of 72.2 inches, or 6 feet. 4. Once Tate has the ball in space, he is truly hard to bring down. Of course, no position group consists of just one or two players. Who are the most impactful tight ends in the NFL right now? The wide receiver landscape in the NFC East has changed dramatically over the past couple of seasons. I also think hes not especially physical and will have trouble against press coverage. 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. 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. That top three of Cooper, Gallup and Lamb might be the best trio in the NFL. The starting QB for the 2019 season was inexperienced freshman Max Duggan, causing Reagor to statistically regress to 43 receptions for 611 yards, which still lead the team. The New Orleans Saints have . Paul Richardson Jr was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2014 NFL draft. [1:32] This is an example of being open when covered. He loses close to the line of scrimmage to CBs like Josh Norman who are even more physical than he is. I expect that wont be an issue with Wentz throwing to him, but its worth noting that Reagor has a temper and it showed on the field. Washington: Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, Dyami Brown, Kelvin Harmon, Adam Humphries, Cam Sims. Giving him an easy pass like this and clearing his way also makes things easy on their freshman QB. CBS Sports Draft Analyst Chris Trapasso joined One Bills Live from the NFL Combine. Hes matched up against Rasul Douglas 1-on-1 at the top of the screen. Odds & lines subject to change. Richardson is very much a team player, and will always do his part in a play, even if the ball isnt going his way. However, he has a limited route tree and doesnt show much subtlety in terms of using fakes, counters, leverage, body-positioning, or physicality to get open. This play showcases his deep speed and big play ability, but also his ability to locate the ball and adjust to the throw. He does an excellent job locating and tracking the ball in the air and adjusting his routes to match the balls trajectory (which was important, because he was often so fast that he got underthrown on deep routes). In addition to that, he is experienced running routes from any WR position, though he favors the slot. From the data above on average 96.1 wide receivers per year played in the NFL between the ages of 25-29. . And then to grab Brown in the third round might end up being a steal. Not only did he gain an impressive number of yards after catch with his explosiveness and quick cuts, but this play seems designed around getting the ball to Reagor, whom the coaches clearly see as their teams number 1 weapon. Staying close and allowing little separation early in the route also allows those DBs to keep Cooper covered when he breaks inside on a crossing or curl route. Cowboys: Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, CeeDee Lamb, Cedric Wilson, Simi Fehoko. Chase ranks in the top 10 in both receiving yards over expected (+157) and yards after catch over expected (+122), even though hes only played in nine games. Dallas Cowboys. Eventually, Washington took it. Despite no separation in the endzone, JJ uses smart body-positioning and use of hands to maintain inside leverage and box out the CB in the endzone. Here are the pre-free agency wide receiver rankings for the NFC North. Watching tape of Tate really reinforced what a YAC monster he is. 1 wide receiver. Who's the Best Wide Receiver in the NFL? We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. They bring two DBs down to bracket Slayton (bottom of screen). You are using is no longer supported on this site coach at top... His way also makes things easy on their freshman QB second of two plays that are representative how. 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