It can be difficult for wide receivers to make an immediate impact in the NFL. In the 35 years since the league went to a 16-game season in 1978, only 12 have gone over 1,000 receiving yards as rookies. That right there puts Chargers' rookie Keenan Allen, who turned the trick last season, into select company.
But Allen's 1,000-yard rookie campaign is even more impressive when you consider that he was just a third-round pick. In those 35 years, he's the only third-rounder to reach 1,000 yards; the only one over 900, in fact. Only two of those dozen 1,000-yard rookies were selected later than the second round: Bill Brooks, a fourth-rounder drafted by Indianapolis in 1986, and Marques Colston, a seventh-round pick by New Orleans in 2006.
Allen's season, though, is part of a growing trend. Finishing 2nd in rookie receiving yards among third-rounders in that timeframe is another recent pick -- Indianapolis wideout T.Y. Hilton (2012). Five of the top 10 performances by third-rounders in the last 35 years have come since 2007.
It's a sign not only that the league is more pass-happy than ever before, but also that rookie receivers are being asked to contribute right away, even ones selected outside the first round. The overall numbers of 1,ooo-yard rookies may advise caution, but the fact that those youngsters are putting up bigger numbers than ever before indicate you can in fact find fantasy-worthy rookie contributors even into the third round of the NFL draft.
The top performances by third-rounders over the last 35 years, sorted by yards, are presented below.
TOP 3RD-ROUND WIDEOUTS, 1978- | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player, Team | No | Yds | TD |
2013 | Keenan Allen, S.D. | 71 | 1046 | 8 |
2012 | T.Y. Hilton, Ind. | 50 | 861 | 7 |
1995 | Chris Sanders, Hou. | 35 | 823 | 9 |
1991 | Lawrence Dawsey, T.B. | 55 | 818 | 4 |
1990 | Ricky Proehl, St.L. | 56 | 802 | 4 |
2009 | Mike Wallace, Pitt. | 39 | 756 | 6 |
1990 | Fred Barnett, Phi. | 36 | 721 | 8 |
2000 | Darrell Jackson, Sea. | 53 | 713 | 6 |
2007 | James Jones, G.B. | 47 | 676 | 2 |
2010 | Jordan Shipley, Cin. | 52 | 600 | 3 |
1981 | Ken Margerum, Chi. | 39 | 584 | 1 |
1991 | Tim Barnett, K.C. | 41 | 564 | 5 |
1994 | Lake Dawson, K.C. | 37 | 537 | 2 |
1996 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 35 | 520 | 4 |
2001 | Marvin Minnis, K.C. | 33 | 511 | 1 |
2010 | Brandon LaFell, Car. | 38 | 468 | 1 |
2003 | Nate Burleson, Minn. | 29 | 455 | 2 |
1989 | Derek Hill, Pitt. | 28 | 455 | 1 |
1978 | Dan Bass, Cin. | 27 | 447 | 4 |
2007 | Laurent Robinson, Atl. | 37 | 437 | 1 |
1981 | Michael Holston, Hou. | 27 | 427 | 2 |
1987 | Mark Carrier, T.B. | 26 | 423 | 3 |
2005 | Chris Henry, Cin. | 31 | 422 | 6 |
1983 | Stephen Starring, N.E. | 17 | 389 | 2 |
2010 | Emmanuel Sanders, Pitt. | 28 | 376 | 2 |
1988 | Quinn Early, S.D. | 29 | 375 | 4 |
2000 | Laveranues Coles, NYJ | 22 | 370 | 1 |
1994 | Tydus Winans, Wash. | 19 | 344 | 2 |
2011 | Vincent Brown, S.D. | 19 | 329 | 2 |
--Andy Richardson