Odell Beckham has a hamstring injury. Kelvin Benjamin showed up at OTAs 9 pounds overweight – over 250 pounds. And this reminds me that it’s an error to assume that a good rookie receiver can just coast through the offseason, show up next summer and kick butt.
It’s logical to expect a receiver to be better in his second year. He’s had a better chance to better learn and digest the offense. He’s built a better rapport with his quarterback and has a better understanding of what it takes to be a pro. And so on.
But the reality is it’s far more common for a good rookie receiver the next year to put up lesser numbers. The defenses are trying too, apparently.
Below see a list of the top 20 rookie receivers of the last 30 years. Of these guys, only three came back and put up even better numbers in their second season. (That’s using the scoring system of 6 points for TDs and 1 for every 10 receiving yards.) I’ve got those three guys in bold – Marques Colston, Julio Jones and A.J. Green.
On the chart below, I’m not showing the stats. I’m showing the improvement in catches, yards and touchdowns. If a player got better, those numbers are in bold.
| TOP 20 ROOKIE RECEIVERS (next year) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Receiver | No | Yards | TD |
| 1986 | Eddie Brown | +5 | +22 | -4 |
| 1987 | Ernest Givins | -8 | -129 | +2 |
| 1996 | Joey Galloway | -10 | -52 | -1 |
| 1996 | Chris Sanders | +13 | +59 | -5 |
| 1997 | Eddie Kennison | -29 | -520 | -11 |
| 1997 | Terry Glenn | -63 | -701 | -4 |
| 1997 | Keyshawn Johnson | +7 | +119 | -3 |
| 1997 | Marvin Harrison | +9 | +30 | -2 |
| 1999 | Randy Moss | +12 | +100 | -5 |
| 2000 | Kevin Johnson | -9 | -317 | -8 |
| 2002 | Chris Chambers | +4 | -149 | -4 |
| 2004 | Anquan Boldin | -45 | -754 | -7 |
| 2005 | Michael Clayton | -48 | -821 | -7 |
| 2005 | Lee Evans | 0 | -100 | -2 |
| 2005 | Roy Williams | -9 | -130 | 0 |
| 2007 | Marques Colston | +28 | +164 | +3 |
| 2011 | Mike Williams | 0 | -193 | -8 |
| 2012 | A.J. Green | +32 | +293 | +4 |
| 2012 | Julio Jones | +25 | +239 | +2 |
| 2014 | Keenan Allen | +6 | -263 | -4 |
—Ian Allan