Ozzie Newsome stepped to the mic at the combine and said Breshad Perriman is entering a make-or-break season. That’s an understatement. More accurately, Perriman is down to his last chance to make some kind of impact and isn’t particularly likely to even make the team.
The Ravens drafted Perriman in the first round in 2015, and he’s done precious little so far. He missed all of his rookie season with a knee injury. He at least hit on some deep balls in 2016, with 33 catches for 499 yards and 3 TDs – 8 catches over 20 yards (and 3 over 40). During brief spurts of that season (when he was working as their third receiver) it looked like he might be a player of some note.
But Perriman struggled mightily last year, with just 10 catches for 77 yards and no touchdowns. That’s on 35 pass attempts – they went only 10 of 35 when trying to get him the ball.
Perriman was plagued by drops at Central Florida, and those issues have continued in the pros. He’s not a great catcher of the football.
It’s not all Perriman’s fault. Joe Flacco played poorly last year, and the offense doesn’t have a lot of imagination. But those were some historically inept numbers last year. He averaged only 2.2 yards per pass play last year. In the last 10 years, no wide receiver has seen 30-plus targets and finished with worse numbers.
Best we can offer on Perriman’s behalf is that some other wide receivers have rebounded somewhat from similarly awful season. Kenny Britt stunk in 2013 and came back to post an unlikely 1,000-yard season with the Rams in 2016. Eddie Royal was garbage in 2011 and three years later caught 62 passes and 7 TDs with the Chargers.
But unlikely, I think, that Perriman will climb out of this hole.
| FEWEST YARDS PER TARGET (30-plus attempts) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Tgt | Rec | Yards | Avg |
| 2008 | RB Chris Perry, Cin. | 34 | 20 | 71 | 2.09 |
| 2017 | WR Breshad Perriman, Balt. | 35 | 10 | 77 | 2.20 |
| 2015 | WR Rashad Greene, Jac. | 35 | 19 | 93 | 2.66 |
| 2013 | WR Kenny Britt, Tenn. | 35 | 11 | 96 | 2.74 |
| 2013 | RB Ben Tate, Hou. | 49 | 34 | 140 | 2.86 |
| 2017 | WR Kamar Aiken, Ind. | 44 | 15 | 133 | 3.02 |
| 2009 | WR Darrius Heyward-Bey, Oak. | 40 | 9 | 124 | 3.10 |
| 2011 | WR Eddie Royal, Den. | 50 | 19 | 155 | 3.10 |
| 2015 | RB Ronnie Hillman, Den. | 35 | 24 | 111 | 3.17 |
| 2015 | WR Brian Quick, St.L. | 32 | 10 | 102 | 3.19 |
| 2008 | RB Adrian Peterson, Minn. | 39 | 21 | 125 | 3.21 |
| 2010 | RB Tim Hightower, Ariz. | 42 | 21 | 136 | 3.24 |
| 2014 | RB Jerick McKinnon, Minn. | 41 | 27 | 135 | 3.29 |
| 2010 | WR Johnnie Lee Higgins, Oak. | 30 | 10 | 103 | 3.43 |
| 2012 | WR Kevin Elliott, Jac. | 31 | 10 | 108 | 3.48 |
| 2014 | RB Andre Williams, NYG | 37 | 18 | 130 | 3.51 |
| 2009 | WR Joshua Cribbs, Clev. | 37 | 20 | 135 | 3.65 |
| 2013 | WR Kevin Ogletree, T.B.-Det. | 46 | 21 | 169 | 3.67 |
| 2011 | RB Frank Gore, S.F. | 31 | 17 | 114 | 3.68 |
| 2015 | RB Justin Forsett, Balt. | 41 | 31 | 153 | 3.73 |
| 2015 | WR Marlon Brown, Balt. | 30 | 14 | 112 | 3.73 |
| 2012 | RB Arian Foster, Hou. | 58 | 40 | 217 | 3.74 |
| 2011 | RB Justin Forsett, Sea. | 34 | 23 | 128 | 3.76 |
| 2008 | WR Ronald Curry, Oak. | 48 | 19 | 181 | 3.77 |
| 2008 | WR Donte Stallworth, Clev. | 45 | 17 | 170 | 3.78 |
| 2010 | TE Jeff King, Car. | 32 | 19 | 121 | 3.78 |
| 2011 | RB Peyton Hillis, Clev. | 34 | 22 | 130 | 3.82 |
| 2014 | RB Darren McFadden, Oak. | 55 | 36 | 212 | 3.85 |
| 2012 | RB Bilal Powell, NYJ | 36 | 17 | 140 | 3.89 |
| 2013 | RB Steven Jackson, Atl. | 49 | 33 | 191 | 3.90 |
| 2012 | WR Early Doucet, Ariz. | 53 | 28 | 207 | 3.91 |
| 2017 | RB Jordan Howard, Chi. | 32 | 23 | 125 | 3.91 |
| 2010 | RB Fred Jackson, Buff. | 55 | 31 | 215 | 3.91 |
| 2016 | RB Kenneth Dixon, Balt. | 41 | 30 | 162 | 3.95 |
| 2016 | TE Demetrius Harris, K.C. | 31 | 17 | 123 | 3.97 |
| 2017 | RB Carlos Hyde, S.F. | 88 | 59 | 350 | 3.98 |
—Ian Allan