The Giants have released Brandon Marshall, and the only surprise is that they didn’t make the move sooner. At 34, he seems to be pretty much done at this point (I was surprised when they signed him last year).
Marshall is a big, physical receiver, but he can’t run anymore. It’s too hard for him to get separation, turning too many of the throws sent his way into contested situations. He’s turned into an Anquan Boldin type guy, who has to rely on trying to box people out with his big body – a tight end like guy.
Marshall struggled with the Jets two years ago, and he was even worse with the Giants before spending most of the season on injured reserve.
During his last two seasons, Marshall has caught only 48 percent of the passes thrown his way. That ranks last among the 55 wide receivers who’ve seen at least 150 targets since 2016. If you want to instead look at “average yards per pass plays” (yards divided by targets), Marshall also comes out last, averaging just 5.9 yards.
With Marshall officially gone, that could in theory indicate the Giants might have some interest in Dez Bryant. But that doesn’t look particularly likely. They’ve got Odell Beckham and Sterling Shepard; that’s a really good pair of receivers. And they’ve got Evan Engram, who’s officially listed as a tight end but is used more like a wide receiver. They like Engram a lot, and he’s from that same Marshall/Bryant mold.
| CATCH RATES (2016-17) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Pct |
| Michael Thomas, N.O. | 270 | 196 | 2,382 | 12.2 | 14 | 72.6% |
| Tyreek Hill, K.C. | 188 | 136 | 1,776 | 13.1 | 13 | 72.3% |
| Golden Tate, Det. | 255 | 183 | 2,080 | 11.4 | 9 | 71.8% |
| Randall Cobb, G.B. | 176 | 126 | 1,263 | 10.0 | 8 | 71.6% |
| Stefon Diggs, Minn. | 207 | 148 | 1,752 | 11.8 | 11 | 71.5% |
| Mohamed Sanu, Atl. | 177 | 126 | 1,356 | 10.8 | 9 | 71.2% |
| Jarvis Landry, Mia. | 292 | 206 | 2,123 | 10.3 | 13 | 70.5% |
| Doug Baldwin, Sea. | 241 | 169 | 2,119 | 12.5 | 15 | 70.1% |
| Adam Humphries, T.B. | 166 | 116 | 1,253 | 10.8 | 3 | 69.9% |
| Larry Fitzgerald, Ariz. | 311 | 216 | 2,179 | 10.1 | 12 | 69.5% |
| Cole Beasley, Dall. | 161 | 111 | 1,147 | 10.3 | 9 | 68.9% |
| Adam Thielen, Minn. | 234 | 160 | 2,243 | 14.0 | 9 | 68.4% |
| Robert Woods, tms | 161 | 107 | 1,394 | 13.0 | 6 | 66.5% |
| Jamison Crowder, Wash. | 202 | 133 | 1,636 | 12.3 | 10 | 65.8% |
| Pierre Garcon, tms | 181 | 119 | 1,541 | 12.9 | 3 | 65.7% |
| Sterling Shepard, NYG | 189 | 124 | 1,414 | 11.4 | 10 | 65.6% |
| Antonio Brown, Pitt. | 317 | 207 | 2,817 | 13.6 | 21 | 65.3% |
| Keenan Allen, tms | 166 | 108 | 1,456 | 13.5 | 6 | 65.1% |
| Ted Ginn, tms | 165 | 107 | 1,539 | 14.4 | 8 | 64.8% |
| Jordan Matthews, tms | 153 | 98 | 1,086 | 11.1 | 4 | 64.1% |
| Davante Adams, G.B. | 238 | 149 | 1,882 | 12.6 | 22 | 62.6% |
| Jordy Nelson, G.B. | 240 | 150 | 1,739 | 11.6 | 20 | 62.5% |
| Brandin Cooks, tms | 231 | 143 | 2,255 | 15.8 | 15 | 61.9% |
| DeVante Parker, Mia. | 183 | 113 | 1,414 | 12.5 | 5 | 61.7% |
| Julio Jones, Atl. | 277 | 171 | 2,853 | 16.7 | 9 | 61.7% |
| Julian Edelman, N.E. | 159 | 98 | 1,106 | 11.3 | 3 | 61.6% |
| Demaryius Thomas, Den. | 284 | 173 | 2,032 | 11.7 | 10 | 60.9% |
| Rishard Matthews, Tenn. | 195 | 118 | 1,740 | 14.7 | 13 | 60.5% |
| Odell Beckham, NYG | 210 | 126 | 1,669 | 13.2 | 13 | 60.0% |
| Nelson Agholor, Phil. | 164 | 98 | 1,133 | 11.6 | 10 | 59.8% |
| Michael Crabtree, Oak. | 246 | 147 | 1,621 | 11.0 | 16 | 59.8% |
| Mike Wallace, Balt. | 208 | 124 | 1,765 | 14.2 | 8 | 59.6% |
| Tyrell Williams, tms | 188 | 112 | 1,787 | 16.0 | 11 | 59.6% |
| Marqise Lee, Jac. | 201 | 119 | 1,553 | 13.1 | 6 | 59.2% |
| Brandon LaFell, Cin. | 196 | 116 | 1,410 | 12.2 | 9 | 59.2% |
| A.J. Green, Cin. | 243 | 141 | 2,042 | 14.5 | 12 | 58.0% |
| Amari Cooper, Oak. | 228 | 131 | 1,833 | 14.0 | 12 | 57.5% |
| Kenny Britt, tms | 154 | 88 | 1,258 | 14.3 | 7 | 57.1% |
| Kelvin Benjamin, tms | 196 | 111 | 1,633 | 14.7 | 10 | 56.6% |
| T.Y. Hilton, Ind. | 264 | 148 | 2,414 | 16.3 | 10 | 56.1% |
| DeSean Jackson, tms | 190 | 106 | 1,673 | 15.8 | 7 | 55.8% |
| Jermaine Kearse, tms | 191 | 106 | 1,320 | 12.5 | 6 | 55.5% |
| Marvin Jones, Det. | 210 | 116 | 2,031 | 17.5 | 13 | 55.2% |
| Emmanuel Sanders, Den. | 229 | 126 | 1,587 | 12.6 | 7 | 55.0% |
| Terrelle Pryor, tms | 177 | 97 | 1,247 | 12.9 | 5 | 54.8% |
| Robby Anderson, NYJ | 192 | 105 | 1,528 | 14.6 | 9 | 54.7% |
| Mike Evans, T.B. | 309 | 167 | 2,322 | 13.9 | 17 | 54.0% |
| Kenny Stills, Mia. | 186 | 100 | 1,573 | 15.7 | 15 | 53.8% |
| DeAndre Hopkins, Hou. | 325 | 174 | 2,332 | 13.4 | 17 | 53.5% |
| Dez Bryant, Dall. | 228 | 119 | 1,634 | 13.7 | 14 | 52.2% |
| Alshon Jeffery, tms | 214 | 109 | 1,610 | 14.8 | 11 | 50.9% |
| Devin Funchess, Car. | 169 | 86 | 1,211 | 14.1 | 12 | 50.9% |
| Marquise Goodwin, tms | 173 | 85 | 1,393 | 16.4 | 5 | 49.1% |
| Allen Robinson, Jac. | 152 | 74 | 900 | 12.2 | 6 | 48.7% |
| Brandon Marshall, tms | 161 | 77 | 942 | 12.2 | 3 | 47.8% |
—Ian Allan