I’m not crazy about the fit of Robby Anderson in Carolina. He’s one of the league’s better deep threats, but I don’t know that they’ll be able to get him the ball.
At least for now, the Panthers are casting their lot with Teddy Bridgewater. He’s more in the Alex Smith class of quarterback – looking to take care of the ball and connect on short passes underneath. He doesn’t have a cannon arm. In terms of raw arm strength, I think Bridgewater has a stronger arm than Drew Brees, but maybe not any other starting quarterback.
Arm strength isn’t everything. Brees, most notably, has always had a below-average arm, and he’s one of the top 10 quarterbacks of all-time, in my opinion. But in this case, I think Anderson would be better with somebody with more downfield passing ability.
Given Bridgewater’s playing style, I expect DJ Moore, not Anderson, will be the top wide receiver in Carolina. I think Moore is better working the middle of the field. There will be a lot more of those kind of throws, I think.
With Anderson, he’s at his best when he’s blowing by defensive backs for long touchdowns. His 20 touchdowns over the last four years have come from an averge of 34 yards.
Over the last four years, 23 other wide receivers have caught at least 20 touchdowns. Only one of those guys – Tyreek Hill – has averaged longer touchdowns.
| AVERAGE LENGTH OF TOUCHDOWN CATCHES | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player | TD | Avg |
| Tyreek Hill | 32 | 35.7 |
| Robby Anderson | 20 | 34.3 |
| Amari Cooper | 27 | 33.5 |
| Tyrell Williams | 22 | 32.6 |
| Kenny Stills | 25 | 30.2 |
| Brandin Cooks | 22 | 28.0 |
| Tyler Lockett | 21 | 27.1 |
| T.Y. Hilton | 21 | 25.2 |
| Odell Beckham | 23 | 24.7 |
| Stefon Diggs | 26 | 22.9 |
| Antonio Brown | 37 | 22.6 |
| Mike Evans | 33 | 22.1 |
| Adam Thielen | 24 | 22.0 |
| Cooper Kupp | 21 | 20.7 |
| Julio Jones | 23 | 19.9 |
| DeAndre Hopkins | 35 | 19.6 |
| Marvin Jones | 27 | 17.8 |
| Doug Baldwin | 20 | 16.9 |
| Jarvis Landry | 23 | 16.6 |
| Davante Adams | 40 | 15.5 |
| Larry Fitzgerald | 22 | 12.1 |
| Alshon Jeffery | 21 | 11.0 |
| Michael Thomas | 32 | 10.9 |
| Jordy Nelson | 23 | 10.3 |
—Ian Allan