With rookie receivers, one option is to stay away from them entirely, instead using those resources on other players. Receivers who were drafted a year ago, for example, have some of the same potential to outperform expectations.
Here, I’m not talking about JaMarr Chase or Jaylen Waddle. Everyone now knows what those guys can do. Instead, I’m looking at receivers who had only modest suggest in their first season, perhaps contributing to them being depressed assets for our purposes.
Kadarius Toney, for example. He had a couple of big games for the Giants but was hurt for most of his first season. Or Rashod Bateman (pictured) who similarly made a few catches in his first year but more often was either underused or injured.
Both Toney and Bateman showed some potential in their first year, but they didn’t show enough that people are heading into drafts with confidence they’re getting an up-and-coming receiver. With both guys, it’s possible but not certain they’ll be the best wide receivers on their own team.
Below see a chart of wide receivers that share some of the same qualities. All were selected in the first round, and all were modest producers in their first season, but while showing just a little something. Using PPR scoring, all of these receivers ranked between 50th and 90th at the position in their first season.
We can then roll the second-year stats and see what happened.
Of the 28 listed below, just over a third (10) put up top-40 numbers in their second year. I’ve got those guys tagged with black dots. I see Koren Robinson and Brandin Cooks ranking 14th, and eight others finishing between 25th and 36th.
And I see some others who had some value during their careers, with Reggie Wayne and Roddy White leading the way. Donte Stallworth, Will Fuller and DeVante Parker also had some success.
I’m not promising Bateman and Toney will go on to have careers on par with Roddy White, but both look like interesting later-round gambles to me. They’ve shown some signs of being productive, and they’re a year further along in the process than the rookies who’ll be picked late next week.
| MODEST FIRST-ROUND RECEIVERS (the next year) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Rookie Yr | No | Yds | TD | PPR | Rk |
| 2001 | • Plaxico Burress, Pitt. | 22-273-0 | 66 | 1008 | 6 | 202.8 | 25 |
| 2001 | Travis Taylor, Balt. | 28-276-3 | 42 | 560 | 3 | 120.6 | 52 |
| 2002 | • Koren Robinson, Sea. | 39-536-1 | 78 | 1240 | 5 | 237.6 | 14 |
| 2002 | Reggie Wayne, Ind. | 27-345-0 | 49 | 716 | 4 | 144.6 | 51 |
| 2002 | David Terrell, Chi. | 34-415-4 | 9 | 127 | 3 | 39.7 | 111 |
| 2002 | Freddie Mitchell, Phil. | 21-283-1 | 12 | 105 | 0 | 22.5 | 129 |
| 2003 | Ashley Lelie, Den. | 35-525-2 | 37 | 628 | 2 | 116.1 | 56 |
| 2003 | Donte Stallworth, N.O. | 42-594-8 | 25 | 485 | 3 | 91.8 | 75 |
| 2004 | Bryant Johnson, Ariz. | 35-438-1 | 49 | 537 | 1 | 108.1 | 59 |
| 2004 | Charles Rogers, Det. | 22-243-3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .0 | 173 |
| 2006 | • Mark Clayton, Balt. | 44-471-2 | 67 | 939 | 5 | 187.9 | 25 |
| 2006 | • Braylon Edwards, Cle. | 32-512-3 | 61 | 884 | 6 | 186.1 | 26 |
| 2006 | Matt Jones, Jac. | 36-432-5 | 41 | 643 | 4 | 127.8 | 52 |
| 2006 | Troy Williamson, Min. | 24-372-2 | 37 | 455 | 0 | 82.5 | 77 |
| 2006 | Roddy White, Atl. | 29-446-3 | 30 | 506 | 0 | 80.6 | 78 |
| 2006 | Mike Williams, Det. | 29-350-1 | 8 | 99 | 1 | 23.9 | 121 |
| 2008 | • Ted Ginn, Mia. | 34-420-2 | 56 | 790 | 2 | 166.3 | 33 |
| 2008 | Anthony Gonzalez, Ind. | 37-576-3 | 57 | 664 | 4 | 147.4 | 42 |
| 2010 | • Kenny Britt, Ten. | 42-701-3 | 42 | 775 | 9 | 175.5 | 33 |
| 2010 | • Michael Crabtree, S.F. | 48-625-2 | 55 | 741 | 6 | 165.1 | 36 |
| 2013 | • Michael Floyd, Ariz. | 45-562-2 | 65 | 1041 | 5 | 199.1 | 27 |
| 2014 | Tavon Austin, St.L. | 40-418-4 | 31 | 242 | 0 | 95.6 | 81 |
| 2015 | • Brandin Cooks, N.O. | 53-550-3 | 84 | 1138 | 9 | 253.6 | 14 |
| 2016 | DeVante Parker, Mia. | 26-494-3 | 56 | 744 | 4 | 154.4 | 50 |
| 2017 | Will Fuller, Hou. | 47-635-2 | 28 | 423 | 7 | 113.2 | 61 |
| 2017 | Corey Coleman, Cle. | 33-413-3 | 23 | 305 | 2 | 65.5 | 92 |
| 2018 | • Corey Davis, Ten. | 34-375-0 | 65 | 891 | 4 | 183.6 | 29 |
| 2021 | Henry Ruggs, L.V. | 26-452-2 | 24 | 469 | 2 | 84.5 | 86 |
| 2022 | Rashod Bateman, Balt. | 46-515-1 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| 2022 | Kadarius Toney, NYG | 39-420-0 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
—Ian Allan