With the draft being over, it’s throwback time. Hunter Renfrow and Diontae Johnson are trying to jumpstart their careers with new teams.
Renfrow didn’t play at all last year, but he’s attempting a comeback with Carolina. That’s a less than idea landing spot, with that team having plenty of other players at the position. The Panthers just selected a wide receiver with a top-10 pick, and they have two other receivers who played a bunch as rookies. They’ve also got veteran Adam Thielen.
Renfrow became a notable football player in that part of the country, playing for Clemson. He says he stepped away from football last year because of an ulcerative colitis issue that caused him to drop to 150 pounds (37 below what he weighs now).
With Johnson, something about his play or attitude seems to rub teams the wrong way. He was traded or released by four different teams in a 10-month span of 2024 season – Steelers, Panthers, Ravens and Texans. He’s agreed to a one-year deal with Browns; that’s a more favorable situation, in terms of maybe getting on the field. The Browns have Jerry Jeudy and Cedric Tillman, but not much else.
It's a long shot for either of these guys to put up numbers of any relevance for fantasy purposes. (I wouldn’t slot either of them among my top 100 wide receivers right now.) But their past success makes them players worth keeping one eye on during the preseason.
Renfrow caught 103 passes and 9 TDs during the 2021 season, and he did so while catching over 80 percent of the passes thrown his way. Since the league started tracking targets, 1,157 wide receivers have had seasons with at least 100 passes thrown their way. Only three of those players finished with higher catch rates. Michael Thomas did it twice, and Amon-Ra St. Brown did it once.
So reasonable, then, to bring in Renfrow for a look at camp. He’s 29.
| TOP 20 100-TARGETS RECEIVERS BY CATCH PERCENTAGE | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Pct |
| 2018 | Michael Thomas, N.O. | 147 | 125 | 1,405 | 11.2 | 9 | 85.0% |
| 2024 | Amon-Ra St. Brown, Det. | 141 | 115 | 1,263 | 11.0 | 12 | 81.6% |
| 2019 | Michael Thomas, N.O. | 185 | 149 | 1,725 | 11.6 | 9 | 80.5% |
| 2021 | Hunter Renfrow, L.V. | 128 | 103 | 1,038 | 10.1 | 9 | 80.5% |
| 2023 | Rashee Rice, K.C. | 102 | 79 | 938 | 11.9 | 7 | 77.5% |
| 2007 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 145 | 112 | 1,175 | 10.5 | 8 | 77.2% |
| 2022 | JuJu Smith-Schuster, K.C. | 101 | 78 | 933 | 12.0 | 3 | 77.2% |
| 2020 | Davante Adams, G.B. | 149 | 115 | 1,374 | 12.0 | 18 | 77.2% |
| 2021 | Chris Godwin, T.B. | 127 | 98 | 1,103 | 11.3 | 5 | 77.2% |
| 2012 | Randall Cobb, G.B. | 104 | 80 | 954 | 11.9 | 8 | 76.9% |
| 2017 | Golden Tate, Det. | 120 | 92 | 1,003 | 10.9 | 5 | 76.7% |
| 2020 | Cole Beasley, Buff. | 107 | 82 | 967 | 11.8 | 4 | 76.6% |
| 2020 | Stefon Diggs, Buff. | 166 | 127 | 1,535 | 12.1 | 8 | 76.5% |
| 2016 | Michael Thomas, N.O. | 121 | 92 | 1,137 | 12.4 | 9 | 76.0% |
| 2024 | Khalil Shakir, Buff. | 100 | 76 | 821 | 10.8 | 4 | 76.0% |
| 2009 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 162 | 123 | 1,348 | 11.0 | 4 | 75.9% |
| 2021 | Cooper Kupp, LAR | 191 | 145 | 1,947 | 13.4 | 16 | 75.9% |
| 2020 | JuJu Smith-Schuster, Pitt. | 128 | 97 | 831 | 8.6 | 9 | 75.8% |
| 2020 | Tyler Lockett, Sea. | 132 | 100 | 1,054 | 10.5 | 10 | 75.8% |
| 2015 | Doug Baldwin, Sea. | 103 | 78 | 1,069 | 13.7 | 14 | 75.7% |
Johnson will also be 29 when training camp starts. He had three seasons with at least 86 catches with the Steelers. In the last five years, only 10 other wide receivers have had at least 3 such seasons.
Makes sense, it seems, for the Browns to bring him in for a look.
| MOST 85-CATCH SEASONS (last 5 years) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Teams | No |
| 2022 | Davante Adams | 3 tms | 5 |
| 2021 | Amon-Ra St. Brown | Det. | 4 |
| 2020 | Justin Jefferson | Min. | 4 |
| 2021 | Stefon Diggs | Buff. | 4 |
| 2020 | Tyreek Hill | K.C.-Mia. | 4 |
| 2024 | CeeDee Lamb | Dall. | 3 |
| 2022 | Diontae Johnson | Pitt. | 3 |
| 2021 | DJ Moore | Car.-Chi. | 3 |
| 2022 | Ja'Marr Chase | Cin. | 3 |
| 2020 | Keenan Allen | LAC | 3 |
| 2021 | Michael Pittman | Ind. | 3 |
| 2022 | A.J. Brown | Phil. | 2 |
| 2021 | Chris Godwin | T.B. | 2 |
| 2020 | Cooper Kupp | LAR | 2 |
| 2023 | Garrett Wilson | NYJ | 2 |
—Ian Allan