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Positional Breakdown: The Wide Receivers


BleedTheClock

Do You View WR As A Need?  

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  1. 1. Do You View WR As A Need?



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The Wide Receivers Room:

 

Odell Beckham Jr.   5'11  200
Grade: A
Potential: A+

Status: Superstar X Wide Receiver

Image result for odell beckham jr catch gif

Strengths: Route running, quickness, speed, ball skills. Has elite and generational abilities to produce spectacular catches. Beckham does not have many deficiencies. He is electric in space and knows how to set up his routes with ease. He is impossible to defend if you do not get your hands into him early on the route. If you do press, he can break it and run right past you for a big play. He is very difficult to defend at all 3 levels of the field. He is a willing blocker despite his questionable size. Attacks the football at its highest point.

Areas for Growth: Attitude and consistency. He does not always give maximum effort. He tends to give up on routes if he is frustrated or consistently receiving jams. He drops too many routine catches due to concentration and/or looking to create before securing the catch. Has some off-field issues that could detract from what he is capable of doing on the field. Health has been a concern.

What I Expect in 2020: I expect Beckham to have a resurgent and spectacular season. He will be fully healthy and will have a coordinator that understands how to utilize him at his best. In 2019, Beckham was used on short RPO routes and fades. He is at his best working on crossers, digs, and any type of intermediate routes. I am hoping that his off-field issues disappear and he plays the role of "good soldier" for this franchise going forward. I expect him to have more of a rapport and trust with Baker Mayfield going forward and I expect that he will have more downfield opportunities with improvements made to the offensive line.

 

Jarvis Landry   5'11  205
Grade: A-
Potential: A-
Status: High-End Z & Slot Wide Receiver

Image result for jarvis landry gif

Strengths: Toughness and leadership. Landry does the little things that don't show up in the box score. He is an awesome blocker, makes difficult catches, has value in the return and run game, and demonstrates leadership to the rest of the young guys on the team. He is not afraid to work the middle of the field and is not worried about his stats. He can line up anywhere on the field and get open. His routes are excellent and his catch radius is insane for a WR of his stature. While not a burner, he is very quick and subtle and provides great opportunities in the RAC game. Clutch chain-mover that excels on 3rd down.

Areas for Growth: Landry also dropped some easy balls this past season. Aside from his lack of top end speed, there are very little flaws in Landry's game. What he lacks in size and raw speed he makes up for in ball skills, technique, and effort.

What I Expect in 2020: Another big year. Landry and Beckham will both be better in 2020. I think Landry was the better of the two last season and I would have a hard time saying it won't be the same this year. Stefanski's offense meshes very well with Landry and will allow him to work at all levels of the defense. Landry's value will be increased as we move towards an outside zone scheme that can take advantage of him blocking cornerbacks into oblivion. Landry will also provide veteran leadership to a team that was shellshocked by a lack of success last season. He is one of the best locker room guys in the NFL and on a team with some knuckleheads, his leadership is invaluable. I think he sneaks into the Pro Bowl with a very similar statistical season in 2020.

 

Rashard Higgins   6'1  200
Grade: B-
Potential: B
Status: Good 3rd String Outside Wide Receiver

Image result for rashard higgins gif

Strengths: Excellent hands and coordination. Concentration drops are not a concern. Has good size and understands how to box out defenders on jump balls in the end zone or on the sideline. Great route runner that does not shy away from working the middle of the field. Sets up routes with sharp cuts and knows how to find spots in soft zones. Converts on 3rd down consistently. Finds a way to get open and catch the ball despite not having great speed or size.

Areas for Growth: Leaves a lot to be desired physically. Not big, strong, or fast. Was in the doghouse for some reason last year, but it was never specified for what. Is not a threat to run after the catch, nor is he a great blocker at the position. Does not have the body or skill set to contribute on special teams.

What I Expect in 2020: I expect Higgins to have a much bigger role in Cleveland this year after he is re-signed. Stefanski's offense never really featured a #3 WR because he never really had that guy. They tried to find a #3 for years, but failed to find one that could make a difference. I think Higgins will continue to impress with Baker throwing him the ball in 2020. I expect sets where Higgins is at X, Beckham is at Z, and Landry is in the slot. Having these three pass catchers on the field gives us a little bit of everything at the WR position and allows us to put guys in their best positions (Landry in the slot & OBJ not having to face press coverage). I expect Higgins to have a solid statistical season and be the dude Baker looks to on 3rd down when Beckham and Landry are facing doubles.

 

Damion Ratley   6'2  200
Grade: C+
Potential: B+
Status: Field-Stretching #4 Wide Receiver

Image result for damion ratley gif

Strengths: Vertical speed and size. Ratley has the size of a traditional #1 outside wide receiver and the speed to run past most DB's in the NFL. He faces a lot of 1-1 coverage and finds a way to get open down the sideline more times than not. He is an explosive play receiver that has the size to win jump balls too. Good enough hands to consider it a strength. Can be a RAC threat if hit in stride.

Areas for Growth: Very unpolished route runner. Does not have a great catch radius despite his size. He is not able to separate running non-linear routes. Has very little suddenness to his game. Relegated to an outside WR role, as he is not quick enough or polished enough to work the field outside of vertically.

What I Expect in 2020: As a #4 WR, he has value. He served adequately in a larger role when injuries struck late in the year. I do not expect him to play a whole lot, but he is better than most team's #4 WR. He has a lot of upside and is someone that could be due a large leap in production in time.

 

Khadarel Hodges   6'2  205
Grade: C+
Potential: C+
Status: Physical #5 Wide Receiver

Image result for khadarel hodge

 

Strengths: Very good hands. Strong body that can outmuscle DB's and run through tackles once he has the football. He's a tough blocker. He understands how to find soft spots in zones. Pretty good quickness for his size.

Areas for Growth: Not very fast running linear routes. Despite having a big frame, tends to play below the rim more than he should. Simply put, Hodge does not win with athleticism. He has some wiggle and snap to his routes, but the DB lined up on him will pretty much always have the speed and twitch advantage.

What I Expect in 2020: He will battle with Derrick Willies and Damion Ratley for the #4 WR spot. He flashed for us in games last year despite being a complete afterthought. He is a reliable target that catches the football well and understands how to get open without having great speed. I don't think he beats out Ratley, which means he will likely only play significant minutes in the event of an injury to someone ahead of him. That said, I like this kid.

 

Derrick Willies   6'4 205
Grade: C+
Potential: B
Status: Physical #6 Wide Receiver

 

Image result for derrick willies gif

Strengths: Size. Hands, RAC ability. Catch radius. Willies does a lot of things well. He has an elite frame for a WR and knows how to work the underneath zones. He's also got great linear speed and is a guy that can create after the catch. Finds spots in the middle of the field to post up. I think he could eventually become a stud.

Areas for Growth: Health is a big concern for Willies. If I recall correctly, he's been on IR 2 seasons in a row now. Separating from man coverage. He is not very twitchy or refined in his route running. I love his speed on linear routes and running after the catch, but he struggles to separate from pure man-man coverage. Does not have the speed or size to be a special teams guy.

What I Expect in 2020: As the #6 receiver, it's going to be tough seeing him on the field for us. However, I think when he gets his chances, he will shine the way he has in the past. Willies is one of the reasons I don't want to draft a WR. I think he will light it up in the preseason and quell any concerns we have about our depth at WR.

 

 

Suggested Addition: None
If we retain Rashard Higgins, I don't see a big need to spend resources on a WR. I like our young WR's and would like them to get more rub down the line. No need to clutter the room with more bodies, in my opinion. If we did bring in anything, I would vie for an uberquick slot WR, but I do not see that as a major need area.

Potential Free Agency Adds:

Austin Proehl WR
Nelson Agholor WR
Taylor Gabriel WR
Phillip Dorsett WR
Laquon Treadwell WR

 

Potential Draft Adds:

Michael Pittman/USC (3rd Round)
KJ Hamler/Penn State (3rd Round)
Denzel Mims/Baylor (3rd Round)
Devin Duvernay/Texas (4th Round)
Lynn Bowden/Kentucky (4th Round)

Edited by BleedTheClock
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I’d trade Odell if we can get a first. I don’t think his freelancing route running works with Baker who thrives most on consistent routes. 
 

but if we do keep him

we still definitely need receivers I think 2 

give me one in the third and one in the 6th

Michael Pittman is a guy I really like for us 

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Id take pittman in the 3rd if he is there, it would be good to replenish the wr core and have some flexibility if we move on from obj if we get a great offer. 

Id also love a hurner wr. Id love to bring perriman back, love watching him run straight lines fast

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28 minutes ago, candyman93 said:

We don’t.

The way our receivers get injured I disagree 

and if we don’t resign Higgins which I don’t think we do unless it’s a one year deal we definitely need receivers 

Odell

Jarvis

Ratley

Willies 

have all been consistently injured since being on the team 

Edited by brownie man
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If Higgins bounces back and/or a guy like Ratley continues to improve, then we'll be set at WR. If there's a receiver - say in the fourth round - that is too good to pass up then I wouldn't be mad if we took one, but I don't think it's necessary. But I'd much rather focus on OL, DL, LB, S and probably even TE this year.

WR could be a need in 2021 depending on how Higgins (if he's still here) and guys like Willies and Hodge play this year.

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@BleedTheClock, amazing effort on these threads. You write them up in a way that is very easy on the eyes.

As far as the vote, I said it is not a need. Assuming OBJ and Landry are here to stay, WR is pretty low on our list of needs.

That said, I believe any good draft is a mix of BPA and drafting for need at value draft positions. I won't ignore how deep this draft is at WR, so I would like to spend at least one pick on WR, just not before the third round.

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40 minutes ago, NudeTayne said:

@BleedTheClock, amazing effort on these threads. You write them up in a way that is very easy on the eyes.

As far as the vote, I said it is not a need. Assuming OBJ and Landry are here to stay, WR is pretty low on our list of needs.

That said, I believe any good draft is a mix of BPA and drafting for need at value draft positions. I won't ignore how deep this draft is at WR, so I would like to spend at least one pick on WR, just not before the third round.

Agree, qr isnt a need and we are one wr away from being a very strong group. 

My biggest concern is jarvis and his hip, The hip is a very strong joint, but it can extremely difficult to rehab and repair a bad injury, for a guy who is not a plus athlete if he loses even some speed or turning it could be a real turning point for his career. 

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51 minutes ago, Kiwibrown said:

Agree, qr isnt a need and we are one wr away from being a very strong group. 

My biggest concern is jarvis and his hip, The hip is a very strong joint, but it can extremely difficult to rehab and repair a bad injury, for a guy who is not a plus athlete if he loses even some speed or turning it could be a real turning point for his career. 

While on paper it is not a big-time need, this is a perfect year to hedge against either of our receivers getting injured again or one or both being shipped out in the next year, though I hope the latter doesn't happen.

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3 minutes ago, NudeTayne said:

While on paper it is not a big-time need, this is a perfect year to hedge against either of our receivers getting injured again or one or both being shipped out in the next year, though I hope the latter doesn't happen.

Injuries are not a possibility, they are inevitable, so having two wrs means at some point in the year you may only have 1 or none, gotta have an additional one.

We do not need two OT we need 3-4.

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40 minutes ago, Kiwibrown said:

Injuries are not a possibility, they are inevitable, so having two wrs means at some point in the year you may only have 1 or none, gotta have an additional one.

We do not need two OT we need 3-4.

Well some of this comes down a bit to semantics, as it depends what we mean by need. We legitimately need possibly three starters on the line while we need 0 wide receivers other than a third for 3 receiver sets perhaps. Now if we're talking about needing depth for injury, we have needs at pretty much every position. 

Edited by NudeTayne
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