Sakmann News, Entertainment and Sports
SNES Blog Network
Besides the exclusive position of quarterback, many kids grow up dreaming of being an NFL wide receiver. You get to show off your speed and catching ability, score touchdowns, do […]
Besides the exclusive position of quarterback, many kids grow up dreaming of being an NFL wide receiver. You get to show off your speed and catching ability, score touchdowns, do dances, and get the crowd roaring. Aside from a big drop or not showing up in the moment, receivers hardly have to endure the criticism their quarterbacks go through during bad times, and yet receivers often get the credit for being on the catching end of a big-time throw by a quarterback.
Wide receiver is a fun position to play, and the position gives us some of the fastest and most athletics players in the game of football.
It’s no wonder there are so many great, young wide receivers in the NFL today: the talent pool to choose from is simply larger than it’s ever been.
I’m here to count down the Top 10 Wide Receivers in the NFL heading in to the 2022-23 season. While I don’t have a strict rubric for grading or ranking these players, general rules of thumb include:
Read on for my Top 10 Wide Receivers in the NFL Heading In To 2022. If you like this list and want to see more content like this, or if you want to debate any of these rankings, be sure to connect with Sak Sports Blog on Twitter or on Facebook.
This list was published on May 30, 2023, but reflects statistics, data, and narratives heading in to the 2022-23 NFL season, retroactive to August 2022.
Top 10 Quarterbacks, Top 10 Running Backs, Top 10 Wide Receivers
Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints*: A healthy Michael Thomas is one of the best route-runners and possession receivers in NFL history. Thomas holds the record for most catches in a single season, with a staggering 149 catches in 2019, also leading the league with 1,725 receiving yards while tallying nine receiving touchdowns. Unfortunately, Thomas has been sidelined since the 2020-21 season with an ankle injury, and when he does eventually return, Drew Brees will no longer be his quarterback. But at 29 years old, Thomas will have the chance to re-establish himself as one of the league’s top receivers in 2022.
D.K. Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks: Heading in to his fourth NFL season with the Seattle Seahawks, big-bodied D.K. Metcalf’s name is sure to come up in any conversation about the best pass-catchers in the game. I have Metcalf just outside the Top 10: hardly a slight to the 2019 second-round pick out of Ole Miss, but just a testament to the amount of talent in the league. Metcalf set a Seahawks franchise record with 1,303 yards in 2020, with 83 catches and 10 touchdowns. Metcalf’s 2021 stat line was a slight regression despite playing one extra game: with 75 catches, 967 yards, and 12 receiving touchdowns on a struggling Seattle squad. Metcalf is easily one of the best in the game, and can make the jump to the Top 10, especially if he can remain productive with less talented quarterback play (going from Russell Wilson to Geno Smith/Drew Lock.)
Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers: Keenan Allen has been a high-end wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers for nearly a decade (save for one-and-a-half seasons missed due to injury.) Allen first put up a 1,000-yard season in his 2013 rookie campaign, and has eclipsed that mark four out of the last five seasons (and only fell eight yards short in 2020.) Allen is an extremely reliable option in the passing game, and still has killer speed at 30 years old. Like Metcalf, I would have loved to put Allen in the Top 10, but just couldn’t find enough spots. But with 97+ catches, 992+ yards, and 6+ receiving touchdowns in each of the last five seasons (earning Pro Bowl honors in each season) it’s hard to get much better than Allen.
And yet, I found ten more talented receivers at this point in time, heading in to the 2022-23 season.
There are tons of talented receivers in the NFL right now, but I can’t have the honorable mentions list be longer than the Top 10 Ranking itself. Some other receivers that didn’t make the cut but either have a case for inclusion now, the ability to make the jump this season, or are just past their peaks include:
Like Keenan Allen, Mike Evans has been consistent for a long time in this league. But Evans consistency is quite literally record-breaking: he’s the first player in NFL history to start a career with eight straight 1,000-yard seasons (a record he’ll likely extend with Tom Brady coming back for another season), and he was the youngest player to reach 6,000 and 7,000 career receiving yards.
Standing at 6-foot-5 and weighing 231 pounds, Evans has been a super athletic, go-up-and-grab-the-ball, big-bodied red-zone target for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for eight seasons now. But Evans isn’t just a red-zone touchdown threat: he’s an every down pass-catcher, and an occasional game-breaker.
Entering the 2022-23 season at 28 years old, Evans’ stat lines have been even more impressive over the past two seasons with Brady throwing him the ball, despite the presence of plenty of other talented pass-catchers. In 2021, Evans caught 74 passes for 1,035 yards and 14 touchdowns. Evans’ 14 touchdown receptions were the second-most in the NFL, behind only Cooper Kupp. While Evans isn’t a huge yards-after-catch (YAC) receiver (with 259 YAC in 2021,) he still ranked 25th in yards per reception (14.0) and sixth in big catches (20+ yards) with 20. These are just testaments that Evans value in the passing game is far more than the red-zone touchdown-catcher: even if that is his specialty.
Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles needed a bonafide number one receiver, and got their man in the offseason, acquiring A.J. Brown from the Tennesee Titans.
At 6-1, the 2019 second round draft pick out of Mississippi isn’t the largest receiver in the NFL, but he certainly plays like one, using his leaping ability and physicality to play like he’s a couple inches taller.
Though three seasons with Ryan Tannhehill in Tennessee, Brown caught 185 passes for 2,995 yards and 24 touchdowns. In 2020, a Pro Bowl selection year, Brown caught 70 passes for 1,075 yard and 11 touchdowns in just 14 games.
On some days, Tyreek Hill is an absolute game breaker and quite possibly the most dangerous weapon in the NFL. But until we can see Hill succeed outside of an uber-talented Kansas City Chiefs roster that features one of the most talented quarterbacks to ever play the game, it’s hard for me to rank Hill in the Top Five with so many talented, multi-faceted receivers in the NFL today.
That’s not to say Hill is a one-trick pony, but the “Cheetah” is known for his blazing speed with the ball in his hands. Get Hill in open space, and almost any play could become a touchdown.
In six seasons with the Chiefs, Hill caught 479 passes for 6,630 yards and 56 touchdowns, as Kansas City’s number one receiver and an instrumental piece in the Chiefs Super Bowl 54 win and Super Bowl 55 appearance. Hill was selected to the Pro Bowl in all six seasons he played with the Chiefs, earning 1st-team All-Pro honors in three of them (as a kick returner in his early years.)
But while Hill, famous for flashing a two-finger peace sign as he approaches the end zone unabated after blowing past defenders, possesses quite possibly the best speed and acceleration in the NFL, there are still more “complete” receivers ahead of him. Receivers that can use their body to box out a defender, or make a huge leap in the end zone to out-jump defenders. At 5-10, Hill is shifty and elusive in the open field, and easy to lose track of as a defender. But in one-on-one body-to-body catch opportunities, there’s a few guys I would want on my team before Hill.
Deebo Samuel is a special player who completely opens up possibilities on the offensive side of the football. Samuel, a 2019 2nd Round Pick out of South Carolina, is a wide receiver by nature, but lines up wherever necessary to get the job done for the San Francisco 49ers. That could mean lining up as a running back, a blocker, or a read-option candidate, in addition to wideout positions in the slot and on the outside. This Swiss Army knife-approach allows Samuel to get a ton of touches, which is ideal when you have a player that’s elite with the ball in his hands.
Samuel’s rookie season saw the receiver catch 57 passes for 802 yards and three touchdowns. Samuel picked up an additional 159 yards and three scores on the ground on 14 carries. Samuel had an injury-riddled sophomore year that saw him play in just seven games, but Samuel really broke on to the scene over the course of a full 2020-21 season.
In his third year in the NFL, Samuel caught 77 passes for 1,405 yards and six touchdowns, and led the league with an impressive 18.2 yards per catch. On the ground, Samuel carried the ball 59 times for 365 yards and eight touchdowns. Samuel earned All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors as he gained 1,770 yards from scrimmage and found the endzone 14 times in total.
On a true Wide Receiver Top 10, Samuel might lose a couple points compared to guys that are liable for 100 catches per season, but just because Samuel mixes up how he gets the ball in his hands doesn’t change the fact he’s one of the most electric playmakers in the league with the ball in his hands.
Stefon Diggs was excellent for the Minnesota Vikings, catching 365 passes for 4,623 yards and 30 touchdowns over five seasons with the team after being drafted in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. But his time with the Buffalo Bills and his pairing with quarterback Josh Allen have resulted in the most explosive numbers of Diggs’ career so far.
In 2020, his first season in Buffalo, Diggs swept the board as the best receiver in the NFL: leading the league in catches (127) as well as yards (1,535) and earning First-Team All-Pro honors as well as a Pro Bowl selection. Last year, Diggs hauled in 103 passes for 1,225 yards and ten touchdowns.
Diggs has blazing speed, incredible route running and separation ability, and great hands. Heading in to his eighth NFL season, it will be interesting to see if the wear and tear of 103 NFL games starts to affect Diggs, or if he can continue his four-season 1,000-yard streak with relative ease. It’s crazy that Diggs didn’t make my Top 5, and I’m sure someone could make the case why I’m wrong, but it’s a testament to the incredibly talented receivers the NFL has.
Since coming in to the league as a late-first round pick by the Houston Texans in the 2013 NFL Draft, DeAndre Hopkins has consistently been one of the best pass-catchers in the NFL. By his third season, Hopkins was a Pro Bowler, catching an incredible 111 passes for 1521 yards and 11 TD in the 2015-16 season in Houston.
From 2017-2019, Hopkins was a flat-out superstar for the Texans, eclipsing 96+ catches, 1,165+ yards, and 7+ TD in three straight seasons, earning three straight All-Pro honors and leading the league with 13 touchdown receptions in 2017.
Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals got their hands on Hopkins in 2020, and the former Texans receiver tied a career-high with 115 catches in his first season in Arizona, along with 1,407 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
Last season, Hopkins appeared in just 10 games, catching 42 passes for 572 yards and eight touchdowns: a slower pace on his catches and yards even over 10 games, but an uptick in touchdowns, which could be a precursors of what is yet to come for the 29-year old.
At 29 and coming off an injury, Hopkins is still an elite receiver, and Murray has a dependable number-one target to throw to.
In just his first season in the NFL, LSU standout and fifth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft Ja’Marr Chase made an immediate impact for the Cincinnati Bengals. Defenses simply couldn’t figure out the athletic 6-foot-1 wide receiver, as Chase caught 81 passes for 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns in his successful Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign.
Big plays were the name of the game for the rookie, with 18.0 yards per catch and nearly 1,500 receiving yards on just 81 catches. 13 of Chase’s 81 catches resulted in touchdowns: an impressive 16% rate.
Chase will be a star for the Bengals for years to come, as well as Joe Burrow’s favorite target and best friend. The sky is really the limit for Chase, and Year 2 could potentially see even bigger numbers.
In terms of production, Cooper Kupp is the cream of the crop in the NFL. As the number-one wide receiver on the the Los Angeles Rams team that went on to win Super Bowl 56, Kupp showed up every week to play, ending his season as the Super Bowl 56 MVP and an NFL champion.
Kupp was targeted an insane 191 times as the backbone of Matthew Stafford’s offense. Kupp caught 145 passes for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns, leading the league in all three categories. Kupp was named a Pro Bowler, First-Team All-Pro, AP Offensive Player of the Year, and even finished third in NFL MVP voting for his historic season. Kupp played in all 17 regular season games for the Rams, averaging 114.5 receiving yards per game. In the Rams’ four-game Super Bowl run, Kupp caught an additional 33 passes for 478 yards and 6 touchdowns, increasing his production to 119.5 yards per game.
In five seasons in the league, Kupp has quickly established himself as one of the most important players in the game. Kupp has impeccable route-running abilities, allowing him to create tremendous open space to both catch the ball and then run with it. With blazing speed and open-field agility, Kupp is deadly after the catch, and he’s gonna catch a lot of passes each game.
Again, production-wise, no one had a better resume at the wide receiver position last season than Kupp. Still, there are two more wide receivers that possess even more physical assets that make them, on paper, even more dangerous threats in the passing game. In other words, if these next two players were being fed 191 targets per season, they would also have some pretty gnarly numbers. But it’s not a knock on Kupp or the system he exists in: who would have even thought the third round pick in 2017 from Eastern Washington would be in this conversation?
In just two years in the NFL, former LSU wideout Justin Jefferson has taken the league by storm. With 3,016 receiving yards, 196 catches, and 17 touchdowns through two seasons, Jefferson is well on his way through the record books.
Last season, appearing in all 17 games, Jefferson caught 108 passes for 1,616 yards and 10 touchdowns while being targeted 167 times. With six rushes and a touchdown on the ground for good measure, Jefferson led the league in yards per touch at 14.3.
Jefferson is already a two-time Pro Bowler with two All-Pro Second-Team honors: but those won’t be second-team honors for long.
Jefferson is electric, fast, athletic, and smart, filling the role of star receiver for the Minnesota Vikings with Stefon Diggs in Buffalo. The Vikings lucked out, because Jefferson is even better.
Over the 2020-21 and 2021-22 NFL seasons, Davante Adams has been the best wide receiver in the NFL. Of course, Adams has played his entire eight-year career with Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers, so in 2022-23, we’ll get the chance to see how Adams operates without the future Hall of Fame quarterback. My guess? Pretty well.
Adams has been a top-level receiver since 2016, and his earned a Pro Bowl selection in each of the last five seasons. But Adams ascent to best receiver in the NFL really started in the 2020-21 season, with Adams hauling in 115 catches for 1,374 yards and a league-leading 18 touchdowns. Adams only played in 14 games that season, averaging 1.3 touchdowns per game and 98.1 yards per game, both league-highs for the season.
Last season, Adams caught 123 passes for 1,553 yards and 11 touchdowns, earning back-to-back All-Pro First Team honors.
Adams is fast, athletic, and plays pretty big-bodied for someone who measures in at 6-foot-1.
The 2014 second round pick out of Fresno State will take his talents to the Las Vegas Raiders next season, teaming up with Derek Carr to be his new go-to target. Adams will turn 30 this season, and based on history, it may be difficult for Adams to keep this position for many more seasons moving forward. But at at this point in time, if I’m drafting a team to win me a game right now, Adams is my top pick at the wide receiver position.
Top 10 Quarterbacks, Top 10 Running Backs, Top 10 Wide Receivers
Header Photo Credits: See credits within article
Be sure to follow Sak Sports Blog on Twitter or on Facebook for more NBA and NFL updates!
Sakmann News, Entertainment and Sports 