It's turning into a rite of passage into spring each year. Every spring for the past few years we've heard that the wide receiver position is the deepest in the draft.
And you never have to think back to the last great wide receiver draft because it was just in the previous year.
The Steelers have taken full advantage of the great wide receiver drafts over the past four years. The 2017 draft brought them JuJu Smith-Schuster in the second round. They next year they grabbed James Washington in the same round. In 2019, the team made Dionate Johnson the second pick of the third round. And last year, the Steelers brought in Chase Claypool in Round 2, making him their top pick after trading away their first-round pick in the deal to acquire Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Needless to say, the Steelers have done OK mining these deep wide receiver drafts and have been one of the better teams drafting at the position for a number of years. But they probably won't do so again this year, despite the fact this draft is just as deep at the position as previous ones.
They re-signed Smith-Schuster to a one-year deal in the offseason, keeping that group together for at least another year. And given the fact that Smith-Schuster, Johnson and Claypool have posted three of the top seasons for rookie wide receivers in their first year with the team, the need just isn't there like it used to be, when receivers often took a few years to develop.
Now, because of the way college teams throw the ball, wide receivers are expected to step right into the NFL without missing a beat.
That's exactly what's expected of the three receivers atop this year's draft, LSU's Ja'Marr Chase and the Alabama duo of DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle.
All offer something a little different, but first and foremost, all are playmakers.
Chase ranks No. 1 on everyone's boards not because of what he did in 2020 -- he opted out -- but what he did in 2019, LSU's national championship year. Chase was LSU's clear No. 1 receiver in 2019 despite the presence of Justin Jefferson, a first-round pick of the Vikings in 2020 who caught 88 passes for 1,400 yards as a rookie.
"When you watch him at LSU in 2019, you see examples of both, where he can separate from people off the line of scrimmage, he can separate at the top of his route," said NFL.com draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah. "He plays big to go up and get the football, and then after the catch he gives you that strength and physicality to break tackles. He's, to me, the best receiver in the draft."
Smith, the 2020 Heisman Trophy winner, and Waddle aren't far behind and also should be taken in the first 15 picks.
After those three, however, it's going to be a race to see who the No. 4 receiver might be.
Minnesota's Rashod Bateman might have solidified that with his pro day.
Bateman had an outstanding 2019 season, catching 60 passes for 1,219 yards and 11 touchdowns. But he played in just five games in 2020, catching 37 passes for 472 yards and two touchdowns. That was actually the lowest output of his career for the true junior. He caught 51 passes for 704 yards and six scores as a freshman in 2018.
Bateman needed to knock his pro day out of the park to secure his spot as the fourth-best receiver in this draft and he just might have done that. He ran a reported 4.39 40-yard dash at 6-0, 190 pounds while posting a 36-inch vertical that shows up on contested passes. He is physical at the point of attack and beats cornerbacks to the ball.
Mississippi's Elijah Moore might be the best "little" receiver in this draft. He measured in at 5-9, 185 pounds, but he's lightning quick and was a weapon, catching 86 passes, for 1,193 yards and eight touchdowns in just eight games in 2020.
He then tore up his pro day, blazing a reported 4.32 40 and showing off a 36-inch vertical jump. Given the emergence of Tyreek Hill for the Chiefs as a weapon, teams are more willing to take a chance on smaller receivers again -- as long as they have speed, and Moore has plenty of that.
He's not the only small burner in this class, as Florida's Kadarius Toney, Purdue's Rondale Moore and Western Michigan's D'Wayne Eskridge also fall into this category despite being expected to be among the top receivers off the board in this class.
And there are a number of late-round gems to be mined in this draft, as well, as the receivers come in all shapes and sizes, depending on what it is teams are in search of.
"All the way into the fourth and fifth round, there's going to be good wide receivers again," Jeremiah said.
Lolley's Top 10 Wide Receivers
1. Ja’Marr Chase, LSU
2. DeVonta Smith, Alabama
3. Jaylen Waddle, Alabama
4. Rashod Bateman, Minnesota
5. Elijah Moore, Mississippi
6. Terrace Marshall Jr., LSU
7. Kadarius Toney, Florida
8. Rondale Moore, Purdue
9. D’Wayne Eskridge, Western Michigan
10. Amon-Ra St. Brown, USC
Also See: Lolley's Top-10 Quarterbacks
