Watching Laquon Treadwell turn in another catch-less game last night, it got me thinking about this year's rookie class of wide receivers. Thus far, most of the truly noteworthy players were selected outside the first round.
Will Fuller had a really nice start to the season for Houston. We know DeAndre Hopkins is great and he's not doing much, so it seems pretty safe to blame the quarterback. If and when the Texans get that sorted out, Fuller should be a nice player for them.
The other first-round picks, well, it's less certain. Treadwell can't get on the field much for a bad Vikings offense. When he does, he seems to not know where to go. Josh Doctson has been hurt all season. Corey Coleman flashed early, got hurt, and has been quiet since returning.
The best wideouts thus far have been the second-rounders: Michael Thomas, Sterling Shepard. Tyler Boyd seems to be coming along. And then there's the fifth-rounders, Tajae Sharpe (who's been starting all year but hasn't done much) and Tyreek Hill (a breakout performer). Fourth-rounder Malcolm Mitchell has impressed in New England.
Here's the rundown of the 18 wideouts selected in the first five rounds of this year's draft.
| 2016 ROOKIE WIDEOUTS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Rd | Evaluation |
| Will Fuller, Hou. | 30 | 449 | 2 | 1 | Fast start, limited by QB |
| Corey Coleman, Cle. | 20 | 308 | 3 | 1 | Good early, hurt, ordinary since |
| Josh Doctson, Wash. | 2 | 66 | 0 | 1 | Hurt all year |
| Laquon Treadwell, Minn. | 1 | 15 | 0 | 1 | Has looked lost so far |
| Michael Thomas, N.O. | 65 | 789 | 7 | 2 | New Orleans' best WR |
| Sterling Shepard, NYG | 44 | 476 | 5 | 2 | Solid No. 2 |
| Tyler Boyd, Cin. | 38 | 411 | 1 | 2 | Improved in recent games |
| Braxton Miller, Hou. | 15 | 99 | 1 | 3 | Slot receiver, has been hurt |
| Leonte Carroo, Mia | 3 | 29 | 1 | 3 | No. 4, just caught first TD |
| Malcolm Mitchell, N.E. | 16 | 235 | 3 | 4 | Popular red-zone target lately |
| Ricardo Louis, Cle. | 16 | 183 | 0 | 4 | Quiet No. 3 or 4 |
| Chris Moore, Balt. | 6 | 41 | 0 | 4 | Buried on depth chart |
| Pharoh Cooper, L.A. | 3 | 19 | 0 | 4 | Hurt much of season |
| Tajae Sharpe, Tenn. | 36 | 464 | 2 | 5 | Hasn't lived up to strong camp |
| Tyreek Hill, K.C. | 45 | 428 | 5 | 5 | Breakout rookie performer |
| Rashard Higgins, Cle. | 6 | 77 | 0 | 5 | Buried on depth chart |
| Trevor Davis, G.B. | 3 | 24 | 1 | 5 | Buried on depth chart |
| Jordan Payton, Cle. | 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | Buried on depth chart |
--Andy Richardson