Physical traits, speed, agility, explosiveness attributes of Top WRs (What's the formula?) (2 Viewers)

[boutrous]

Maybe I'm not reading this data correctly, but the "Score" column does not seem to be a good indicator of who's going to be an above average WR at all.

 

[Walter White]

Speed kills.

 

[CTSaint]

Really interested in seeing what Hogan can bring to table. He’s big, fast, and can block well. Just need to see if he can run routes and catch the ball.

The highlighted reminds me of Larry F. (might be the dreads) Now if only he could break out his inner L. Fitzgerald hands & route running. Curtis J. needs to challenge this kid!

 

[renegadewa]

Good stuff and you are correct, and also very interesting.

And looking back, I didn’t mean to hijack the thread, I just always get annoyed with the never ending “We gotta have a #2 WR” like we are playing Madden 2020.

You put out an interesting thread.

THIS EXACTLY when in reality the Saints true #2 receiver is anyone NOT named Michael Thomas.

 

[MLU]

Don't get me wrong, I love the data, but it's important to not get lost in it. Regardless of their physical attributes, they need to be able to catch consistently, quickly process how defensive shifts and alignments change the routes and have the work ethic to never stop improving your craft. All the speed, height, vertical jumping in the world is meaningless without those 3 attributes that are probably more rare than guys who run sub-4.4/40 or have 40+ inch vertical leaps.

I watch a ton of college football, so what interests me the most in watching the combine is of their performance matches up, exceeds, etc what I saw in games. Occasionally someone surprises, but mostly I just go digging up articles about the team's when I find a player that I know nothing about (WR Trishton Jackson, Syracuse) who catches my eye.

 

[dutar76]

#1 Hands - consistently catch the football
#2 Get open - whether it's with speed, precise route running, suddenness / explosiveness, or some other method.
#3 Mental processing / Football IQ - don't matter how fast, explosive, or sudden you are, or how good you can catch. If you're not on the same page as the QB, you're only good on designed plays and broken sand-lot plays.
#4 Strong / Physical - No matter how good you are at the #'s 1 through 3... an NFL receiver is going to have to fight his way off the LOS a lot and win contested catches.

 

[ELLIASJWILLIAMS]

This is great data. I think one of the keys to success that can't be quantified (especially since the success ranges all over the place as it pertains to athleticism) is their ability to A see the game and B be on the same page with their QB in how he sees the game. There are some athletic marvels thrown in but the majority of the guys on these list are players you'd consider savvy.

Great route runners that are smart and know how to set up their opposition. They are smart enough to adjust to what coverages are being thrown at them (since teams play Zone more than man these days) and find open spots in areas.

In a nutshell while their athleticism scores all range differently it's not arguable that they all play the game FAST.

 

[dutar76]

This is great data. I think one of the keys to success that can't be quantified (especially since the success ranges all over the place as it pertains to athleticism) is their ability to A see the game and B be on the same page with their QB in how he sees the game. There are some athletic marvels thrown in but the majority of the guys on these list are players you'd consider savvy.

Great route runners that are smart and know how to set up their opposition. They are smart enough to adjust to what coverages are being thrown at them (since teams play Zone more than man these days) and find open spots in areas.

In a nutshell while their athleticism scores all range differently it's not arguable that they all play the game FAST.

Bingo. This and good hands.

 

[sfidc3]

Actually your #3 should be the #1 because it doesn’t matter how wide open you get if you don’t catch the ball the rest is moot. Great hands can over come some of the separation issue. Like MT, a DB can be draped all over him but he catches the ball at an amazingly high rate even for the NFL.

MT is the exception rather than the rule. The vast majority of WR's that can't get fairly consistent separation don't last in the NFL for long....

Also most of MT's catches are due to his ability to get separation....

 

[Snakehead]

I wonder how busts measure out with this formula
AJ Jenkins, Jonathan Baldwin, Justin Blackmon, Cordaralw

That's the whole point. It does not factor in the ability to play football, stay out of trouble, measure work ethic, heart, injuries, blocking, catching, etc. It is strictly physical measurements.

And the OP and original article showed exactly where AJ Jenkins ended up, he graded out the same as Alshon Jeffrey in the 2012 draft. Jeffrey went on to a good career and AJ Jenkins didn't know how to play football.

 

[dwid]

Players like A.J. Jenkins would keep me up at night if I were in charge of a draft. Some players have all of the things you can measure but for whatever reason it never works out. Some players like Josh Reed and Troy Edwards were unstoppable in college but just average in the pros.

Playing WR in the NFL is difficult. The playbook is more complicated, the speed of the game is much faster, and some of the best athletes in the world are hounding you every single down. Corners have always been fast but now a lot of them are fast and big. It makes what MT is doing all the more impressive.

But as far as physical attributes go some of it has to do with the particular offense a team is running. Some players like a MT or Antonio Brown are transcendent talents that would excel in any scheme but some players like a
SP seems to be looking for big bodied WRs who can make plays in traffic. If they can get some YAC then great but hands first.

Only Gale Sayers had more all purpose yards than Welker in his first 3 years with Dolphins. I'm pretty sure he would have excelled anywhere. He only played like 60 percent of offensive snaps and put up decent numbers that's why Bellicheck picked him up .

Yes his stats dropped off with the Broncos but he was in his mid 30s and many players decline after 30. He still scored 10 TDs his first year. Manning had a bad habit of leading slot receivers into dangerous plays as well. Welker never had a concussion in his career and suffered like 4 with Manning. Austin Collie suffered multiple and retired and Brandon Stokley suffered dozens playing with Manning. I think the ones he received in Denver affected his play

 

[Snakehead]

As I have been compiling this data, the one attribute that really jumps out to me is the Relative Body Size (RBS). Very few WRs with a RBS less than 2.70 do well when it comes to catching a high volume of receptions. Obviously these "smaller" guys are the faster/big play guys and I am only researching the guys who lead in receptions. Even then, I would more than likely want a guy who is above average in RBS for durability.

If I were to draft a WR and he checked all of the blocks for playing football and playing WR to include, work ethic, heart, route running, hands (use of and catching), blocking, etc. I would look for a guy who met as many of the average or better physical attributes. If he had a deficiency on one, then he would need to excel at another.

I do not think it is a coincidence that over the last 5 years the average hand size has went up to well over 9.5" as has the average catch rate %. In 2018 there was 27 WRs who had catch rate %'s over 70% and in 2013 there was 3 WR with catch rate %'s over 70%.

 

[Snakehead]

I took a few years off from compiling these stats, but I put together the Top 25 in Receptions like I did back in 2020, but I also compiled the list of Top 25 Yards/Game WRs. Overall, most attributes remained similar, with the exception of WR Height (+.5"), Weight (+2.3lbs), Vertical (+.6") and Broad Jump (+2.4"). I left the score off as many players are not participating in all categories, especially the vertical, 20-yard shuffle and 3-cone drill.

8 of the Top 10 WR Reception Leaders from 2024 were drafted in the 1st Round. That tells me, if you want you high volume WR1, you draft him in the 1st Round.

2024 Top 25 WR Reception Leaders

Rank

Name

Round

Receptions

Yards

Height

Weight

Relative Body Size

Hand Size

40 Yard Dash Time

Vertical Leap

Broad Jump

20 Yard Shuttle

3 Cone Drill

1​

Ja'Marr Chase

1​

127​

1708​

72​

201​

2.79​

9.67​

4.38​

41​

132​

3.99​

6.96​

2​

Amon-Ra St. Brown

4​

115​

1263​

71.5​

197​

2.76​

9.13​

4.54​

38.5​

127​

4.26​

6.9​

3​

Malik Nabers

1​

109​

1204​

71.75​

200​

2.79​

9.88​

4.35​

42​

129​

4​

Justin Jefferson

1​

103​

1533​

73.2​

202​

2.76​

9.25​

4.43​

37.5​

126​

5​

CeeDee Lamb

1​

101​

1194​

74​

198​

2.68​

9.25​

4.5​

34.5​

124​

6​

Garrett Wilson

1​

101​

1104​

72​

188​

2.61​

9.88​

4.38​

4.36​

7​

Drake London

1​

100​

1271​

75.88​

219​

2.89​

9.38​

4.48​

8​

Jaxon Smith-Njigba

1​

100​

1130​

72.63​

196​

2.70​

9​

4.52​

35​

3.93​

9​

DJ Moore

1​

98​

966​

72​

210​

2.92​

9.63​

4.42​

39.5​

132​

4.07​

6.95​

10​

Wan'Dale Robinson

2​

97​

823​

68​

178​

2.62​

9​

4.43​

11​

Jerry Jeudy

1​

90​

1229​

73​

193​

2.64​

9.5​

4.45​

35​

120​

4.53​

12​

Jakobi Meyers

UDFA​

87​

1027​

74​

203​

2.74​

9.5​

4.63​

37​

118​

4.23​

7.07​

13​

Brian Thomas Jr.

1​

87​

1282​

74.88​

209​

2.79​

9.75​

4.33​

38.5​

126​

14​

Davante Adams

2​

85​

1063​

73​

212​

2.90​

9​

4.56​

39.5​

123​

4.3​

6.82​

15​

Ladd McConkey

2​

82​

1149​

71.56​

186​

2.60​

8.625​

4.39​

36​

16​

Terry McLaurin

3​

82​

1096​

72.13​

208​

2.88​

9.13​

4.35​

37.5​

125​

4.15​

7.01​

17​

Tyreke Hill

5​

81​

959​

68​

185​

2.72​

8​

4.29​

40.5​

129​

4.06​

6.53​

18​

Courtland Sutton

2​

81​

1081​

75​

218​

2.91​

9.75​

4.54​

35.5​

124​

4.11​

6.57​

19​

Puka Nacua

5​

79​

990​

73.63​

210​

2.85​

9.5​

4.57​

33​

121​

4.36​

7.32​

20​

Jauan Jennings

7​

77​

975​

75​

215​

2.87​

9​

4.72​

29​

119​

21​

Khalil Shakir

5​

76​

821​

71.88​

196​

2.73​

9.5​

4.43​

34.5​

4.21​

22​

Mike Evans

1​

74​

1004​

77​

231​

3.00​

9.63​

4.53​

37​

4.26​

7.08​

23​

Zay Flowers

1​

74​

1059​

69.25​

182​

2.63​

9.25​

4.42​

35.5​

24​

Tee Higgins

1​

73​

911​

75.5​

216​

2.86​

9.25​

4.59​

31​

120​

4.53​

25​

Josh Downs

3​

72​

803​

68.75​

171​

2.49​

9.25​

4.48​

38.5​

4.15​

6.75​

2024 Averages

2.44​

90.04​

1105.80​

72.62​

200.96​

2.76​

9.31​

4.47​

36.64​

124.69​

4.22​

6.91​

2024 Worst

8​

68​

171​

2.49​

8​

4.72​

29​

119​

4.53​

7.32​

 

[Snakehead]

I had previously only compiled the stats for the Top 25 WR reception leaders, but this year I compiled the Top 25 Yards/Game. A couple attributes jumped out was the size of the Top 25 Yards/Game leaders, were about 4.5lbs heavier than the Top 25 Reception leaders. This is probably due to the Big Bodies Big X and Big Z WRs. There was also more WRs drafted outside of the 1st round in the Top 10 of this list.

Rank

Name

Round

Receptions

Yards

Y/G

Height

Weight

Relative Body Size

Hand Size

40 Yard Dash Time

Vertical Leap

Broad Jump

20 Yard Shuttle

3 Cone Drill

1​

Ja'Marr Chase

1​

127​

1708​

100.5​

72​

201​

2.79​

9.67​

4.38​

41​

132​

3.99​

6.96​

2​

Justin Jefferson

1​

103​

1533​

90.2​

73.2​

202​

2.76​

9.25​

4.43​

37.5​

126​

3​

Puka Nacua

5​

79​

990​

90​

73.63​

210​

2.85​

9.5​

4.57​

33​

121​

4.36​

7.32​

4​

Nico Collins

3​

68​

1006​

83.8​

76.13​

215​

2.82​

9.38​

4.45​

37.5​

125​

4.32​

6.79​

5​

AJ Brown

2​

67​

1079​

83​

72​

226​

3.14​

9.75​

4.49​

36.5​

120​

4.25​

7​

6​

Chris Godwin

3​

50​

576​

82.3​

73​

209​

2.86​

9.12​

4.42​

36​

126​

4​

7.01​

7​

Malik Nabers

1​

109​

1204​

80.3​

71.75​

200​

2.79​

9.88​

4.35​

42​

129​

8​

CeeDee Lamb

1​

101​

1194​

79.6​

74​

198​

2.68​

9.25​

4.5​

34.5​

124​

9​

Davante Adams

2​

85​

1063​

75.9​

73​

212​

2.90​

9​

4.56​

39.5​

123​

4.3​

6.82​

10​

Tee Higgins

1​

73​

911​

75.9​

75.63​

216​

2.86​

10​

4.59​

31​

4.53​

11​

Brian Thomas Jr.

1​

87​

1282​

75.4​

74.88​

209​

2.79​

9.75​

4.33​

38.5​

126​

12​

Drake London

1​

100​

1271​

74.8​

75.88​

219​

2.89​

9.38​

4.48​

13​

Amon-Ra St. Brown

4​

115​

1263​

74.3​

71.5​

197​

2.76​

9.13​

4.54​

38.5​

127​

4.26​

6.9​

14​

Jerry Jeudy

1​

90​

1229​

72.3​

73​

193​

2.64​

9.5​

4.45​

35​

120​

4.53​

15​

Ladd McConkey

2​

82​

1149​

71.8​

71.56​

186​

2.60​

8.625​

4.39​

36​

16​

Mike Evans

1​

74​

1004​

71.7​

77​

231​

3.00​

9.63​

4.53​

37​

4.26​

7.08​

17​

Jakobi Meyers

UDFA​

87​

1027​

68.5​

74​

203​

2.74​

9.5​

4.63​

37​

118​

4.23​

7.07​

18​

Jameson Williams

1​

58​

1001​

66.7​

74​

189​

2.55​

4.29​

19​

Jaxon Smith-Njigba

1​

100​

1130​

66.5​

72.63​

196​

2.70​

9​

4.52​

35​

3.93​

20​

DK Metcalf

2​

66​

992​

66.1​

75​

228​

3.04​

9.88​

4.33​

40.5​

134​

4.5​

7.38​

21​

Jauan Jennings

7​

77​

975​

65​

75​

215​

2.87​

9​

4.72​

29​

119​

22​

Garrett Wilson

1​

101​

1104​

64.9​

72​

188​

2.61​

9.88​

4.38​

4.36​

23​

Terry McLaurin

3​

82​

1096​

64.5​

72.13​

208​

2.88​

9.13​

4.35​

37.5​

125​

4.15​

7.01​

24​

George Pickens

2​

59​

900​

64.3​

75​

200​

2.67​

8.75​

4.47​

33​

125​

25​

DeVonta Smith

1​

68​

833​

64.1​

72.25​

170​

2.35​

9.25​

4.54​

131​

2024 Averages

2.23​

81.77​

1058.59​

72.35​

73.70​

204.91​

2.78​

9.37​

4.47​

36.33​

124.80​

4.28​

7.01​

2024 Worst

8​

71.5​

170​

2.35​

8.625​

4.72​

29​

118​

4.53​

7.38​

 

[BayouSAINTJoe]

Route Running, craftiness, sure hands and speed are attributes that I want to have in a WR. Funny thing is - that we have a guy. Only thing he doesn't have is size, but if he's hard to get hands on at the LOS (like he is) then that makes the size thing moot. Bad news is that he's probably on the outs