Fantasy instant debate Year of the rookie receiver
A number of rookie wide receivers have had great training camps and are playing well in the preseason. Could this be the Year of the Rookie Receiver?!Michael Fabiano NFL Media Senior AnalystNot this yearThe fact that most rookie wide receivers don't produce big numbers won't change this season. As good as
Matt Szczur Jersey was in 2013, most of his first-year compadres didn't produce consistent numbers in the stat sheets. Do I like ? Well, it's hard not to like him based on what he's done in camp and the preseason. However, I'm still not drafting him as more than a No. 4 wideout for my team. Same goes for . As for or , well, those guys aren't more than No. 5s in my rankings. Call me a gla s-half empty guy here, but this trend isn't likely to change in 2014. !Alex Gelhar NFL Media EditorNot yet, but soonI'm not buying the hype for this to be the "Year of the Rookie Receiever" just yet. However, I am taking notice of all of these guys in the preseason. Whether or not I draft them remains to be seen, and could have a lot to do with how they all perform in Week 3 of the preseason, when they get their longest action against No. 1 defenses in as close to a regular season game as we'll see prior to NFL Kickoff on Sept. 4. For now, I'm still more likely to draft second-year breakout candidates like , , or at the tail end of my draft as opposed to rookies. But that, like everything in , is not set in stone. !Marcas Grant NFL Media EditorIt's bound to happen eventuallyI would be surprised if we see any rookie wideout land in the top 10 at his position once the season is over, but I do expect that this cla s of pa s-catchers will provide more overall value than we're used to seeing. Between , , and , just to name a few, this crop of first-year receivers seems to have acclimated to the profe sional game a little faster than their predece sors. And honestly, why can't it happen? Once upon a time, it was third-year receivers that tended to break out. Now we're talking about who could take off. It stands to reason that eventually we'll have a group of rookies who will catch on (pun intended) right away. !Adam Rank NFL.com WriterRecognize the evolutionIf defenders are going to be flagged for merely glaring at receivers, then we're going to see a huge outbreak in numbers. While it's important to not get too excited about rookie receivers because of past history, you have to realize the game has evolved in recent years and we're going to see more rookies break through like did last year. That said, we could get some guys like , and produce immediately this season.
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