NFC North WR rankings

Wide receivers are next on my list and one of the harder spots to rank thus far.  A true number one receiver is hard to find, there are only a handful in the league.  I believe there is only one true number one in the NFC North and that man resides in Detroit, Calvin Johnson.  He is the only receiver in the division that I believe can truly take over a game and dominate it.  Greg Jennings is knocking on the door, but he is not quite there yet and I don’t think he will ever be.  That’s not a knock on Jennings at all but there are just so few guys that can really be called a number one receiver.

  These ranking are going to be based off of the current depth charts of each team.

Greg Jennings is the best WR in the deep group in the NFL.

      1.)    Green Bay Packers- Are the deepest team in the NFL when it comes to receivers.  They have a star in Jennings, but after him any one of them could be number two.  This is a great thing for the Packers, because no matter who they put opposite of Jennings, there is no drop off.  Now each guy brings something different to the table but they are very similar receivers for the most part.  After Jennings, the Packers have Donald Driver, who is about to become the all time leading Packer in receiving yards. Then Jordy Nelson, James Jones and rookie Randall Cobb.  Cobb has shown everyone what he can do on opening night, he returned a kickoff 108 for a touchdown and caught a 32-yard touchdown pass.

Can anyone step up and help Johnson?

      2.)    Detroit Lions- Really the only reason they are number two on this list is because of Johnson, who is a top three receiver in the NFL.  After him there is a major drop off, the next best guy is Nate Burleson.  He put up decent numbers last year but playing on the opposite side of Johnson, his numbers should be much better since teams focus on Johnson.  The rest of the receiving core contains Maurice Stovall, rookie Titus Young, Rashied Davis and Stefan Logan who is really just a return guy.  Lions will lean heavily on Johnson and Burleson and hope that Young can fill the slot at some point this year.

Can Hester turn into a WR?

     3.)    Chicago Bears- I know, the Bears have one of the worst receiving corps in the league, blah blah blah.  I do not think it is bad as everyone makes it out to be, it’s more of a high risk high reward corps in the league. The Bears have Roy Williams, Devin Hester, Johnny Knox, Earl Bennett, Dane Sanzenbacher, and Sam Hurd who should play a bigger role on special teams than the offense.  Williams is the Bear’s best receiver at this point, which is really isn’t saying much but most people believe Williams dropped a lot of balls last year.  This is really not the case, as Michael C. Wright of ESPN Chicago and ESPN 1000 points out, Williams did not even lead his team in drops last year Miles Austin did.  Williams caught 57.8% of the balls that were thrown at him last year. Which is not a great number but looking at others in the division Jennings was not much better at 61.8%,and Johnson was lower at 56.2%. Is Williams a great receiver no, but he brings a new element to the offense and that is his size.  The one thing the Bears have is speed at receiver, but the lack a big body and  that is what Williams brings to the table. Hester is a work in progress one thing many people forget about him is that he is not a true receiver. He is well behind the Learning curve because of the fact he never settled on a position in college.  Most receivers have been playing receiver since at least college, but Hester is only in his fifth year playing wide receiver.  He is getting better each year, and could have a break out year this year. Knox busted onto the scene last year and put up great numbers, but he also cost the Bears a lot too.  Knox led the league in targets that resulted in interceptions, due to him running poor or the wrong route. Knox needs to play more disciplined then he did last year. Bennett and Sanzenbacher will both play the same role, possession receivers.

Harvin is the lone bright spot 

      4.)    Minnesota Viking- the Vikings have Percy Harvin and than a mix of castoffs.  After Harvin there is nothing there is no guy the clearly stand out. Their next best receiver is Michael Jenkins who had really done a lot down in Atlanta playing with Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez.  Next would be Bernard Berrian, who is a deep threat and that is really about it.  The next guy is Devin Aromashodu who is a bigger body, but lacks effort at times.  He was in the doghouse last year in Chicago, for not wanting to block.  The last receiver is Greg Camarillio, who is a possession receiver.  The Vikings are going to be feast or famine this year, if Harvin doesn’t have a good year I don’t see anyone else in this group taking over.  I would expect Harvin to see a lot of double teams and teams rolling coverage to his side.  Hopefully Harvin can stay healthy otherwise the Vikings will be in for a long year in the passing game.  When in doubt just give the ball to Adrian Peterson.