Battle For Receiver
4 min read
Not Even Worth Discussing as they are 100% locks for making the roster:
Nearly A Lock To Make The Roster.
Breshad Perriman: The 4th-year receiver with stints in both Cleveland and Baltimore has shown flashes of being a great receiver, but hasn’t quite found the formula to put it all together. In 37 games, he’s found the end zone 5 times while catching almost 50% of the passes thrown his way and just under 1,000 yards receiving.
Scott Miller: A 6th round pick that was basically a swap for DeSean Jackson, he’s already turned heads in OTA’s and has shown both incredible speed and agility. Not only is he nearly a lock to make the roster, but it’s quite possible that he’ll be taking the 3rd spot from Breshad Perriman and fill the role left with the departure of Humphries.
And Then There Were Nine.
Justin Watson: Watson is heading into his second year and had a solid preseason performance last year. He caught 12 passes for 130 yards and two TDs, but we did not see much more from him, aside from 1 catch for 5 yards in the loss to Cincinnati in week 8. Watson is talented, and that is clear, but is his talent enough to put him on the 53 man roster again this season?
Jesus “Bobo” Wilson: A 3rd-year receiver with the Buccaneers, Bobo has had limited opportunity to prove himself, but has caught over 80% of the passes thrown to him along with a touchdown and averaged almost 30 yards per return as a kick returner. His work on the special teams should be more than enough to get him a spot on the roster, but he’s certainly not a lock.
Keith “K.J.” Brent: A perennial practice squad player, Brent has never really found himself on a regular-season roster, apart from a few games in Indianapolis back in 2017 until they assigned him to their practice squad as he still hadn’t had a catch after 5 games. Even in college, he really didn’t show a whole lot except for his Senior year, so it will be hard for him to battle his way to a roster spot, and may very well find himself once again, being assigned to a practice squad.
Anthony Johnson: An undrafted rookie out of Buffalo, Johnson looks to make the best of the opportunity he’s been given. He had a couple of good plays in the OTA’s, but his performance wasn’t nearly as good as Xavier Ubosi, and Ubosi found himself being released on Wednesday, so to say he’s facing an uphill battle would be an understatement, but it’s certainly not impossible.
DaMarkus Lodge: Another undrafted rookie, Lodge found himself the #3 receiver at Ole Miss behind both Metcalf and Brown but was still able to pile up 877 yards and 4 touchdowns. Lodge will make his presence known during training camp, but it may not be enough to win a roster spot in a very crowded and talented receiving corps.
Cortrelle Simpson: Our third undrafted free agent, Cortrelle led the Richmond Spiders in receptions, yards, and touchdowns, but it’s the Richmond Spiders. While we certainly don’t want to take away from his accomplishments, it’s not as if he was squaring off with Notre Dame or Alabama, so we have to be careful when we look at his stats. It’s not out of the realm of possibilities that Cortrelle could earn a roster spot, but he’s going to have to show that he can put up the same numbers against an NFL caliber defense rather than simply outshining Stony Brook.
Spencer Schnell: We see another undrafted rookie in the Illinois State leading receiver, but much like Cortrelle Simpson, we have to remember that leading a receiving corps at Illinois State isn’t the same as leading the receiving corps at Auburn. Not only is Schnell battling for a spot from a relative unknown background coming from Illinois State, but he also finds himself at a disadvantage coming in at only 5’9”.
Bryant Mitchell: A transplant from the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League, Bryant finds himself with a little more experience than some of the undrafted rookies, and while not quite the NFL, he does come in with some professional experience. Bryant managed to catch 97 passes for just under 1,500 yards and six touchdowns.
Mitchell, along with Schnell, Simpson, and Johnson are all going to find it very difficult to make the roster, but they have the same opportunity in camp that is being given to Lodge, Brent, Watson, and Wilson. It’s up to them to take advantage of the opportunity.
