Top 5 Receiving Corps in the NFL

1). Tampa Bay Buccaneers

When a quarterback like Jameis Winston throws for over 5,000 yards, you have to give some credit to the receiving group. It’s not hard to see how they helped Winston out in his roller coaster of a season. Mike Evans is one of the bigger bodied wide receivers in the NFL and he’s surpassed 65 catches and 1,000 yards in all six years of his professional career. However, it was Chris Godwin’s uprising into the upper tier of elite wide receivers that was the most intriguing aspect of Bruce Arians' wild 2019 offense. Being ranked as Pro Football Focus’s No. 1 overall wide receiver was something that not too many could have seen coming. Looking deeper into the roster, O.J. Howard is somehow receiving high praise from Arians after he practically disappeared in 2019 while Cameron Brate remains a solid red zone threat. It can't go unnoticed that Hall of Fame TE Rob Gronkowski has returned and reunited with Tom Brady this season. After all of that, it's safe to say that this Bucs receiving group is the scariest in the league.

2). Kansas City Chiefs

Normally, it would be hard to evaluate a receiving group’s talent in a scenario where Patrick Mahomes is throwing the ball. But this Kansas City offense has a pair of really special players that, regardless of the quarterback, would boost any receiving corps to an extremely high level. Those two players are Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce. If the Chiefs offensive line allows Mahomes any kind of free time, it's likely that Hill will be open in some capacity. Defenders simply can’t stick with him as his pure speed allows him to blow by them, forcing the remaining defense to catch up. Kelce, on the other hand, is the perfect blend of quickness, technique, and brute force at the tight end position. This superhuman combination earned him five Pro Bowl nominations and two first-team All-Pro appearances in his five years as a full time starter in Kansas City. The group has some pretty nice depth, too. Sammy Watkins, when healthy, is just as dangerous as any other receiver on the field. Just take a look at his Week 1 stats, when he gathered 198 yards and three touchdowns. 2nd string wideout Mecole Hardman showed similar bursts in a few games and all three running backs are more than capable receivers. With this talented of a roster, Andy Reid has his work cut out for him moving forward into another potential Super Bowl campaign.

3). New Orleans Saints

Drew Brees is going to finish his career with a bang if 2020 is indeed his final season. That’s because the already strong Saints receiving group added Emmanuel Sanders, a two-time Pro Bowler and a veteran with Super Bowl appearances for three separate teams. The experience that Emmanuel Sanders brings elevates this group onto another level, creating space for one of the best receivers in Michael Thomas and allowing Brees to do what he does best: being able to find and hit targets all over the field. Alvin Kamara, when fully healthy, is among the best dual threat running backs that the league has to offer. The tight end group features three experienced tight ends who offer very different skill sets. Jared Cook is one of the better pure receiving tight ends in the league. Though he’s getting up there in age, he still has great speed for a big bodied tight end and earned his second consecutive Pro Bowl nod last year. And of course Taysom Hill is… well, he’s Taysom Hill.

4). Cleveland Browns

Cleveland may have been an underwhelming group last year, but the talent is indisputable and the coaching change should help bring this group back up to speed. Beckham and Landry are two of the most talented route runners in the league and both are capable of making some of the most spectacular catches known to the game. The wide receiver corps becomes a little foggy after those two after losing Antonio Callaway and Rashard Higgins. The tight end duo of Austin Hooper and David Njoku that replaces Demetrius Harris and Ricky-Seals Jones is one of the biggest boosts to any position group that we’ve seen this offseason. Njoku was special in the offseason and had a promising sophomore season in the league before injuries derailed his 2019 campaign. Austin Hooper will be the primary tight end target though after breaking out as one of the best receiving tight ends in the league with the Falcons. Although Kareem Hunt was rumored to be an available trade piece this offseason, the Browns decided to place a second-round tender on him which is likely enough to keep him in Cleveland for the time being. He is still an electrifying talent and is the main pass-catching running back, with 37 receptions in just eight games last season. Chubb doesn’t add too much but is a capable receiver as well.

5). Dallas Cowboys

Despite its extreme top-heaviness, this offense is unfair. The three guys that defined this offense in 2019 are now joined by CeeDee Lamb who may have been the biggest steal of the 2020 draft. Lamb's DeAndre Hopkins-esque upside should have Mike McCarthy and Dak Prescott salivating. Additionally, Amari Cooper is back for what is likely a long time, meaning he can continue to thrive with Dak and build his case as a top-five receiver in football. Michael Gallup broke out in 2019 and joined Cooper as a 1,000-yard receiver. The case against the Cowboys' offense is that their depth is almost non-existent which could be an issue given the obscene amount of money committed to Dak, Cooper and Ezekiel Elliott. Randall Cobb and Jason Witten combined to pick up over 1,300 yards and they’re both gone. This unit is far from perfect, however the raw talent seems impossible to deny heading into the 2020 season.