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32 Observations: Week 8

A few weeks back, 32 Observations took a look at some numbers for quarterbacks that went even deeper than those currently found in the premium section. This week we take a look at the receiving end of things, including wide receivers, tight ends and running backs. Traditional statistics take how receivers did in all situations and add up their total catches, yards and touchdowns. These 32 observations focus more on specific situations and how a player on each team performs in those in-game contexts.

AFC East

Buffalo Bills: The four most targeted wide receivers/tight ends are Steve Johnson, Scott Chandler, Donald Jones and T.J. Graham. All four have an Average Depth of Target between 9.4 and 10.5 yards.

Miami Dolphins: Brian Hartline has 394 receiving yards on plays where the Dolphins were blitzed. That is 84 receiving yards more than any other player on plays where the defense blitzed. He has this on 30 targets and 19 catches.

New England Patriots: Brandon Lloyd has 49 targets when lined up as the furthest left receiver, which is the most in the league. On those targets, Lloyd has 29 catches for 314 yards.

New York Jets: Wide Receiver Jeremy Kerley averages 12.2 yards per target when lined up in the slot on the right, but just 6.7 yards per target when lining up in the slot on the left.

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens: Torrey Smith is the most targeted receiver on passes that were in the air for 30 or more yards, at 14. He has caught five of those passes for 189 yards and a touchdown. The next most targets for a receiver is nine.

Cincinnati Bengals: Of the 27 passes to be thrown deep, 16 of them have been to A.J. Green. Although he has a low catch rate, by only catching five of those passes, he averages 45.4 yards per catch when he does catch the ball. The rest of the Bengals have four catches, but only 115 yards.

Cleveland Browns: Trent Richardson has the most receiving yards for running backs on flare routes at 127. This has come on 12 completions, and is 33 more yards than any other back.

Pittsburgh Steelers: There have been 12 passes where Ben Roethlisberger has thrown the ball to Antonio Brown within one second of the snap. On those passes, Brown has 11 catches for 65 yards and a touchdown. The number of targets, catches and yards are more than double any other player on these quick passes.

AFC South

Houston Texans: Tight End Owen Daniels has the second-highest Yards Per Route Run for tight ends at 2.26.

Indianapolis Colts: Wide Receiver Reggie Wayne has been the most targeted passer on mid-level passes (passes in the air for 10-20 yards) at 32. It shouldn’t be surprising that he also leads the league in catches and yards in that range at 21 and 361.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Receiver Cecil Shorts has been by far the most effective receiver for the Jaguars, at 2.70 Yards Per Route Run. All of the other wide receivers on the roster are below the league average of 1.58.

Tennessee Titans: Tight end Jared Cook has 342 receiving yards when lined up out wide or in the slot, rather than as an in-line tight end, which is the most for all tight ends. He has done this on 25 catches, and two of them went for touchdowns.

AFC West

Denver Broncos: Wide Receiver Demaryius Thomas has the third-most yards after the catch for wide receivers at 320. That is in large part due to his 183 total yards, and 186 yards after the catch, coming on 12 wide-receiver screens. The 15.2 yards per catch average on screens is the best for all receivers with five or more WR screens.

Kansas City Chiefs: Receiver Jonathan Baldwin has an Average Depth of Target of 13.4 when targeted as the furthest left wide receiver, compared to 19.7 when targeted as the furthest right wide receiver.

Oakland Raiders: Tight end Brandon Myers has the highest catch rate for any receiver, regardless of position, on passes that were in the air for 10 yards or more, at 87.5%. He has caught 14 of the 16 passes thrown his way at that distance.

San Diego Chargers: Ronnie Brown leads all backs in receiving yards on passes thrown with positive yards in the air. He has 182 yards on 15 catches.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys: Tight end Jason Witten leads all receivers, regardless of position, in short pass (passes in the air for 0-10 yards) attempts at 55, catches at 43 and yards at 352.

New York Giants: Receiver Victor Cruz has a Drop Rate of 18.5% when lined up as a slot receiver on the left, compared to a Drop Rate of 4.5% when lined up as a slot receiver on the right.

Philadelphia Eagles: Halfback LeSean McCoy has had the most running back screens at 13. However, those passes have gone for only 39 yards. On five of them McCoy has lost yards, but on two he has scored touchdowns.

Washington Redskins: The average depth of target for the 14 times Aldrick Robinson has been thrown the ball is 19.6, which is the highest in the league for receivers targeted 10 or more times.

NFC North

Chicago Bears: Tight End Kellen Davis has the highest Average Depth of Target for tight ends at 14.8 yards.

Detroit Lions: Tight end Brandon Pettigrew has 48 targets when lined up as an in-line tight end, rather than in the slot or out wide, which is 12 more than any other tight end. On those passes he has 33 catches for 329 yards and a touchdown.

Green Bay Packers: Typically, when the quarterback holds onto the ball too long, something is bound to go wrong. However, on plays where the quarterback holds onto the ball for 4.5 or more seconds, James Jones has 70 receiving yards which leads the league and came on three catches and include a touchdown. The player with the second-most yards on these plays is Randall Cobb, at 66 on four catches and a touchdown.

Minnesota Vikings: Receiver Percy Harvin has an average depth of target of 4.1 yards on the 75 passes thrown his way, which is the lowest in the league.

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons: Tony Gonzalez has a ridiculously high Catch Rate of 83.3% on deep passes. He has caught 25 of the 30 passes thrown his way for 255 yards.

Carolina Panthers: Steve Smith averages 10.2 yards per target when he is the furthest left receiver, but only 5.5 yards per target when he is the furthest right receiver.

New Orleans Saints: Only 10.4% of Lance Moore’s 433 receiving yards have come after the catch, which is the lowest for receivers with at least 20 targets.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Wide Receiver Vincent Jackson leads the league with 271 receiving yards coming on go routes. This has all come on seven catches, three of which went for touchdowns.

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals: Larry Fitzgerald has been targeted the most on slant passes with 23. However, only 11 of those passes have been complete, and they went for 146 yards.

St. Louis Rams: The four receivers with the most targets have distinctly different Average Depth of Targets. Chris Givens has an ADoT of 17.1, Brandon Gibson at 12.9, Danny Amendola at 8.4 and Lance Kendricks at 5.5.

San Francisco 49ers: Although there are three other wide receivers that have been on the field more than Randy Moss, he leads the team in Yards Per Route Run at 2.90, while the next highest on the team is 2.09.

Seattle Seahawks: Tight End Evan Moore has the lowest Yards Per Route run for tight ends at 0.00. He has run 45 pass routes and was targeted five times, but has yet to record a catch.

 

Follow Nathan on Twitter: @PFF_NateJahnke

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