NFL: Each Team’s Biggest 2015 X-Factor

Aug 14, 2015; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills wide receiver Sammy Watkins (14) runs with the ball after a catch against the Carolina Panthers during the first quarter at a preseason NFL football game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

Buffalo Bills WR Sammy Watkins

I know that he’s already a big name after wowing everyone for two straight offseasons, making some explosive plays last season, and being so good in college that Bills GM Doug Whaley sacrificed his shot at a franchise QB in the 2015 draft for him. Watkins was supposed to have the impact as a rookie that Odell Beckham Jr. did, but a nagging injury (that he admirably played through), poor quarterback play, and a few rookie troubles prevented him from having an elite impact in his first season.

Despite the factors conspiring against him, Watkins still managed to haul in 65 passes for 982 yards and six touchdowns, averaging an outstanding 15.1 yards per reception. His speed, explosiveness after the catch, and ability to play even bigger than his 6’1″, 221-pound frame overshadow the fact that he’s an extremely polished receiver.

Watkins is the type of talent you bet on to explode, and if he can have a dominant season, then that might be enough to put the Bills into the playoffs behind that elite defense. We have plenty of questions about how good Tyrod Taylor and- if Taylor fails- E.J. Manuel will be, but they have so many weapons around them. I mean, I could have even gone with one of the NFL’s most underrated route-runners, Robert Woods, in this spot.

But I’m going with Watkins, who was dubbed the “August MVP” of the Bills by the Buffalo News’s Tyler Dunne. Since Dunne covered the elite Green Bay Packers receivers and had no preconceived notions about the current Bills players going into the offseason (this is his first season on the Bills beat), I would take his words on Watkins seriously.

Next: The Dolphins