These are the bottom five wide receiver groups in the NFL heading into the 2022 season. Let’s take a look at who they are and why they rank so low.
There was a ton of movement this offseason, both in free agency and the draft, and one of the biggest areas of need was one of the premier skill positions; wide receivers.
There were many teams that absolutely struck gold in the offseason and signed some big-time receivers to bolster their offense.
However, there were also many teams that either misappropriated their funds or their draft picks and did not add the playmakers they truly needed to make life easier for their quarterback.
Let’s break down the five worst receiving rooms in the NFL.
No. 5 worst wide receiver room in the NFL: Green Bay Packers
- Allen Lazard
- Christian Watson
- Amari Rodgers
- Randall Cobb
- Sammy Watkins
- Romeo Doubs
The Green Bay Packers made headlines when they were unable to retain the best wide receiver in the NFL, Davante Adams, who opted to take a comparable deal from the Las Vegas Raiders in order to play with college teammate Derek Carr.
Adams has been QB Aaron Rodgers’ favorite and most productive target in years, and the duo has been known as the most deadly QB-WR pair in the league.
The Packers front office opted to go with a rookie in the 2nd round of the draft by selecting North Dakota State’s Christian Watson.
The Packers had the opportunity to trade up in the 1st round to select one of the many higher-tier receivers but elected to go with defense instead.
The Packers will be relying instead on an aging but trusty Randall Cobb, free agent veteran Sammy Watkins, Allen Lazard who is a solid WR2 but not ready for a #1 position, and rookies Watson and Doubs who are untested and raw.
Amari Rodgers also enters his sophomore season after a disappointing first year in the year logging 45 yards on 4 receptions for 8 targets (zero touchdowns).
Packers QB Aaron Rodgers statistically does not favor rookie receivers which puts Watson in an awkward position as Green Bay’s hopefuls expect him to replace Adams immediately.
The Packers will look for Lazard to step up along with the aforementioned veterans but this group leaves much to be desired. This may be the weakest group of receivers Rodgers has been handed since Jordy Nelson left town.
What should be noted is that this isn’t even the weakest receiving corps in the NFC North…
No. 4 worst wide receiver group in the NFL: Tennessee Titans
- Treylon Burks
- Robert Woods
- Nick Westbrook-Ikhine
- Dez Fitzpatrick
The dominos fell early for the Tennessee Titans in the 2022 offseason.
First, future Hall of Fame receiver Julio Jones was released after an underachieving season riddled with injuries. While Jones wasn’t exactly a key to the offense he was a large presence in the locker room and was an excellent mentor for…AJ Brown.
The Titans went into the draft knowing that Brown was possibly opting out to secure a new contract after watching Davante Adams and Tyreek Hill receive their new deals. That decision would never come for Brown as he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for the 18th pick in the first round and a third-round pick.
The Titans responded by drafting Brown’s replacement in Arkansas’ Treylon Burks. A big-bodied receiver with solid hands Burks would have excelled with AJ Brown but thrust into the #1 receiver role without AJ Brown? Pass.
Also, Burks was routinely comped to AJ Brown, just less explosive.
The Titans luckily have one veteran still on their roster with former Ram Robert Woods but Woods and Burks are not enough to keep the Titans afloat.
This receiving corps is thin as Burks’ transition to the NFL while primarily a slot receiver in college is currently unknown. While Woods was an excellent threat in LA he is coming off an injury and the receivers after him are guys you basically have never heard of before.
Even though the Titans are a run-first offense Ryan Tannehill and/or Malik Willis will have their hands full this season trying to figure out who to throw the ball to.
No. 3 worst wide receiver group in the NFL: Jacksonville Jaguars
- Zay Jones
- Marvin Jones
- Christian Kirk
- Laviska Shenault
- Laquon Treadwell
If you thought we were done with the AFC South receivers you thought wrong.
The Jacksonville Jaguars’ receiving corps is essentially a collection of WR3s that is the epitome of the phrase underwhelming.
The Jaguars were extremely active in free agency spending more money than many teams combined in acquiring players, specifically at receiver.
The Jaguars essentially reset the receiver market by signing former Cardinals receiver Christian Kirk, yes the third receiver on the depth chart in Arizona, a massive 4-year contract worth up to $84 million.
This signing became the igniter to the rest of the receivers in the league looking for their big paydays.
Besides the overpay of Kirk, the Jaguars also signed Zay Jones who was at his highest level of production when he was drawing deep pass interference plays with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Former first pick overall Trevor Lawrence is in need of a true #1 receiver and the Jaguars front office elected to get him a bunch of 3’s and 4’s in the hopes that it would replace a 1.
The strategy is understood but not a sound theory in the long run. The Jaguars paid big for little productivity and Lawrence will have to hope that his offensive line gives him plenty of time to find a target, in the chance that one is actually open.
The rebuild of the Jaguars doesn’t seem to be rolling at a high speed and the receivers the Jaguars chose to sign are a clear indication that they have* to pay big to even get average pass catchers to come to Jacksonville.
With this group, Lawrence will likely have another rough season but at least they will be in a position to draft a top receiver during next year’s draft.
No. 2 worst wide receiver group in the NFL: Baltimore Ravens
- Rashod Bateman
- Devin Duvernay
- James Proche II
- Jaylon Moore
This list of receivers is scary, and not in a good way.
After the Baltimore Ravens traded away WR Marquise Brown to the Cardinals you might have assumed they would draft a replacement receiver, similar to what the Titans did with AJ Brown. Nope.
The Ravens flipped those picks into drafting a safety, a center, a defensive lineman, more secondary, a tight end, punter, and a running back. No receivers.
The Ravens, similar to the Titans, base their offense on their run game which is a huge part of why Marquise Brown wanted out of Baltimore. But even if you prefer to run the ball the option to pass it may not even be there with this group of receivers.
Rashod Bateman, a first-round pick from 2021, is entering his sophomore year and is now placed in the position as the #1 receiver.
Bateman logged 46 receptions on 68 targets in 2021 for 515 yards with one touchdown. The big question will be if Bateman can elevate his own game to replace Brown and be a true #1 for Lamar.
Regardless, his supporting cast is abysmal and Bateman can be sure to draw the top corner in every matchup they enter.
The only reason this terrible list isn’t #1 is that Ravens Quarterback Lamar Jackson is a jack of all trades and will make gold out of bronze regardless of the situation.
That level of confidence is not here for our next and final team that claims the #1 spot for worst wide receiver room in the NFL. At least Lamar still has Mark Andrews…
No. 1 worst wide receiver group in the NFL: Chicago Bears
- Darnell Mooney
- Equanimeous St. Brown
- Byron Pringle
- Velus Jones Jr
- Dante Pettis
I told you the NFC North would be well represented on this list. And it’s not the Lions and definitely not the Vikings.
The Chicago Bears traded away a portion of their future to draft quarterback Justin Fields in 2021 and to further invest in their quarterback they put him behind a mediocre offensive line and schemed his best receiver (Allen Robinson, now a LA Ram) out of the game plan.
Things did not get better in the 2022 offseason. After watching Robinson sign with the Rams they signed St. Brown, Pringle, and Pettis in free agency and drafted Jones Jr. (a projected 5th rounder) in the 3rd round.
Pringle is the only free agent that could be considered a decent piece of the offense but St. Brown played in 13 games in 2021 and secured zero touchdowns on 9 receptions for 98 yards.
It gets better.
St. Brown has just one touchdown in his career in the NFL over three seasons.
Mooney lead the way for the Bears in 2021 and while 1,055 receiving yards is significant it was followed by only four touchdowns. We’ll see how he fares in 2022 with the top corners trending towards his side of the field with Robinson’s absence.
The main reason this receiving corps is so tough to look at is because Justin Fields is still in a developmental stage and hasn’t found his place within the NFL yet, nor has he had a chance to become comfortable in an offensive system with another new head coach.
A weak group of receivers does not help his transition, especially when he has enough faults of his own to work on being ranked 31st in QBs on yards, touchdowns, and QBR. An error-prone quarterback with error-prone receivers will not help this situation.
There you have it, the worst group of wide receivers currently in the NFL heading into the 2022 season; the Chicago Bears.