polamalubeast
08-17-2015, 09:31 AM
LATROBE, Pa. -- A team with an elite quarterback has the luxury of spending first-round picks on positions other than wide receiver. Guys such as Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger are star-turners -- stick with me, kid, and I'll get your stats up.
No two teams are better at capitalizing on that luxury -- and spinning some darn good receivers out of it -- than the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers, who face off at 1 p.m. ET Sunday at Heinz Field.
The New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts employ this strategy too, but those teams seem more reliant on tight end production than Green Bay and Pittsburgh, whose top three receivers were found out of the first round. Rob Gronkowski is New England's No. 1. Tight ends Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen combined for 16 touchdowns in 2014. Yes, Pittsburgh still has Heath Miller, who caught 66 passes the previous season, but he's 10 years in and one of five high-end passing options for the Steelers.
The Packers plucked Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams from the second round. The trio combined for 227 catches, 3,252 yards and 28 touchdowns the past season, with most of those numbers coming from veterans Cobb and Nelson. Adams is entering his second year.
The Steelers managed to threaten those totals without taking a receiver in the first two rounds of the past seven drafts. They haven't done so since Limas Sweed in 2008. That's a major advantage on most teams, and it has allowed the Steelers to rebuild their offensive line and defensive front seven.
Antonio Brown (sixth round), Markus Wheaton (third round) and Martavis Bryant (fourth round) combined for 208 catches for 2,891 yards and 23 touchdowns, with Brown handling more than half that load. But Wheaton and Bryant are considered ascending players. Bryant is a trendy fantasy draft selection this month, after he scored every 3.25 catches his first year.
Speaking of the second round, both clubs located stellar running backs in that round: Green Bay's Eddie Lacy and Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell.
"We have a balanced offense," Brown said. "On the nights when defenses might try to double me, that's hard to do because so many other guys can beat you."
read more
http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/174809/steelers-packers-thrive-at-mining-wr-gold-outside-of-first-round
No two teams are better at capitalizing on that luxury -- and spinning some darn good receivers out of it -- than the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers, who face off at 1 p.m. ET Sunday at Heinz Field.
The New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts employ this strategy too, but those teams seem more reliant on tight end production than Green Bay and Pittsburgh, whose top three receivers were found out of the first round. Rob Gronkowski is New England's No. 1. Tight ends Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen combined for 16 touchdowns in 2014. Yes, Pittsburgh still has Heath Miller, who caught 66 passes the previous season, but he's 10 years in and one of five high-end passing options for the Steelers.
The Packers plucked Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and Davante Adams from the second round. The trio combined for 227 catches, 3,252 yards and 28 touchdowns the past season, with most of those numbers coming from veterans Cobb and Nelson. Adams is entering his second year.
The Steelers managed to threaten those totals without taking a receiver in the first two rounds of the past seven drafts. They haven't done so since Limas Sweed in 2008. That's a major advantage on most teams, and it has allowed the Steelers to rebuild their offensive line and defensive front seven.
Antonio Brown (sixth round), Markus Wheaton (third round) and Martavis Bryant (fourth round) combined for 208 catches for 2,891 yards and 23 touchdowns, with Brown handling more than half that load. But Wheaton and Bryant are considered ascending players. Bryant is a trendy fantasy draft selection this month, after he scored every 3.25 catches his first year.
Speaking of the second round, both clubs located stellar running backs in that round: Green Bay's Eddie Lacy and Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell.
"We have a balanced offense," Brown said. "On the nights when defenses might try to double me, that's hard to do because so many other guys can beat you."
read more
http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/174809/steelers-packers-thrive-at-mining-wr-gold-outside-of-first-round