5 Wide Receivers Who Drastically Outperformed Their Teammates in 2017
Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers have already committed to Davante Adams long-term, giving him a four-year, $58 million extension back in December. The numbers say he's worth that moola.
With Aaron Rodgers missing more than half of the year due to a broken collarbone, both Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb struggled to maintain their previous levels of efficiency. Adams didn't. He finished the year ranked ninth in Target NEP per target of the 50 wide receivers with at least 80 targets. He did that despite having 61.0% of his targets come from Brett Hundley. That's pretty dang impressive.
And, as you can see, it runs circles around the numbers put forth by his teammates.
| In 2017 | Targets | Target NEP | Target NEP per Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Davante Adams | 118 | 54.15 | 0.46 |
| Randall Cobb | 92 | 24.05 | 0.26 |
| Jordy Nelson | 88 | 2.70 | 0.03 |
Adams was a highly-involved, highly-productive wide receiver this past season. There's a lot of value in that when it's tied to a healthy Rodgers at quarterback.
The one lingering question you could have is whether Adams' numbers were inflated due to a rapport with Hundley. That may be partially true, but even when we look at just the numbers when Rodgers was the passer, Adams is still at the top of the list.
| With Rodgers at QB | Targets | Target NEP | Target NEP per Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Davante Adams | 46 | 26.18 | 0.57 |
| Randall Cobb | 45 | 14.76 | 0.33 |
| Jordy Nelson | 35 | 17.52 | 0.50 |
That 0.57 Target NEP per target would have ranked third among all wide receivers if it were Adams' full-season mark. We've seen this for two years in a row now, so it's time to accept that Adams may just be a talented wide receiver.
Adams is entering his age-26 season, and both Cobb and Nelson are carrying major salary-cap numbers for 2018. One or both could be in another uniform next year. That sets up Adams to potentially be the unquestioned top option in one of the best offenses in football, allowing us to be aggressive in our valuations of him this offseason.
