2NHH084 December 31, 2022: Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (18) celebrates his second touchdown against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first half of the 2022 Chick-fil-a Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA. (Scott Kinser/CSM) (Credit Image: © Scott Kinser/CSM via ZUMA Press Wire) (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

• Which players are most effective against press, single coverage, zone coverage, and more: Highlighting the top FBS wide receivers throughout their careers in key receiving categories.
• Surprise! Marvin Harrison Jr. is effective regardless of the situation: The top-ranked wide receiver on the PFF big board shines through in multiple key situations.
• Draft and trade for yourself: Try PFF’s Mock Draft Simulator — trade picks and players and mock for your favorite NFL team.
Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes
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The 2024 NFL Draft gets closer by the day, and there can never be enough data to pore over when it comes to evaluating prospects. After focusing on the running backs, this piece will focus on the top wide receiver prospects in this year’s draft and how they performed in key situations. 
This piece will focus on a lot of metrics that are not readily available through PFF Premium Stats in order to give an exclusive in-depth breakdown of production that can’t be found anywhere else. 


Starting with the basics, this is an overview of how each FBS wide receiver performed in the metrics that will be covered for their entire college career across all situations.

How wide receivers perform against single coverage simply highlights the player’s success rate going one-on-one against defensive backs in man coverage. This is especially important for outside wide receivers who face single coverage more often than those who align in the slot.

Zone coverage is the most common form of coverage scheme in college football as well as the NFL. Having a strong feel for zone coverage and knowing how to take advantage of the holes within those coverages is a translatable trait when projecting to the next level as well. 

Press coverage involves a defender playing up on the line of scrimmage directly in front of the wide receiver, often with the intent to get hands on the receiver and create legal contact within the first five yards to jam up their release and throw them off their intended routes. This section highlights the receivers who have success against this tactic, as they are able to fight through the contact and still come up with targets, yardage and efficiency.

Red-zone usage and production are often associated with touchdowns, which translates to stronger fantasy performances. 

Understanding how much production receivers have on screen plays and how much usage they have in that regard helps contextualize their overall production in order to get a better understanding of what their true strengths tend to be.

Highlighting each FBS wide receiver’s usage on deep throws, as well as how often they’re used in that regard is a good way to highlight a key strength that results in high-value plays both for fantasy and for their respective teams.  

Lastly, focusing on the receivers who delivered when their teams needed them most, on crucial late downs. Getting targets in these situations and coming up clutch to convert on third and/or fourth down can be a positive indicator of the player’s teams trusted the most in each situation and who stepped up to deliver.
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