Wide Receivers

By: T. Love

The Atlanta Falcon receivers were an underachieving bunch under the Jim Mora regime to say the least. A young and inexperienced group, coupled with GM Rich McKay’s pathetic history of drafting receivers and a former offensive lineman as the coach and you have recipe for disaster. But that is nothing a little coaching and an offensive philosophy can’t cure.

Head coach Bobby Petrino likes to use four- and five-wide sets in his power spread offense, so of all the individuals on the current roster there has to be at least six that can make a contribution. Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson will help mold these receivers similarly to his work with Cincinnati Bengals’ receivers Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmenzadeh.

Joe Horn (6-1, 213)
Probably the biggest acquisition by the Falcons this offseason for three reasons. First, he gives the team a legitimate deep threat that will make the tough catch. Secondly, he will be a mentor for these young receivers that has been desperately needed the past three seasons. And finally, who else of note did we sign this offseason? At age 35, Horn has lost a step and his body is not as tough as it use to be which is evident by his nagging injuries the past two seasons. Despite only playing 10 games in 2006, the four-time pro bowler still nabbed 37 balls for 679 yards which is only two fewer than the Falcons top wideout. He will be the No. 1 receiver through training camp and should hold on to that position all year. Hopefully, one of our young guys will step up under his leadership and take over that No. 1 spot. I know who I have my money on.

Michael Jenkins (6-4, 217)
First-round pick and the Falcons moved up in the 2004 draft to take him. It is time to step up. Jenkins had only 39 receptions for 436 yards, but developed a nose for the endzone as he had seven touchdown receptions. Jenkins’ game is similar to my golf game. I’m a solid putter within 10 feet, but driving, short game and hazard saves are my weakness. Jenks is solid in the redzone, but route running, consistency and separation seem to be where he struggles. Get to work Hue.

Sharod “Roddy” White (6-0, 208)
I’ll try to keep this as pleasant as possible. Get your head out of your ass and make some catches. Drops led to White being benched in favor of Ashley Lelie midway through the season. I was against this pick from the start, but I wanted to give him a chance. He has not done anything to this point to warrant his first-round selection. I’ll admit that he stepped up towards the end of last season to finish the year with 30 receptions and 506 yards. He needs to find that endzone more and he should be peaking over his shoulder for my guy.

Laurent Robinson (6-2, 195)
Pronounced La-RON. This is my guy. When the Falcons first selected him in the third-round of the 2007 draft, I immediately began dropping F-bombs. However, this guy was dominate in the Division I-AA ranks and since I am a graduate of Appalachian State, defending back-to-back national champions, I have to cheer for the guys from the small schools. He owns multiple single-season and career records at Illinois State and also holds Gateway Conference records. Who cares if he came from a small school, football is football. He can learn the speed of the game from the 3rd or 4th receiver position, beating up on sorry defensive backs until he is ready to be a go-to man. Obviously, Hue Jackson had some say in this pick and Bobby Petrino feels like this guy would do well in his offense. Those factors including a veteran to look up to in Horn… watch out for this kid.

Adam Jennings (5-9, 181)
Still trying to figure out how this guy is on an NFL roster. He looked cute on special teams last season, but didn’t contribute much at receiver. Petrino has a way of getting players involved by creating different packages. We’ll see if Jennings has anything to bring to the table in this new offense.

Fred Gibson (6-4, 202)
A UGA grad that has joined his boy D.J. Shockley in Atlanta. Originally drafted by the Steelers in the fourth round and was waived right before the start of the season. He spent two years on the Miami Dolphins practice squad before getting released. All of my UGA buddies say that Gibson dropped a lot of balls while at Georgia, but maybe he has worked on it as Coach Petrino seems to be real impressed. With his tall stature and speed, he could be a deep threat in this offense. I’ll be rooting for him.

Jamin Elliot (5-11, 195)
Played in one contest last season. Will fight for a roster spot.

Noriaki Kinoshita
Someone else want to chime in on this one? For some reason I don’t feel like the research would be worth my time.

Analysis
The Falcons finished dead last in passing offense and that was one of the many factors that led to the team’s second-straight meltdown in the final stretch of the season. The absence of veteran Brian Finneran did not help the situation and not having him again this year will be tough. The addition of Horn will bolster our passing numbers, but don’t look for him to be the solution to our passing woes. It will be Jenkins, White or Robinson that emerges from the pack that will be the No. 1 target for the Falcons’ QB (whomever that will be). Horn and Jenkins are the starters come Game 1 and Robinson and White will battle for that No. 3 spot early on. More competition in practice means more production on the field. I’m looking for Robinson to have a strong rookie campaign and Jenkins to be more consistent between the 20s. If anyone can get the most out of this group it would be OC Jackson and HC Petrino. I see this group finishing in the Top 20 in 2007 and taking full flight in 2008.

Comments, Criticism, Applause?