Week 8 in the NFL helped demonstrate the weakness of looking at targets out of context. Eleven players saw double digit targets last Sunday, but many weren't able to return much in the way of efficiency. Anquan Boldin was an exception as the defensively (and logically) challenged Cardinals opted to use Patrick Peterson to shadow Torrey Smith. A.J. Green continues to be disprove the conventional wisdom regarding rookie WRs, a doubly impressive feat considering he's paired with a rookie signal caller. Brandon Lloyd is quickly rekindling his Josh McDaniels-inspired magic. He could easily finish as a Top 5 WR from this point forward, especially if Bradford returns to full health. The Steelers finally seem resigned to using their best offensive alignment. Going pass-heavy makes Antonio Brown a force opposite Mike Wallace.
The rest of the target leaders were not so lucky, often struggling to overcome the lackluster play of their offenses. Advanced Targets uses PFF's premium pass route data to take you further behind the scenes. When examining raw target numbers, do pay attention to that man behind the curtain.
Simple Targets
The weekly target breakdown by team features players with double digit looks in bold. Full season numbers are in parentheses.
ARI – Early Doucet 6 (41), Larry Fitzgerald 5 (56), Andre Roberts 3 (27)
BAL – Anquan Boldin 12 (61), Torrey Smith 9 (32), LaQuan Williams 1 (8)
BUF – Steve Johnson 9 (59), David Nelson 5 (42), Brad Smith 3 (7), Naaman Roosevelt 1 (11)
CAR – Steve Smith 9 (73), Legedu Naanee 7 (44), Brandon LaFell 2 (24)
CIN – A.J. Green 10 (57), Andre Caldwell 6 (33), Jerome Simpson 2 (43)
CLE – Greg Little 10 (48), Jordan Norwood 6 (8), Josh Cribbs 3 (31)
DAL – Laurent Robinson 8 (28), Dez Bryant 4 (35), Miles Austin 3 (42)
DEN – Eric Decker 12 (54), Eddie Royal 10 (22), Matt Willis 3 (18), Demaryius Thomas 3 (12)
DET – Calvin Johnson 7 (71), Nate Burleson 7 (44), Titus Young 5 (35)
HOU – Kevin Walter 9 (33), Jacoby Jones 5 (34), Derrick Mason 2 (7)
IND – Pierre Garcon 13 (63), Reggie Wayne 12 (64), Austin Collie 7 (42)
JAX – Mike Thomas 4 (55), Jason Hill 4 (41), Mike Sims-Walker 4 (26), Jarett Dillard 2 (10)
KC – Dwayne Bowe 9 (55), Jonathan Baldwin 8 (13), Steve Breaston 4 (32), Keary Colbert 2 (11)
MIA – Brandon Marshall 6 (67), Davone Bess 5 (44), Brian Hartline 2 (34)
MIN – Devin Aromashodu 6 (24), Percy Harvin 4 (41), Michael Jenkins 2 (39)
NE – Wes Welker 8 (79), Deion Branch 6 (45), Chad Ochocinco 1 (16), Taylor Price 1 (1)
NO – Lance Moore 9 (40), Marques Colston 6 (42), Devery Henderson 4 (25), Robert Meachem 3 (38)
NYG – Hakeem Nicks 10 (60), Victor Cruz 9 (41), Mario Manningham 8 (43)
PHI – DeSean Jackson 6 (44), Jason Avant 5 (43), Jeremy Maclin 3 (54)
PIT – Antonio Brown 15 (61), Emmanuel Sanders 8 (33), Mike Wallace 7 (59)
SD – Malcolm Floyd 7 (35), Vincent Jackson 7 (50), Patrick Crayton 4 (14)
SEA – Sidney Rice 13 (39), Doug Baldwin 8 (39), Ben Obomanu 4 (31), Golden Tate 4 (15)
SF – Michael Crabtree 9 (45), Braylon Edwards 7 (14), Ted Ginn 1 (13)
STL – Brandon Lloyd 12 (56), Greg Salas 6 (27), Brandon Gibson 5 (32)
TEN – Nate Washington 6 (48), Damian Williams 5 (29), Lavelle Hawkins 5 (32)
WAS – Jabar Gaffney 5 (45), Leonard Hankerson 4 (5), Anthony Armstrong 4 (17), Terrence Austin 3 (12)
Pass Routes Run
After a week in which route numbers were seriously depressed, Week 8 saw a return to the high-flying days of the early season. Anquan Boldin and Torrey Smith led the way with 55 and 54 routes respectively in Baltimore’s frantic second half comeback.
The Colts seem permanently behind at this point, so it should surprise no one that Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon both crested 50 routes. For any deep league owners still praying for Austin Collie's return to prominence, it should be a minor consolation that Indianapolis finally seems to recognize their most effective offensive set. Collie finished with 49 routes, trailing Garcon by only a single pattern. Collie also failed to make a difficult catch on an end zone target in garbage time that would have given him a very solid fantasy day.
Pittsburgh gave the Patriots a taste of their own medicine on Sunday, spreading them out and attacking through the air. Mike Wallace ran a season-high 54 routes, and Emmanuel Sanders wasn’t far behind at 47. Unfortunately Sanders breakout will be put on hold due to a minor injury and death in the family.
A week after Seahawks coaches decided to replace Ben Obomanu with BMW, they reversed course and sent him into the pattern a team-leading 45 times, five more than Sidney Rice.
Two Denver receivers found their way toward the top of the leaderboard, but neither was last week’s breakout player, Demaryius Thomas (26). Eric Decker (43) and Eddie Royal (41) were the choice this past weekend. Both parlayed those opportunities into double digit targets.
Out in the desert, Early Doucet (15) continues to see significantly fewer routes than Andre Roberts (28), even though Roberts currently grades out as the worst WR in the NFL (PFF rating -12). Teams like Denver, Washington, and Arizona illustrate a truism in the NFL's salary cap era. Bad teams tend to have less talent than their more successful brethren, but it's striking how often they seem dedicated to using their players in sub-optimal fashion.
Targets Per Pass Route
Jonathan Baldwin’s big day was aided by a 44% target rate. Few players have generated as much negative press in the last year than Baldwin, but it’s worth noting that in addition to being a gigantic human being, Baldwin posted a 42 inch vertical at the Combine. He’s technically open any time he’s on the field.
For the second week in a row Michael Crabtree posted a ridiculous target rate (41%) on relatively limited routes. Such a high target rate is simultaneously a red flag and an encouraging sign that his play-making ability has returned. Now getting open at will, Crabtree can maintain WR2/3 value even in the 49ers' run-heavy offense.
Crabtree’s target percentage on the season has risen to an impressive 31%. He’s joined in that rarified air by Antonio Brown whose 15 targets Sunday came on only 37 routes. That 41% target rate on the day pushed his yearly target rate above 30%.
Several of the usual suspects also caught their quarterbacks’ eyes on Sunday. A.J. Green (33%), Steve Johnson (31%), and Brandon Lloyd (31%) all continued to earn the looks that have them at 24% or above on the season.
A week after appearing to re-establish himself as a force in the Saints’ high-powered offense, Marques Colston’s target rate plummeted to 13%. Despite a plague of injuries to their starting corners, the Rams are proving a more difficult than expected matchup in the passing game.
The mystique Jason Garrett created by temporarily righting the ship in Dallas has all but evaporated. Much has been made of Rob Ryan’s inability to slow the Eagles juggernaut, but Garrett deserves as much blame for his mystifying work calling plays. Dez Bryant (11%) and Miles Austin (8%) were completely taken out of the game by Philly’s elite corners. If you have WRs like Bryant and Austin and don’t believe in them to at least occasionally win their matchups, you aren’t going anywhere as a head coach.
Pass Routes Per Snap
Perhaps the real culprit is something else entirely, but, after the Saints' offensive meltdown, it makes sense to wonder about their heavy dependence on different personnel packages. For the second week in a row, the run/pass split between Lance Moore (routes on 84% of snaps) and Robert Meachem (54%) was extreme. They have similarly blatant tendencies based upon which RB is in the game. The Saints clearly believe the advantage gained is worth openly telegraphing plays. It might be time to rethink that philosophy.
Kansas City receivers continue to see a very low percentage of routes, especially Dwayne Bowe (52%). This figures to only get worse as they enter a couple week stretch where they could be sitting on leads.
Arizona had a rare lead to protect, and, somewhat predictably, failed in that endeavor by going overly run-heavy. Despite shredding the Ravens on several big plays early, Larry Fitzgerald found himself out in the pattern on only 44% of his snaps, the lowest number on the weekend for any receiver with double digit routes.
Yards Per Pass Route
The big star on the day was once again Calvin Johnson. With Nate Burleson and Titus Young coming off catastrophic performances against the Falcons, Scott Linehan moved Johnson all over the formation against Denver. The Broncos didn’t reciprocate with Champ Bailey, and Megatron responded with 6 catches on 7 targets for 125 yards and a TD. As the lone superstar this year at WR, Sunday’s performance saw him gapping the field.
After posting another big game, Victor Cruz (3.2) moved past a suddenly scuffling Wes Welker (3.1) for the most yards per pass route on the season (minimum 150 routes). With Nicks hobbled and the running game in mild disarray, Cruz could move all the way up to a borderline WR1. He's been one of the year's few breakout players.
Although they never challenged Cincinnati on the scoreboard, Seattle’s emerging trio of Rice, Obomanu, and Doug Baldwin all averaged more than two yards per route against the Bengals' salty pass defense. As you debate WR3/4 choices during the never-ending bye weeks, keep in mind that only 7 WRs have more routes than Baldwin while simultaneously averaging more yards per route.
While Washington coaches continue to prop up Terrence Austin (0.69), Anthony Armstrong (0), and Niles Paul (0), it’s worth noting that Leonard Hankerson averaged 2.88 yards per route on Sunday. A whole bevy of sample size issues apply here, but, with Daniel Snyder and company facing the very real possibility of losing out, it may be time to consider playing some of the higher ceiling players.
© 2025 PFF - all rights reserved.