10 most improved position groups in the 2021 NFL off-season

#3 Wide receivers – New York Giants

Wide receivers

There are three NFL teams I seriously considered here. Obviously, with the number of talented receivers in the draft once again, there were plenty of options to increase the firepower. But the Giants, Football Team and Ravens all – more or less – paired that up with free-agent signings.

The way I looked at this is that New York are the only one that got a major upgrade at WR1, and the best name among the bunch is Kenny Golladay. He is going to be Big Blue’s X receiver, giving Daniel Jones a big-bodied target to rely on in third downs and also in 50-50 ball situations and to boost the red-zone success rate.

That moves Darius Slayton to the flanker spot, if you want to stick with the classic WR tags, where he should be. He is able to stretch the field on the outside of trips sets up open spaces for Sterling Shephard in the slot as the possession guy. Moreover, they invested their first-round pick on a dynamic playmaker in Florida’s Kadarius Toney, after trading back with the Bears.

We can only imagine how this offense could have looked like if they got Alabama’s Devonta Smith, who they were reportedly after. But Toney brings a very unique skillset to the table himself. He still needs some refinement as a route-runner, but he is explosive and tough to read and has the moves in his bag to put defenders on skates after the catch.

Moreover, while certainly disappointing for their former teams, having top-ten pick John Ross and top-50 pick Dante Pettis as your number five and six isn’t bad either.

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Notable Mentions: Washington Football Team and Baltimore Ravens.