In talking about Ashton Jeanty the other day, I mentioned that the Raiders don't have much else on their roster. That's not entirely true, at least as far as busy receivers go.
There's Brock Bowers, record-setting tight end entering his second season, of course. And there's Jakobi Meyers, who I tend to underestimate but who's been surprisingly productive.
Looking at just last season, you'd be surprised to know that even with much lesser quarterbacking and Bowers around to be the first read in the passing game, Meyers averaged nearly 6 receptions per game. That ranked 12th in the NFL among wide receivers to start at least half the time. A whole lot of franchise-level No. 1s, and Meyers.
| RECEPTIONS PER GAME, WIDE RECEIVERS (2024) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | G | No | Rec | TD | Rk | Rec/G |
| Ja'Marr Chase, Cin. | 17 | 127 | 1708 | 17 | 1 | 7.5 |
| Malik Nabers, NYG | 15 | 109 | 1204 | 7 | 6 | 7.3 |
| Puka Nacua, LAR | 11 | 79 | 990 | 4 | 26 | 7.2 |
| Amon-Ra St. Brown, Det. | 17 | 115 | 1263 | 12 | 2 | 6.8 |
| CeeDee Lamb, Dall. | 15 | 101 | 1194 | 6 | 8 | 6.7 |
| Tee Higgins, Cin. | 12 | 73 | 911 | 10 | 17 | 6.1 |
| Davante Adams, 2TM | 14 | 85 | 1063 | 8 | 12 | 6.1 |
| Justin Jefferson, Min. | 17 | 103 | 1533 | 10 | 3 | 6.1 |
| Garrett Wilson, NYJ | 17 | 101 | 1104 | 7 | 9 | 5.9 |
| Drake London, Atl. | 17 | 100 | 1271 | 9 | 5 | 5.9 |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Sea. | 17 | 100 | 1130 | 6 | 10 | 5.9 |
| Jakobi Meyers, L.V. | 15 | 87 | 1027 | 4 | 19 | 5.8 |
| DJ Moore, Chi. | 17 | 98 | 966 | 6 | 16 | 5.8 |
| Nico Collins, Hou. | 12 | 68 | 1006 | 7 | 23 | 5.7 |
| Cooper Kupp, LAR | 12 | 67 | 710 | 6 | 38 | 5.6 |
| Wan'Dale Robinson, NYG | 17 | 93 | 699 | 3 | 36 | 5.5 |
| Jerry Jeudy, Cle. | 17 | 90 | 1229 | 4 | 13 | 5.3 |
| Mike Evans, T.B. | 14 | 74 | 1004 | 11 | 15 | 5.3 |
| DeVonta Smith, Phil. | 13 | 68 | 833 | 8 | 28 | 5.2 |
| A.J. Brown, Phil. | 13 | 67 | 1079 | 7 | 20 | 5.2 |
| Josh Downs, Ind. | 14 | 72 | 803 | 5 | 35 | 5.1 |
| Jauan Jennings, S.F. | 15 | 77 | 975 | 6 | 24 | 5.1 |
| Ladd McConkey, LAC | 16 | 82 | 1149 | 7 | 14 | 5.1 |
| Brian Thomas, Jac. | 17 | 87 | 1282 | 10 | 4 | 5.1 |
| Khalil Shakir, Buff. | 15 | 76 | 821 | 4 | 37 | 5.1 |
| Terry McLaurin, Was. | 17 | 82 | 1096 | 13 | 7 | 4.8 |
| Courtland Sutton, Den. | 17 | 81 | 1081 | 8 | 11 | 4.8 |
| Tyreek Hill, Mia. | 17 | 81 | 959 | 6 | 18 | 4.8 |
| Keenan Allen, Chi. | 15 | 70 | 744 | 7 | 34 | 4.7 |
| DK Metcalf, Sea. | 15 | 66 | 992 | 5 | 31 | 4.4 |
| Zay Flowers, Balt. | 17 | 74 | 1059 | 4 | 25 | 4.4 |
| Michael Pittman, Ind. | 16 | 69 | 808 | 3 | 41 | 4.3 |
| George Pickens, Pitt. | 14 | 59 | 900 | 3 | 42 | 4.2 |
| Jordan Addison, Min. | 15 | 63 | 875 | 10 | 21 | 4.2 |
| Darnell Mooney, Atl. | 16 | 64 | 992 | 5 | 32 | 4.0 |
| Demario Douglas, N.E. | 17 | 66 | 621 | 3 | 47 | 3.9 |
| Jameson Williams, Det. | 15 | 58 | 1001 | 8 | 22 | 3.9 |
| Jaylen Waddle, Mia. | 15 | 58 | 744 | 2 | 46 | 3.9 |
| Calvin Ridley, Ten. | 17 | 64 | 1017 | 5 | 27 | 3.8 |
| Quentin Johnston, LAC | 15 | 55 | 711 | 8 | 39 | 3.7 |
| Marvin Harrison, Ari. | 17 | 62 | 885 | 8 | 30 | 3.6 |
| Ray-Ray McCloud, Atl. | 17 | 62 | 686 | 1 | 50 | 3.6 |
| Tank Dell, Hou. | 14 | 51 | 667 | 3 | 51 | 3.6 |
| Elijah Moore, Cle. | 17 | 61 | 538 | 1 | 67 | 3.6 |
| DeAndre Hopkins, 2TM | 16 | 56 | 610 | 5 | 48 | 3.5 |
| Xavier Worthy, K.C. | 17 | 59 | 638 | 9 | 33 | 3.5 |
| Deebo Samuel, S.F. | 15 | 51 | 670 | 4 | 44 | 3.4 |
| Jayden Reed, G.B. | 17 | 55 | 857 | 7 | 29 | 3.2 |
| Rome Odunze, Chi. | 17 | 54 | 734 | 3 | 49 | 3.2 |
For full disclosure, I included ranking in PPR leagues in the table. In that regard, Meyers doesn't grade out quite as favorably (19th). He caught only 4 touchdowns, at least 2 fewer than everyone ahead of him but Puka Nacua.
But Meyers' quarterbacking will be better this season with Geno Smith twirling it. And even if Las Vegas drafts a wide receiver early, which they might, Meyers will be the No. 1 guy again this season. Maybe not a guy to build a draft strategy around, but seems like he'll be underdrafted. If you're taking running backs or maybe one of the better tight ends with an early pick, Meyers makes a lot of sense as a 2nd wide receiver who will probably be selected a lot later than that.
--Andy Richardson
