Breaking down the NFL

By Vikram Mohan Sports Central Columnist

A buddy of mine asked me a couple of weeks ago who I thought the best receiving corps in the NFL was going into the season. So, naturally, instead of answering him, I wrote this article breaking down the best and worst units in the NFL. This time I around, I only look at the offensive skill positions, but I will examine defensive units (with offensive lines lumped in) at a later time.

Backfields

If it's first-and-goal from the one-yard line, go ahead and kick a field goal: Tampa Bay Bucs.

Tampa Bay finished 27th in rushing last season and has done little to improve its running game in the past few months. Actually, I expect them to be even worse on the ground this year, assuming that Michael Pittman can play in spite of his legal troubles. This is a guy who the Cardinals deemed expendable in order to get more carries for Thomas Jones. THOMAS JONES!

Pittman's average yards-per-carry last season was a whopping 3.5, which put him at 40th-overall for running backs and six spots below Jones. And now, the news that the Bucs acquired Thomas Jones does not bode well -- raiding the Cardinals' dumpster is not the way to build a running attack. Jones was traded to make room for Emmitt Smith. The same Smith who was let go to make room for Troy Hambrick. TROY HAMBRICK!

If Pittman cannot play this season, and Jones hurts himself (God willing) or something, Travis Stephens or Terry Kirby would get more carries and may be able to add something to the offense. Maybe then Mike Alstott could play his actual position.

Pittman could probably use some time off to work on increasing his speed anyway. The whole "I don't have to be fast, because I'm bigger than everybody else and they'll just bounce off me" thing obviously is not working for him. Pittman's career numbers up to this point illustrate the fact that having a prototype NFL physique does not guarantee success. Just ask Rob Johnson, Pittman's teammate last year.

Speaking of Rob Johnson ... did he watch an episode of the "Single Guy" one day and say, "Hey, that Jonathan Silverman guy is awesome, I'm gonna go get my face done so I can look like him and be a reject, too?" Or did Silverman see Rob Johnson in a game and try to copy his effeminate clown look? I wish I knew which homeless shelter Silverman was staying in so that I could ask him.

Sleeper: Buffalo Bills.

The Bills barely gained more yardage on the ground last season than the Bucs, but at least they had a 1,400-yard rusher in Travis Henry. Picking up Sam Gash at fullback was important, because he is still one of the best blockers in the league and will more than make up for the loss of Larry Centers.

It is too early to tell how good Willis McGahee will be, but he, along with Olandis Gary, give Buffalo a stable of running backs that most teams would kill for. The three of them do not really constitute a "three-headed monster" as some would call it, because they all have similar physiques and running styles.

You cannot run Henry for three series and then bring in Gary the next one and expect the defense to be affected by this "change-up," as Joe Buck and Chris Collinsworth call it. (Have you ever listened to these losers call a Giants game? Every time Ron Dayne comes in they start blabbering about "change-ups." It is painful.)

What you can do with these guys is wear down a defense. By running more this season, the Bills will not need to rely on Drew Bledsoe's arm as much as they had to last season, and he will not have to put up 40 attempts every game.

Much has been made about the modern day linebacker who can cover ground and fill gaps at running back-like speed. It is my feeling that wearing down linebackers by substituting fresh legs will eventually be as important to the running game as the offensive line beating up on the defensive line is.

It will be interesting to see if Gregg Williams and Kevin Gilbride take this approach next season considering they play in the AFC East, which is loaded with star linebackers.

Notable mention: Philadelphia Eagles.

I never thought that I would consider a backfield with Duce Staley to be legitimate, but you cannot argue with the numbers that they posted last year. The departure of Dorsey Levens is a plus, because Brian Westbrook will get more carries.

More importantly, Correll Buckhalter has recovered from his ACL tear of a year ago and will add some explosiveness to the Eagles backfield. With three solid, healthy backs, a QB that ran for over 400 yards last season, and the acquisition of veteran fullback Jon Ritchie, the Eagles should be among the NFL's elite rushing teams next season.

My pick: San Francisco 49ers.

The Niners have been among the top rushing attacks in the league the last two years. Garrison Hearst has revived his career and Kevan Barlow seems to get better with every snap. Also, Jeff Garcia brings another 300 yards to the table every season and picks up more clutch first downs with his feet than any other quarterback.

They also have Fred Beasley, who is the best blocking fullback in the league. Beasley is so good that the Rams actually used to take full days in practice to prepare for him.

Overall, the Niners running game is pretty similar to that of the Eagles. The main difference is that the Niners take incredible care of the ball. Over the past two seasons, they have lost only 13 fumbles. Eleven teams lost 13 or more fumbles just last season.

Receivers

If it's third and 15, just go ahead and punt: Baltimore Ravens.

I feel so sorry for whoever emerges as the Ravens starting quarterback this year. Can you imagine breaking from the huddle knowing that your primary receiver is Travis Taylor? In the offseason, the Ravens brought in Marcus Robinson and Frank Sanders to fill the void created by the departure of Brandon Stokley.

First of all, how bad do you have to be when replacing Brandon Stokley is one of your main concerns? Second, Marcus Robinson is not good. He had one decent season with the Bears four years ago, has hardly even been on the field since then, and now is supposed to be a cornerstone of a team's offense? Some of his troubles have come from injuries, but most of them stem from the fact that he is not good.

And who cares if he is a big target? Travis Taylor was supposed to be a star receiver because he is a big target, and he has been stinking up the league for years. If being a big target were all that mattered in making a quality receiver, about 10 teams would have tried to move up to the first-pick to draft Kentucky basketball star Tayshaun Prince.

Seriously, that guy must be about 10-feet tall when he puts his arms straight up -- no one would be able to defend him. (Speaking of Prince, or Plessy as I like to call him, somebody get that guy a sandwich before he starves to death. If you put his upper body on Keon Clark's lower body, the result would be two-dimensional.)

Anyway, the lone bright spot in the Ravens' receiving corps is tight end Todd Heap. He is the only person on the team who has good hands and can take a hit in the middle of the field. The Ravens are so thin that they might actually be forced to convert him into a wide receiver and let rookie Trent Smith take over at tight end.

Awful part one: Philadelphia Eagles.

If I were Andy Reid, I would run or throw a screen pass on every down, even if the opposing defense put 10 men in the box. Whether or not the Eagles manage to sign Antonio Freeman, their top two receivers are James Thrash and Todd Pinkston. These guys would be on the bench if they were on any team other than the Ravens or the Cardinals.

Actually, the Eagles have no need to sign Antonio Freeman. They already have two number three receivers in Thrash and Pinkston.

And if anybody gets hurt, don't worry -- it's Freddie Mitchell time! That can't be too much of a drop off, right? I mean, Freddie did have a 105-yard receiving game last year ... oh wait, my mistake. That was his total yardage for the entire season. I guess he's a seventh-option playing the role of a fourth-option.

So, in summation, the Eagles have one number seven receiver and, if they get Freeman, three number three receivers.

Awful part two: Arizona Cardinals.

Larry Foster? Bryan Gilmore? Jason McAddley? Nathan Poole? Jake Soliday? Kelvin Kasper? The only two receivers that have any potential on this team are rookies Anquan Boldin and Bryant Johnson, who were both incredible at the college level. They should probably be starting by Week 4.

Sleeper: New Orleans Saints.

The Saints finished in the middle of the pack last season in terms of receiving yards, but they have the talent and speed to take the name "The Greatest Show on Turf" from the Rams this season.

Joe Horn, of course, is the centerpiece, having posted All-Pro numbers the past few seasons. Jerome Pathon also played well last season, and rookie Donte' Stallworth had 8 touchdowns. In the draft, they got speedster Talman Gardner out of FSU and a former track star in USC's Kareem Kelly.

This will enable the Saints to use four wide receiver sets often, and since they will play about 10 games in domes next season, their speed will be an even greater asset. If my Falcons season tickets come through, I would actually consider skipping the Saints/Falcons game. As good as Wade Phillips is, I would rather shoot myself than watch his Falcon secondary try to defend a four-receiver set.

The one wild card in the Saints receiving game is the play of quarterback Aaron Brooks. As good as he has been at times and as strong as his arm is, his career completion percentage is 55.3% and he often melts down when his team gets into the red zone.

The addition of tight end Ernie Conwell should help him, because he can be a valuable safety valve for Brooks and has always been a good receiver on first down and third-and-long.

My pick: Pittsburgh Steelers.

I hate Hines Ward. I hate Antwaan Randle El even more. And, of course, I hate that wuss Plexi-glass the most. But together, they provide everything that a receiving corps should have: 1) A receiver with exceptional speed, who can run speed routes, or take a screen pass up field (Randle El). 2) A tough receiver, who can get first downs over the middle and can also take screen passes up field. (Hines Ward). 3) A big receiver who can run fade routes, deep posts, and will come down with jump balls in a crowd. (Plaxico Burress).

I'm not completely sold on Burress being this kind of receiver because of his history of timidity and weakness, but his average yards-per-reception last season was 17 and he did make some crucial catches. The Ward/Burress short-long combination is basically what the Keyshawn Johnson/Wayne Chrebet combination of a few years ago should have been.

Moreover, Ward and Burress give the Steelers two go-to receivers, something that no other team in the league has. The Steelers filled their one gaping hole at tight end by signing Jay Riemersma, who has good hands and should garner enough attention to limit the amount of double teams that Ward and Burress see.

Perhaps the most important development in the Steelers' receiving game was the departure of Kordell Stewart. Now the receivers won't have to practice man-coverage and batting down balls as much as the Steeler secondary does in practice.

Note:

I bet some people are thinking that the Raider receivers are the best group in the league with Jerry Rice, Tim Brown, and Jerry Porter. Maybe I would agree if they had a quarterback that could get them the ball appropriately.

I think of them more as running backs since they only go two yards past the line of scrimmage on every route. So, basically, in my view, they are disqualified. It's mainly Rich Gannon's fault, but I'll get to him later.

Quarterbacks

Worst: Dallas Cowboys.

Who cares if Bill Parcells is back? The starting quarterback for the Cowboys is going to be either Quincy Carter or Chad Hutchinson, so it doesn't really matter who the coach is. Both have a completion percentage in the 50s, and both had more interceptions last year than touchdowns.

Joey Galloway and Antonio Bryant are pretty good receivers, but neither of these quarterbacks is going to be able to get them the ball. And what exactly was the logic in signing Terry Glenn? How is a guy who only shows up to play every four weeks and drops big passes supposed to help a young quarterback develop?

The only reason that Glenn had any decent seasons in the first place is because he had Drew Bledsoe and Brett Favre throwing to him. He is going to have to adjust from making catches in stride to having to break his routes and come back 10 yards to catch under-thrown balls.

Glenn should probably jet on over to Arlington and take infield practice with the Rangers since he's going to see so many grounders in the Cowboys' training camp.

Near the top: San Francisco 49ers.

Jeff Garcia's numbers dropped off a little bit last season, but he is still an All-Pro caliber quarterback. Hopefully, he will throw downfield more often this season. His arm is actually much stronger than most people give him credit for.

The thing I like about Garcia is that he never forces anything. He has never thrown more than 12 interceptions in a season, and his completion percentage is always above 60%. When he gets in a rhythm, he is virtually impossible to stop.

Also, he seems to convert every third-down he faces whether it is on the ground or in the air. His quarterback rating on third-downs last season was an incredible 107.6

My pick: Kansas City Chiefs.

Trent Green finished the season fourth in quarterback rating and improved more than any other quarterback in the league. He threw for nearly 3,700 yards and had a touchdown-interception ratio of 2-1.

What makes his numbers more impressive is the Chiefs' lack of talent at wide receiver. Eddie Kennison emerged as their best receiver and he did not even break the 1,000-yard plateau and only scored twice. Free-agent flop Johnnie Morton did not catch 30 passes, and even tight end Tony Gonzalez had a subpar season by his standards.

If Johnnie Morton plays anywhere close to his potential next season, Green should probably top 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns.

Note:

Rich Gannon is the most overrated quarterback I have ever seen. 67.6 completion percentage last season ... who cares? 4,689 yards passing last season ... who cares? 26 touchdowns as opposed to just 10 interceptions last season ... who cares? Quarterback rating of 97.3 last season ... who cares?

Gannon does not even deserve to be called a quarterback. All he does is throw dinky two-yard passes to his receivers and then let them do all the work. Yes, the strategy got them to the Super Bowl last season, but how can you respect this guy or give him any credit?

Every time I see him play, he takes the snap, immediately turns left or right and throws. He does not even look at the defense or perform a check-down on any receivers.

Garcia may throw several dinky passes throughout the course of a game, but at least he looks at all of his receivers. A short pass is Garcia's third option on any given pass play, whereas, for Gannon, it is the play.

Garcia's yards-per-attempt is actually a full yard lower than Gannon's, but I suspect that approximately 80% of those yards for Gannon are yards after the catch. Moreover, any long pass completions by Gannon can be attributed to a defense falling asleep.

After seeing 50-consecutive two-yard passes, one is caught off-guard when the 51st pass is thrown 30 yards. It is similar to batting against someone like Greg Maddux. When he throws 50-straight pitches on the outside corner and then comes high and inside for one pitch, you are not going to hit that pitch.

Sticking with the Garcia/Gannon comparison, they both had 10 interceptions last year. For Garcia and other normal quarterbacks who take their fair share of shots downfield, that is a really good number. For Gannon, this is an embarrassment.

How weak does your arm have to be to be intercepted on a two-yard pass? How can a cornerback or safety that is playing five yards back possibly have enough time to beat a receiver, who is two yards away from the quarterback, to the ball?

I would start Rick Mirer, Marques Tuiasosopo, Ronald Curry, or Tee Martin over Gannon this season. Okay, not Tee Martin.

Article courtesy of Sports Central.