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Over-the-Hill Gang: Huge Group of Receivers Remains Unsigned in Free Agency

Most of the best-available receivers have one thing in common: They are old.
Bill Huber|
Over-the-Hill Gang: Huge Group of Receivers Remains Unsigned in Free Agency
Over-the-Hill Gang: Huge Group of Receivers Remains Unsigned in Free Agency

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers need help at receiver, and a lot of players who have caught a lot of passes remain available in NFL free agency.

Of course, quantity doesn’t necessarily mean quality.

ESPN.com’s Mike Clay posted a length list of every available player in free agency. The list at receiver went almost 40 deep. Atop the rankings are what you could call the Over the Hill Gang. Of Clay’s top 16, 12 will be 30-plus years old this season.

Odell Beckham, Rams: 531 receptions, 56 touchdowns in eight seasons. Having worn out his welcome in Cleveland, he helped the Rams win the Super Bowl. Will turn 30 in November and is coming off a torn ACL sustained in the Super Bowl.

Will Fuller, Dolphins: 213 receptions, 24 touchdowns in six seasons. Will turn 28 this month. Games missed by season: two in 2016, six in 2017, nine in 2018, five in 2019, five in 2020, 15 in 2021.

Jarvis Landry, Browns: 688 receptions, 37 touchdowns in eight seasons. Had career-low 570 receiving yards in 2021. Will turn 30 in November.

A.J. Green, Cardinals: 703 receptions, 68 touchdowns in 11 seasons. Averaged 15.7 yards per catch in 2021 but will turn 34 at the start of training camp.

Julio Jones, Titans: 879 receptions, 61 touchdowns in 11 seasons. Is No. 1 in NFL history with 91.9 yards per game but averaged only 43.4 last year. Turned 33 in February.

T.Y. Hilton: Colts: 631 receptions, 53 touchdowns in 10 seasons. Averaged just 33.1 yards per game last season. Will turn 33 in November.

Emmanuel Sanders, Bills: 704 receptions, 51 touchdowns in 12 seasons. In 2021, 58.3 percent catch rate, 44.7 yards per game among worst in career. Turned 35 in March.

Sammy Watkins, Ravens: 348 receptions, 34 touchdowns in eight seasons. Averaged 80.5 yards per game in 2015 but fell to 48.1, 42.1 and 30.3 last three seasons. Will turn 29 in June.

Cole Beasley, Bills: 550 receptions, 34 touchdowns in 10 seasons. Back-to-back 82-catch seasons for the Bills but the Packers don’t need another slot. Turned 33 this month.

Adam Humphries, Commanders: 320 receptions, 13 touchdowns in seven seasons. Caught 76 passes for 816 yards for the Bucs in 2018 but 64 passes for 611 yards in 23 games the past two years. Will turn 29 in June.

Keelan Cole, Jaguars: 187 receptions, 13 touchdowns in five seasons, including 28 passes for 449 yards and one score last year for the Jets. Will turn 29 this month.

DeSean Jackson, Raiders: 632 receptions, 58 touchdowns in 14 seasons and is No. 1 among active players with 17.6 yards per catch. Had total of 43 receptions the past three seasons and will turn 36 in December.

Albert Wilson, Dolphins: 218 receptions, 12 touchdowns in seven seasons. Opted out of 2020, then caught 25 balls for just 213 yards in 2021. Will turn 30 in July.

Danny Amendola: Texans: 617 receptions, 24 touchdowns in 13 seasons. Caught 24 passes in eight games last season, when his yards per target dipped by 2.2. Will turn 37 in November.

Mohamed Sanu, 49ers: 435 receptions, 27 touchdowns in 10 seasons but a total of only 32 catches the last two years. Will turn 33 in August.

Kenny Stills, Saints: 316 receptions, 38 touchdowns in nine seasons but just 17 catches in 23 games the past two years. Will turn 30 this month.

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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.

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