New Wave

The NFL is constantly changing. Careers aren't that long and players come and go. Some players flash and suddenly disappear. For years, Larry Fitzgerald, Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne, Calvin Johnson and a few others were at the top of the receiver game. All are still playing. When healthy, all are still playing well. They aren't ruling the league like they once did. There's a new wave of receivers taking their place. A quick glance at the yardage leaders reveals this change.

1.   996  Antonio Brown          
2.   937  TY Hilton
3.   894  Demaryius Thomas               
4.   800  Golden Tate          
5.   790  Jeremy Maclin        
6.   785  Emmanuel Sanders  
7.   784  DeSean Jackson
8.   737  Jordy Nelson
9.   734  Julio Jones
10. 711  Steve Smith

Steve Smith has found some new life with the Baltimore Ravens. He's the only one that doesn't fit in with the youth of the rest of the receiving yardage leaders. Hilton, Brown, Thomas, and Jones could be the NFL's receiving leaders for the next fistful of years. Brown and Thomas are catching passes from two of the best quarterbacks in Peyton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger. Those two quarterbacks are over 30, Manning very much so. In that sense, Hilton is in the best spot to be a top producer for a long time. He has the young gun Andrew Luck throwing pretty passes to him. The Luck-Hilton combo should be a nightmare for defenses for a decade. A healthy Calvin Johnson would likely be among the leaders and he'd push the production of teammate Golden Tate down a bit. Johnson, if he can stay healthy, has a few more dominant years in him. Fitzgerald, Andre Johnson, and Reggie Wayne have given way to younger options on their own teams. Those once dominant receivers are mostly role players now. The game is always changing with a new wave of players emerging.