NFL Receiving Leaders

Comprehensive receiving statistics including EPA, target share, and efficiency metrics

Season EPA Target Detail Target Share
Player
GP
Targets
Recs
Yards
YPC
YPG
TDs
1st Downs
Total
/ Game
/ Catch
/ Target
/ Route
Target Rate
Catch Rate
CROE
aDOT
All
3rd Down
Red Zone
Jaxon Smith-Njigba headshot
J. Smith-Njigba
SEA25
10
97
72
1,146
15.9
114.6
5
52
+54.0
+5.4
+0.75
+0.56
74.2%
+13.76%
12.5
37.2%
32.4%
20.0%
George Pickens headshot
G. Pickens
DAL25
10
83
58
908
15.7
90.8
7
50
+69.8
+7.0
+1.20
+0.84
69.9%
+11.04%
11.9
22.9%
23.1%
20.6%
Ja'Marr Chase headshot
J. Chase
CIN25
10
117
79
861
10.9
86.1
5
43
+24.3
+2.4
+0.31
+0.21
67.5%
+1.20%
8.6
32.7%
32.5%
34.0%
Puka Nacua headshot
P. Nacua
LAR25
9
87
73
850
11.6
94.4
4
43
+59.6
+6.6
+0.82
+0.69
83.9%
+15.93%
9.1
29.3%
29.2%
14.0%
Drake London headshot
D. London
ATL25
9
95
60
810
13.5
90.0
6
39
+22.7
+2.5
+0.38
+0.24
63.2%
-0.31%
10.2
33.2%
27.4%
41.9%
Tetairoa McMillan headshot
T. McMillan
CAR25
11
89
54
748
13.9
68.0
4
44
+23.7
+2.2
+0.44
+0.27
60.7%
+1.01%
10.9
26.8%
34.4%
23.3%
Justin Jefferson headshot
J. Jefferson
MIN25
10
94
56
747
13.3
74.7
2
32
-11.0
-1.1
-0.20
-0.12
59.6%
-1.60%
11.4
30.2%
33.8%
22.2%
Amon-Ra St. Brown headshot
A. St. Brown
DET25
10
94
66
735
11.1
73.5
8
38
+33.7
+3.4
+0.51
+0.36
70.2%
+3.39%
8.2
31.4%
32.1%
40.9%
Jaylen Waddle headshot
J. Waddle
MIA25
11
73
49
722
14.7
65.6
5
35
+39.1
+3.6
+0.80
+0.54
67.1%
+6.40%
13.2
22.7%
19.7%
21.3%
Trey McBride headshot
T. McBride
ARI25
10
100
71
718
10.1
71.8
7
38
+47.2
+4.7
+0.66
+0.47
71.0%
+3.15%
6.8
27.6%
24.7%
31.9%
Emeka Egbuka headshot
E. Egbuka
TB25
10
86
45
717
15.9
71.7
6
27
+16.8
+1.7
+0.37
+0.20
52.3%
-9.48%
12.0
25.6%
28.6%
27.3%
Christian McCaffrey headshot
C. McCaffrey
SF25
11
96
74
712
9.6
64.7
5
35
+34.2
+3.1
+0.46
+0.36
77.1%
+1.77%
2.6
25.4%
23.4%
29.5%
Zay Flowers headshot
Z. Flowers
BAL25
10
72
53
703
13.3
70.3
1
28
+25.6
+2.6
+0.48
+0.35
73.6%
+8.25%
8.9
28.0%
25.3%
18.2%
DeVonta Smith headshot
D. Smith
PHI25
10
68
49
665
13.6
66.5
3
28
+42.1
+4.2
+0.86
+0.62
72.1%
+10.96%
11.8
26.4%
34.8%
24.1%
Chris Olave headshot
C. Olave
NO25
10
95
60
664
11.1
66.4
4
27
+14.2
+1.4
+0.24
+0.15
63.2%
-1.06%
10.6
28.9%
33.7%
27.0%
Stefon Diggs headshot
S. Diggs
NE25
11
72
59
659
11.2
59.9
3
34
+42.5
+3.9
+0.72
+0.59
81.9%
+16.66%
8.7
23.2%
26.7%
25.6%
Courtland Sutton headshot
C. Sutton
DEN25
11
75
45
649
14.4
59.0
4
32
+32.3
+2.9
+0.72
+0.43
60.0%
+1.45%
12.2
20.2%
28.9%
17.3%
Ladd McConkey headshot
L. McConkey
LAC25
11
84
54
644
11.9
58.5
4
29
+10.5
+1.0
+0.19
+0.13
64.3%
-2.26%
8.9
22.3%
21.1%
19.6%
Nico Collins headshot
N. Collins
HOU25
9
83
49
642
13.1
71.3
4
29
+12.3
+1.4
+0.25
+0.15
59.0%
-1.84%
11.3
26.1%
24.4%
33.3%
Wan'Dale Robinson headshot
W. Robinson
NYG25
11
89
57
638
11.2
58.0
2
25
+12.4
+1.1
+0.22
+0.14
64.0%
-1.49%
8.2
26.5%
34.0%
18.6%
Travis Kelce headshot
T. Kelce
KC25
10
67
50
631
12.6
63.1
4
33
+35.7
+3.6
+0.71
+0.53
74.6%
+5.59%
5.7
19.4%
16.0%
17.2%
Tyler Warren headshot
T. Warren
IND25
10
68
50
617
12.3
61.7
3
30
+31.6
+3.2
+0.63
+0.46
73.5%
+2.37%
5.4
21.3%
17.4%
28.6%
Rome Odunze headshot
R. Odunze
CHI25
10
76
39
600
15.4
60.0
6
33
+22.9
+2.3
+0.59
+0.30
51.3%
-5.37%
14.2
23.7%
32.9%
29.3%
Keenan Allen headshot
K. Allen
LAC25
11
86
56
592
10.6
53.8
4
36
+28.9
+2.6
+0.52
+0.34
65.1%
+0.47%
8.6
22.8%
36.8%
23.2%
Alec Pierce headshot
A. Pierce
IND25
8
52
28
585
20.9
73.1
1
24
+25.6
+3.2
+0.91
+0.49
53.8%
+0.71%
20.3
20.6%
20.0%
5.1%
Michael Pittman headshot
M. Pittman
IND25
10
73
54
580
10.7
58.0
6
35
+32.1
+3.2
+0.59
+0.44
74.0%
+7.99%
8.0
22.9%
17.4%
22.4%
Davante Adams headshot
D. Adams
LAR25
10
86
43
569
13.2
56.9
10
35
+14.1
+1.4
+0.33
+0.16
50.0%
-7.85%
12.6
26.1%
35.0%
36.4%
Jameson Williams headshot
J. Williams
DET25
10
50
31
562
18.1
56.2
5
26
+28.3
+2.8
+0.91
+0.57
62.0%
+1.70%
14.3
16.7%
22.6%
9.1%
CeeDee Lamb headshot
C. Lamb
DAL25
6
61
40
557
13.9
92.8
2
23
+10.4
+1.7
+0.26
+0.17
65.6%
+3.15%
11.6
28.0%
29.4%
23.5%
DK Metcalf headshot
D. Metcalf
PIT25
10
62
37
551
14.9
55.1
5
26
+19.4
+1.9
+0.52
+0.31
59.7%
-3.61%
10.8
21.2%
16.0%
20.9%
Tee Higgins headshot
T. Higgins
CIN25
10
65
35
544
15.5
54.4
7
27
+25.7
+2.6
+0.73
+0.39
53.8%
-1.13%
13.5
18.2%
25.3%
21.3%
Rashid Shaheed headshot
R. Shaheed
SEA25
11
72
47
529
11.3
48.1
2
23
-1.2
-0.1
-0.03
-0.02
65.3%
+0.89%
11.2
20.2%
15.6%
20.0%
Marvin Harrison Jr. headshot
M. Harrison
ARI25
9
63
34
525
15.4
58.3
4
25
+28.4
+3.2
+0.83
+0.45
54.0%
-4.81%
12.3
20.7%
17.6%
19.0%
Troy Franklin headshot
T. Franklin
DEN25
11
84
46
509
11.1
46.3
5
24
-0.2
-0.0
-0.01
-0.00
54.8%
-3.06%
13.6
22.6%
18.4%
32.7%
Oronde Gadsden II headshot
O. Gadsden
LAC25
9
49
37
507
13.7
56.3
2
20
+16.1
+1.8
+0.43
+0.33
75.5%
+10.67%
8.3
15.5%
13.4%
23.5%
Bijan Robinson headshot
B. Robinson
ATL25
10
59
47
506
10.8
50.6
2
21
+17.5
+1.8
+0.37
+0.30
79.7%
+2.33%
1.5
18.7%
16.3%
28.1%
Quentin Johnston headshot
Q. Johnston
LAC25
9
65
37
502
13.6
55.8
6
18
+5.9
+0.7
+0.16
+0.09
56.9%
-6.24%
10.4
20.6%
19.5%
23.8%
Tre Tucker headshot
T. Tucker
OAK25
10
54
38
502
13.2
50.2
5
23
+26.3
+2.6
+0.69
+0.49
70.4%
+1.36%
8.7
17.8%
10.0%
16.7%
Romeo Doubs headshot
R. Doubs
GB25
10
65
39
499
12.8
49.9
4
30
+17.1
+1.7
+0.44
+0.26
60.0%
+1.18%
12.9
22.1%
22.2%
25.0%
Juwan Johnson headshot
J. Johnson
NO25
10
60
43
491
11.4
49.1
3
24
+19.4
+1.9
+0.45
+0.32
71.7%
+1.37%
7.4
18.2%
17.4%
18.9%
Dalton Schultz headshot
D. Schultz
HOU25
10
69
51
489
9.6
48.9
1
26
+24.2
+2.4
+0.47
+0.35
73.9%
+5.13%
6.4
19.4%
25.8%
12.0%
Sam LaPorta headshot
S. LaPorta
DET25
9
49
40
489
12.2
54.3
3
23
+36.4
+4.0
+0.91
+0.74
81.6%
+12.58%
5.7
18.6%
20.0%
14.3%
Tucker Kraft headshot
T. Kraft
GB25
8
44
32
489
15.3
61.1
6
22
+39.1
+4.9
+1.22
+0.89
72.7%
+3.27%
4.6
18.7%
20.0%
31.6%
Kendrick Bourne headshot
K. Bourne
SF25
9
42
31
482
15.5
53.6
0
23
+25.4
+2.8
+0.82
+0.60
73.8%
+9.46%
10.9
13.2%
11.4%
4.4%
Deebo Samuel Sr. headshot
D. Samuel
WAS25
10
69
53
470
8.9
47.0
5
19
+16.1
+1.6
+0.30
+0.23
76.8%
+6.42%
5.3
26.3%
17.2%
40.0%
A.J. Brown headshot
A. Brown
PHI25
9
65
38
457
12.0
50.8
3
18
+13.3
+1.5
+0.35
+0.20
58.5%
-2.25%
11.8
27.3%
29.2%
33.3%
Jakobi Meyers headshot
J. Meyers
JAX25
9
58
41
457
11.1
50.8
0
21
+6.0
+0.7
+0.15
+0.10
70.7%
+4.58%
9.3
21.6%
28.6%
15.6%
Brock Bowers headshot
B. Bowers
OAK25
7
56
39
455
11.7
65.0
3
21
+13.6
+1.9
+0.35
+0.24
69.6%
+2.90%
6.8
24.7%
24.6%
35.5%
Khalil Shakir headshot
K. Shakir
BUF25
10
62
46
454
9.9
45.4
3
21
+12.0
+1.2
+0.26
+0.19
74.2%
+1.33%
4.3
20.9%
20.0%
22.0%
Dalton Kincaid headshot
D. Kincaid
BUF25
8
37
29
448
15.4
56.0
4
21
+32.1
+4.0
+1.11
+0.87
78.4%
+15.59%
9.3
15.4%
19.3%
16.7%
Kyle Pitts headshot
K. Pitts
ATL25
10
62
47
434
9.2
43.4
1
22
+5.7
+0.6
+0.12
+0.09
75.8%
+5.04%
7.1
19.6%
23.8%
15.6%
Kayshon Boutte headshot
K. Boutte
NE25
9
31
23
431
18.7
47.9
5
20
+33.7
+3.7
+1.46
+1.09
74.2%
+21.01%
17.1
12.5%
16.2%
5.9%
Marquise Brown headshot
M. Brown
KC25
10
57
38
429
11.3
42.9
4
22
+20.4
+2.0
+0.54
+0.36
66.7%
+3.14%
10.1
16.5%
20.0%
15.5%
Harold Fannin Jr. headshot
H. Fannin
CLE25
10
64
44
422
9.6
42.2
2
19
+2.9
+0.3
+0.07
+0.05
68.8%
+0.67%
6.1
18.7%
19.6%
15.9%
Hunter Henry headshot
H. Henry
NE25
11
53
34
422
12.4
38.4
4
24
+20.2
+1.8
+0.60
+0.38
64.2%
+0.07%
8.6
17.1%
16.3%
25.6%
Brian Thomas Jr. headshot
B. Thomas
JAX25
8
60
30
420
14.0
52.5
1
19
-0.0
-0.0
-0.00
-0.00
50.0%
-9.65%
12.8
21.0%
27.4%
12.1%
Michael Wilson headshot
M. Wilson
ARI25
10
56
37
416
11.2
41.6
1
22
+20.7
+2.1
+0.56
+0.37
66.1%
+2.52%
11.0
15.5%
22.4%
8.7%
Jordan Addison headshot
J. Addison
MIN25
7
52
28
412
14.7
58.9
3
18
+8.1
+1.2
+0.29
+0.16
53.8%
-2.81%
14.3
21.3%
11.3%
24.4%
DJ Moore headshot
D. Moore
CHI25
10
51
31
410
13.2
41.0
1
19
+8.1
+0.8
+0.26
+0.16
60.8%
-3.20%
10.5
15.9%
14.6%
9.8%
Jake Ferguson headshot
J. Ferguson
DAL25
10
71
60
400
6.7
40.0
7
19
+13.5
+1.4
+0.23
+0.19
84.5%
+10.82%
4.1
19.6%
16.5%
25.4%
Garrett Wilson headshot
G. Wilson
NYJ25
7
60
36
395
11.0
56.4
4
18
-2.1
-0.3
-0.06
-0.03
60.0%
-2.68%
8.9
33.7%
37.8%
21.7%
Cooper Kupp headshot
C. Kupp
SEA25
9
42
29
390
13.4
43.3
1
16
+7.4
+0.8
+0.26
+0.18
69.0%
+0.75%
7.7
17.7%
25.0%
14.3%
Zach Ertz headshot
Z. Ertz
WAS25
11
58
39
387
9.9
35.2
4
18
+6.0
+0.5
+0.15
+0.10
67.2%
+3.25%
8.9
19.8%
19.7%
25.0%
Mack Hollins headshot
M. Hollins
NE25
10
38
30
387
12.9
38.7
2
21
+23.7
+2.4
+0.79
+0.62
78.9%
+17.77%
12.4
13.5%
12.5%
13.9%
Cade Otton headshot
C. Otton
TB25
9
54
37
381
10.3
42.3
0
17
+6.2
+0.7
+0.17
+0.12
68.5%
-3.23%
5.4
17.6%
14.5%
7.9%
Jauan Jennings headshot
J. Jennings
SF25
9
58
32
378
11.8
42.0
3
19
-12.9
-1.4
-0.40
-0.22
55.2%
-5.90%
10.0
19.9%
28.0%
22.6%
Tyquan Thornton headshot
T. Thornton
KC25
8
30
15
372
24.8
46.5
3
12
+21.4
+2.7
+1.43
+0.71
50.0%
+9.49%
26.7
10.5%
17.2%
8.7%
De'Von Achane headshot
D. Achane
MIA25
11
71
54
363
6.7
33.0
4
17
-14.1
-1.3
-0.26
-0.20
76.1%
-3.00%
0.3
22.1%
22.4%
19.1%
Jerry Jeudy headshot
J. Jeudy
CLE25
10
73
31
356
11.5
35.6
1
21
-25.6
-2.6
-0.83
-0.35
42.5%
-15.43%
11.5
21.3%
27.8%
20.5%
Dallas Goedert headshot
D. Goedert
PHI25
9
50
36
356
9.9
39.6
7
20
+20.4
+2.3
+0.57
+0.41
72.0%
+3.05%
8.1
21.1%
13.1%
24.1%
Parker Washington headshot
P. Washington
JAX25
9
55
30
350
11.7
38.9
2
18
-2.1
-0.2
-0.07
-0.04
54.5%
-5.53%
11.3
18.2%
23.1%
22.5%
Theo Johnson headshot
T. Johnson
NYG25
11
55
36
350
9.7
31.8
5
19
+10.9
+1.0
+0.30
+0.20
65.5%
-0.41%
7.0
16.4%
22.0%
25.6%
Sterling Shepard headshot
S. Shepard
TB25
10
46
34
349
10.3
34.9
1
17
+2.3
+0.2
+0.07
+0.05
73.9%
+8.24%
8.2
13.7%
22.6%
13.6%
Darius Slayton headshot
D. Slayton
NYG25
8
34
23
343
14.9
42.9
0
11
+9.8
+1.2
+0.43
+0.29
67.6%
+7.17%
14.3
13.8%
7.5%
8.8%
Chig Okonkwo headshot
C. Okonkwo
TEN25
10
42
32
337
10.5
33.7
0
14
+5.9
+0.6
+0.18
+0.14
76.2%
+1.72%
5.4
13.5%
10.1%
4.0%
Elic Ayomanor headshot
E. Ayomanor
TEN25
10
59
28
334
11.9
33.4
2
20
-0.7
-0.1
-0.03
-0.01
47.5%
-12.52%
12.9
19.0%
22.8%
20.0%
DeMario Douglas headshot
D. Douglas
NE25
10
35
23
332
14.4
33.2
3
13
+20.9
+2.1
+0.91
+0.60
65.7%
+3.52%
8.9
11.9%
11.1%
17.1%
Jahmyr Gibbs headshot
J. Gibbs
DET25
10
43
37
331
8.9
33.1
2
14
+11.8
+1.2
+0.32
+0.27
86.0%
+6.99%
-0.2
14.4%
14.3%
15.9%
Keon Coleman headshot
K. Coleman
BUF25
9
51
32
330
10.3
36.7
3
22
+4.8
+0.5
+0.15
+0.10
62.7%
+3.80%
11.3
19.2%
14.1%
17.9%
Colston Loveland headshot
C. Loveland
CHI25
9
34
24
329
13.7
36.6
2
14
+21.9
+2.4
+0.91
+0.64
70.6%
+7.70%
9.1
12.0%
12.7%
18.8%
Ricky Pearsall headshot
R. Pearsall
SF25
5
32
21
327
15.6
65.4
0
17
+16.3
+3.3
+0.78
+0.51
65.6%
+12.97%
15.2
18.4%
25.6%
13.8%
Jalen Nailor headshot
J. Nailor
MIN25
10
38
20
318
15.9
31.8
2
16
+12.6
+1.3
+0.63
+0.33
52.6%
-3.98%
12.0
12.2%
18.3%
20.4%
Josh Downs headshot
J. Downs
IND25
9
48
36
309
8.6
34.3
3
23
+15.8
+1.8
+0.44
+0.33
75.0%
+7.28%
6.6
16.8%
25.8%
21.4%
AJ Barner headshot
A. Barner
SEA25
9
37
31
306
9.9
34.0
4
15
+11.4
+1.3
+0.37
+0.31
83.8%
+14.23%
4.6
14.9%
14.7%
25.0%
Calvin Ridley headshot
C. Ridley
TEN25
7
36
17
303
17.8
43.3
0
13
+12.2
+1.7
+0.72
+0.34
47.2%
-13.11%
12.6
16.4%
20.0%
11.8%
Travis Hunter headshot
T. Hunter
JAX25
7
45
28
298
10.6
42.6
1
12
-2.3
-0.3
-0.08
-0.05
62.2%
-4.66%
7.9
17.8%
16.7%
17.9%
JuJu Smith-Schuster headshot
J. Smith-Schuster
KC25
9
30
25
291
11.6
32.3
1
15
+8.2
+0.9
+0.33
+0.27
83.3%
+12.33%
5.6
9.9%
10.6%
13.2%
David Njoku headshot
D. Njoku
CLE25
9
45
30
288
9.6
32.0
3
10
-3.7
-0.4
-0.12
-0.08
66.7%
-3.74%
5.6
13.9%
14.4%
19.0%
Matthew Golden headshot
M. Golden
GB25
9
32
24
286
11.9
31.8
0
12
+19.4
+2.2
+0.81
+0.61
75.0%
+13.02%
12.6
12.3%
12.5%
4.7%
Xavier Worthy headshot
X. Worthy
KC25
8
45
27
281
10.4
35.1
1
13
+6.6
+0.8
+0.24
+0.15
60.0%
-0.10%
13.1
16.0%
10.3%
9.6%
T.J. Hockenson headshot
T. Hockenson
MIN25
10
47
34
280
8.2
28.0
2
14
+7.2
+0.7
+0.21
+0.15
72.3%
-2.83%
4.6
15.1%
9.9%
14.8%
Pat Freiermuth headshot
P. Freiermuth
PIT25
9
29
23
279
12.1
31.0
3
10
+11.7
+1.3
+0.51
+0.40
79.3%
+8.98%
5.9
10.7%
10.7%
13.9%
Mason Taylor headshot
M. Taylor
NYJ25
10
49
34
276
8.1
27.6
1
18
+14.3
+1.4
+0.42
+0.29
69.4%
+1.89%
5.4
18.4%
14.7%
25.0%
Mark Andrews headshot
M. Andrews
BAL25
10
43
32
276
8.6
27.6
5
18
+9.9
+1.0
+0.31
+0.23
74.4%
+8.40%
7.2
16.7%
16.0%
27.3%
Malik Nabers headshot
M. Nabers
NYG25
4
35
18
271
15.1
67.8
2
11
+2.3
+0.6
+0.13
+0.07
51.4%
-5.13%
15.9
28.7%
18.2%
23.5%
Tyreek Hill headshot
T. Hill
MIA25
4
29
21
265
12.6
66.3
1
17
+19.8
+5.0
+0.94
+0.68
72.4%
+13.20%
13.8
23.8%
31.3%
12.5%
Xavier Legette headshot
X. Legette
CAR25
9
46
24
264
11.0
29.3
3
12
-7.3
-0.8
-0.30
-0.16
52.2%
-10.13%
9.5
16.7%
17.3%
21.6%
Xavier Hutchinson headshot
X. Hutchinson
HOU25
9
34
24
264
11.0
29.3
3
12
+13.8
+1.5
+0.58
+0.41
70.6%
+4.74%
10.1
11.0%
7.6%
13.9%
Tez Johnson headshot
T. Johnson
TB25
9
33
20
261
13.1
29.0
4
12
+15.5
+1.7
+0.78
+0.47
60.6%
-1.65%
12.7
11.0%
9.3%
13.5%
Evan Engram headshot
E. Engram
DEN25
10
51
32
260
8.1
26.0
1
14
+2.6
+0.3
+0.08
+0.05
62.7%
-8.08%
4.3
14.6%
16.5%
13.7%

NFL Receiving Leaders & Advanced Statistics

Current Season Overview

The 2025 NFL season has showcased exceptional receiving talent across all positions. Our receiving leaders tracker allows you to sort by traditional statistics like receiving yards, receptions, and touchdowns, as well as advanced analytics like total Expected Points Added (EPA)EPA per target, EPA per route run, catch rate over expected (CROE), and average depth of target (aDOT).

Here are the current leaders for receiving yards and total EPA, representing the most popular traditional and advanced statistics respectively:

2025 Receiving Leaders

PlayerTeamYardsRecs
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Seahawks
114672
George Pickens
Cowboys
90858
Ja'Marr Chase
Bengals
86179
Puka Nacua
Rams
85073
Drake London
Falcons
81060
Tetairoa McMillan
Panthers
74854
Justin Jefferson
Vikings
74756
Amon-Ra St. Brown
Lions
73566
Jaylen Waddle
Dolphins
72249
Trey McBride
Cardinals
71871
PlayerTeamTotal EPAEPA / Target
George Pickens
Cowboys
69.80.84
Puka Nacua
Rams
59.60.69
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Seahawks
54.00.56
Trey McBride
Cardinals
47.20.47
Stefon Diggs
Patriots
42.50.59
DeVonta Smith
Eagles
42.10.62
Tucker Kraft
Packers
39.10.89
Jaylen Waddle
Dolphins
39.10.54
Sam LaPorta
Lions
36.40.74
Travis Kelce
Chiefs
35.70.53

Understanding Receiving Statistics

Traditional Season Stats

Traditional receiving statistics are widely used and a foundational way to assess receiver production in a given season. The table above includes the most relevant traditional stats for receivers, including total receiving yards, receptions, targets, touchdowns, and yards per catch. These metrics show pure production and opportunity volume.

Key Traditional Metrics:

  • Total Receiving Yards - Season accumulation of passing yards gained
  • Receptions - Total number of completed targets
  • Targets - Total passing attempts directed at the receiver
  • Receiving Touchdowns - Scoring receptions in the end zone
  • Yards per Reception - Average yards gained per completed catch

Advanced Analytics

Beyond the traditional stats, there are a number of less well known, but highly useful advanced statistics. Here's an overview of the most important advanced stats for receivers:

Expected Points Added (EPA)

EPA stands for Expected Points Added and measures how much a given play increases or decreases a team's expected points based on field position, down, and distance. EPA shows true impact beyond basic statistics by accounting for game situation and field position.

Learn more about Expected Points Added

In the context of receiving, EPA can be calculated from the plays the receiver was involved in. EPA can be calculated from a variety of different perspectives, each creating a different view of receiver performance.

EPA Breakdowns:

  • EPA per Reception - Efficiency metric similar to yards per recepetion.
  • EPA per Target - Measures efficiency like EPA per reception, but also includes the negative effects of incompletions, drops, and interceptions. Recievers with poor on ball skills or who are targeted too frequently will see a large fall off between EPA per reception and EPA per target since they have, on average, more negative plays.
  • EPA per Route - Perhaps the single best metric for evaluating receiver efficiency, EPA per route run takes the added context of EPA per Target, but also considers plays where a receiver is not targeted. In doing so, EPA per route run also encompasses an element of a receiver's ability to create seperation and opportunity for their quarterback. Receivers who see a lot of playing time, but fail to get open and earn targets tend to have a large fall off between EPA per reception and EPA per route run.
  • EPA per Game - EPA per game takes the efficiency measuring ability of EPA per reception, target, or route run, and adds an element of volume. You will see that the best receivers are not only efficient, but also accumulate a lot of total EPA as they sustain efficient production over a volume of plays. EPA per Game is a great metric for total impact.

Target Analysis

Beyond EPA, another area of more advanced analysis is to look at performance based on targets as it can speak to not only the concepts discussed above, but also a receiver's use within an NFL offense.

Catch Rate - Catch rate is the percent of targets that resulted in a catch. Leading receivers tend to convert more of their targets into receptions, which creates a higher catch rate. However, catch rate can be highly sensative to contextual factors. For instance, Running Backs who are mainly targeted on short passes, designed screens, and checkdowns will have higher catch rates because these throws are short and often not contested.

Average Depth of Target (aDOT) - aDOT is the average depth of a receiver's targets. This metric gives context on the types of routes a receiver runs and the types of targets they receive. "Deep Threat" receivers often have high aDOTs, while underneath receivers and running backs tend to have much lower aDOT. This metric is good as a contextual counter balance to catch rate, but it's not perfect.

Catch Rate Over Expected (CROE) - CROE measures the percentage of targets a receiver catches relative to what would be expected based on contextual factors like depth of target. It can be thought of as a combination of catch rate and aDOT, and generally correlates well with receiver quality.

Learn more about Over Expected metrics here

Target Share - The final family of metrics are Target Share, which represent the percent of a team's targets a receiver gets across a variety of contexts. Elite receivers will generally command upwards of 30% target share. Receivers with particular skillsets may also see higher target shares in different contexts, which is why this page includes Target Share on Third Down and Target Share in the Red Zone.