St. Louis Rams 1,000 Yard Receiver Drought Continues In 2014 Projections

Over the past couple of days we have gone over the season statistical projections for St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford and  the Rams running backs. Today we will go over the season projections of the wide receiver position. The St. Louis Rams may be a run-first team, but they will still need their wide receivers to play well. Not to mention the Rams haven’t had a 1,000 yard receiver since Torry Holt. Here are the 2-14 projections for the St. Louis Rams wide receivers.

Chris Givens

NFL.com- 672 yards receiving, 6 TDs

ESPN.com- 46 receptions, 524 yards, 3 TDs, 13 carries, 121 yards, 1 TD

A fourth round pick out of Wake Forest, Chris Givens stormed the league his rookie season, having 42 receptions for 698-yards and 3 touchdowns. Givens disappointed last year only picking up 569 yards and failing to record a touchdown.

Givens is an unknown right now. If he comes out and disappoints like he did last season, Brian Quick or Stedman Bailey could pass him on the depth chart, but if he come out and plays like he did his rookie season, he could put up 700 yards.

At the end of the day, Britt has stood out and became this team’s number one guy which is bad news for Givens.  30 receptions for 500-yards and 2-touchdowns is a fair projection at this point.

Kenny Britt

NFL.com- 880 yards receiving, 5 TDs

ESPN.com- 37 recpetions, 525 yards, 4 TDs

If it’s one thing that Britt brings to the table it is downfield production. Britt has struggled the past couple of years Working with Jeff Fisher again could help Britt regain his deep-ball ability. Britt has looked strong in camp, and fans can’t wait to see this guy on the field.

NFL.com gives Britt 880 yards while ESPN is giving Britt around 500. If the rumors in Rams camp are true, and Britt can stay healthy, somewhere between 500 and 800 yards to go along with four or more touchdowns is certainly a high possibility.

Tavon Austin

NFL.com- 739 yards receiving, 5 TDs, 131 yards rushing, 2 TDs

ESPN.com- 46 receptions, 524 Yards, 3 TDs, 13 carries, 121 Yards, 1 TD

I think Tavon Austin is in for a big year this season. Before getting hurt at the end of 2013, Austin finished the final four games of the season with 211 yards which amounted to 50% of his total receiving yards, recorded three of his six touchdowns, and picked up 135 of his 151 rushing yards.

Austin finally came into his own at the end of the year, and I full expect that to continue going into his second season. Really his only setback will be offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer. Im not sure if over 700 yards is possible but I certainly think somewhere between 500 and 650 yards and four touchdowns to go along with 150 or so yards rushing is a solid projection.

Brian Quick

NFL.com- 319 yards, 2 TDs

ESPN.com- N/A

Rumor has it that the Rams are very happy with Brian Quick this offseason and that he has been quite impressive in camp. If Quick can work his way to earn some reps in the starting lineup, 500 yards is a possibility, but until I see Quick play, it is hard to predict how things will shake out.

Quick has all the potential in the world, you just have to wonder if 2014 is the year he finally puts it all together and  has a big year.

Stedman Bailey

NFL.com-N/A

ESPN.com- N/A

ESPN and NFL.com don’t have any stats projected for Bailey for the time being, but after he comes back from his suspension, I really think Bailey is going to be a big part of this offense. We saw what Bailey could do last night with his touchdown reception from quarterback Shaun Hill, and it makes it sting that much more that we will have to wait until week six to see him in action.

It may take a game or two for Bailey to finally get going and work his way into the offense, but once he does I see around 25 catches for 350 yards and three touchdowns for the second year receiver.

Austin Pettis

NFL.com- 528 yards receiving 3 TD

ESPN.com- N/A

Although I do believe that Austin Pettis’ stats will go down in 2014, I do still think that he puts up some numbers this season. Bradford and Pettis do share some good chemistry, but that won’t be enough to put him ahead of Givens or Britt.

Eventually I see Bailey being Pettis’ replacement, which could happen this season. I certainly don’t see 500 yards receiving from Pettis or improving off of last years 399 yards. I see between 250 and 400 yards to go along with three touchdowns.

According to the projections, the St. Louis Rams will once again be without a 1,000 yard receiver which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. However, if it is any receiver on this roster who has a chance, it will be Britt. The St. Louis Rams receivers won’t be asked to do a lot in 2014, but they will need to come up big when their number is called.

Season Projections

Quarterback

Running Back