Why Panthers WR Devin Funchess Is Poised for Breakout Sophomore Season

Organized team activities can be a tricky time for fans. The notion that all NFL players look good in shorts is true to some extent. The notion that all coaching staffs pump up their players during the offseason is correct to a point. Reporters have to write something for their publications, and relaying those quotes is often what fans get in the early summer months.

So, should fans really trust what is coming from the mouths of those running their franchise? If nothing else, in the information age, fans should at least cross-reference narratives before buying into them.

If an undrafted free agent is being ballooned into some Randy Moss-like athlete, they probably shouldn't take that to the bank, but if there was reason for optimism before words are thrown out into the media, then it's worth it to at least entertain the idea of that player's development.

The latter is the case for Carolina Panthers receiver Devin Funchess. Last year, Funchess, then a 20-year-old at the time of the draft, was the Panthers' second-round selection, coming off the board with the 41st overall pick.

At the time of the draft, the narrative was that the combination of Funchess, who measured in at just over 6'4" at the NFL Scouting Combine, and Kelvin Benjamin, the team's 6'5" 2014 first-round pick, gave quarterback Cam Newton two towering options as pass-catchers.

Heading into the 2014 draft, the Panthers' only four targeted receivers from their 2013 roster, Steve Smith, Brandon LaFell, Ted Ginn and Domenik Hixon, were all let go from the team in one way or another.

This meant there was a massive need for wideouts on the team, but it also gave the franchise a clean slate to build on. They weren't fiscally tied to anyone at the position, which meant they could choose to go in whichever direction they wanted. They elected to go after large targets, presumably because Newton's backyard style of play, developed in a college spread system, can lead to some high balls.

The Panthers' staff took initiative. Taking away some of those high balls would mean refining Newton in a way that would filter out his "gamer" mentality, one of his biggest strengths. So they brought in receivers who had a better chance to make plays on those high balls.

Some even thought Funchess, now listed at 225 pounds, and Benjamin, now listed at 245 pounds, were best suited to play tight end in the NFL, due to their size. Funchess even played tight end for two of his three active seasons at the University of Michigan.

The two-receiver combo never saw the field in 2015, Funchess' rookie season, though, because Benjamin tore his ACL in the preseason, ending his season. In 2014, Benjamin broke the franchise rookie records for receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. With Benjamin now on track to play in 2016, the expectations for the duo are high, but are they warranted?

Benjamin obviously established himself in 2014, but was Funchess' 2015 enough to assume he can be a 16-game starter as an outside receiver?

According to Max Henson of the Panthers' official website, Carolina head coach Ron Rivera stated that Funchess was "light-years ahead" from where he was a year ago. What I find most fascinating about Funchess' rookie year are the splits he had between his seventh and eighth game in the league.

During the first seven games of his career, he posted a combined seven receptions, 21 targets, 90 yards and zero touchdowns, while in his eighth through 16th games in the league, he combined for 24 receptions, 42 targets, 383 yards and five touchdowns.

That's a dramatic leap in production for a then-21-year-old. What might be most telling, though, is his receptions relative to his targets.

In games 1-7, only 33.3 percent of his targets resulted in completions. In games 8-16, that number jumped up to 57.1 percent—a 71.2 percent increase. Per game, he increased his receptions average by 1.7 per game, targets by 1.7 per game, yardage by 32.7 per game and touchdowns by 0.6 per game.

Interestingly enough, Newton's success also improved along with Funchess' success. In the first seven games of the year, Newton had a passer rating of less than 100 in six games. In the remaining nine games of the year, he only went under 100 points in two games.

Funchess' improvement was visible and tangible. Matt Harmon, whom I'd argue is the web's best NFL receiver-talent evaluator, wrote about Funchess' rookie year for Football Guys, and he came away impressed after charting portions of his first season in the league:

"

Devin Funchess took awhile to come one, but he’s currently playing solid football for an undefeated team surging to the playoffs. There are still some hiccups to his game, and his need for more refinement showed greatly on his Week 12 film against Dallas. Nevertheless, this has been a successful rookie season for Devin Funchess thus far, given the relatively limited assignments doled out for him. 

"

That's the big question for Funchess. He's shown improvement, but how will he handle more snaps? Last year, according to Pro Football Focus, he ranked third in snaps for Panthers receivers, behind "Philly" Brown and Ginn.

Brown, an undrafted free agent from the 2014 class, with 296 career receiving yards entering last season, is likely to be the odd man out if Funchess does take a step up. That means it's really a two-man race— between Funchess and Ginn—for the starting role opposite Benjamin.

According to Pro Football Focus, the only player in 2015 with more drops on fewer catches than Ginn was LaFell—a former Panther. His drops translated to overall target percentage, he was the second-least efficient target for his volume of looks league-wide, just behind Malcom Floyd of the San Diego Chargers, who is now out of the NFL, also per Pro Football Focus.

It shouldn't be shocking if Ginn, one of the league's most drop-prone receivers in the league, loses his job to a young, highly invested receiver this offseason. Tyler Brandt of Pro Football Focus also created a receiver efficiency rating for their fantasy side of the site, and Funchess ranked 21st in the league—a stark juxtaposition to Brown's 115th ranking.

Josh Doctson, the Washington Redskins' first-round pick, and Braxton Miller, the Houston Texans' third-round pick, will both turn 24 years old during their rookie seasons. Funchess will be a 22-year-old until just before next draft. There's no question that his inexperience, both at the receiver position and in life in general, led to him declaring as an undeveloped prospect out of Michigan.

However, he seems to be on the right track to earn a starting job this season based on his late-season efficiency in 2015, his team's success during that span and the personnel layout in his unit in 2016.

According to Mock Draftable, Funchess' athletic comparisons include Marques Colston and DeAndre Hopkins, who might arguably be the best receivers in the history of their respective franchises when they eventually call it quits.

Every sign we pass on the Funchess ride suggests something big is coming down the road. With the trio of Newton, Benjamin and Funchess truly meshing for the first time in 2016, expect even more triumphs from a passing game that already produced an NFL MVP with less than stellar targets.