NFL Free Agency: 10 Teams in Need of a No. 1 Wide Receiver

As the likes of Santonio Holmes and Sidney Rice come off the board, more and more teams that are seeking wide receivers are being left at the altar. 

For some teams, like the Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts, losing out on the best receivers is not a disaster, as they're looking for complementary No. 2 or No. 3 receivers. 

However, for a host of other teams, landing a No. 1 receiver is crucial to their success.  Some quarterbacks in this league have found a way to succeed without a potential All-Pro receiver. 

You'll find the rare QB like Tom Brady succeed with a multitude of secondary receivers.  By and large though, every great QB has his primary target.

Aaron Rodgers to Greg Jennings, Matt Ryan to Roddy White, Peyton Manning to Reggie Wayne; these are some of the best combinations in football.

For these 10 teams though, finding their primary receiver is of vital importance if they want to contend in 2011.

10) San Diego Chargers

Passing Rank:  Second in the NFL with 4,519 Yards

Of all the teams on this list, the Chargers are a bit of a wild card.  They do have a star wide receiver on their roster in Vincent Jackson. 

The problem is that Jackson appears to want to get off this team in anyway, whether it's by trade, being cut or even voicing displeasure that his concession of wanting to be freed of ever being franchise tagged again failed. 

Jackson was one of the 10 players on the NFLPA lawsuit against the league and hoped he could use his leverage to be given this concession.

As of now, Jackson is a Charger, but if he were to leave the team, the Chargers would be without a star receiver.  Legedu Nanee is also a free agent as is Malcom Floyd.  If they were to leave, it would leave the Chargers cupboard of receivers virtually empty.  

The Chargers have the great fortune of having one of the best tight ends in NFL history on their team in Antonio Gates.  Still, if he's their only true target, it's going to make life a lot harder for him. 

For a team that has lost its great rushing attack, they need as many receiving weapons as possible. 

Most Likely Options: Try to sign Jackson, Nanee and Floyd to long-term deals or sign Braylon Edwards of the New York Jets.  

9) San Francisco 49ers

Passing Rank:  18th in the NFL with 3,356 yards. 

The San Francisco 49ers are a team that seems to always be a chiq pick to go far.  Last year, it seemed everyone had them penciled in to win the NFC West, but a disastrous start killed any chance to win a division that was quite possibly the worst in NFL history.

The Niners have other issues than just at wide receiver, namely they don't have a reliable man to throw them the ball.  However, San Francisco is the kind of team that with one more great receiver, they may be able to make a decent quarterback appear great.

Michael Crabtree looks like someone who has the talent to be a No. 1 receiver but has thus far looked like a No. 2 or 3.  They also have Vernon Davis, someone that emerged as a star tight end, after a spat with former coach Mike Singletary. 

Adding another No. 1 receiver, especially a possession type one could do wonders for this team. 

Most Likely Options: Steve Smith of the New York Giants and Mike Sims-Walker of the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

8) St. Louis Rams

Passing Rank:  21st in the NFL with 3,268 yards.

A bit reason everyone is so high on quarterback Sam Bradford is the fact he was able to make lemonade with apples last year.  With hardly any name receiver on his roster after Donnie Avery was lost for the year, Bradford was able to put up very respectable stats.

Danny Amendola benefited the most from this, grabbing 85 passes for 689 yards but only three touchdowns. 

The Rams are a team that is vastly improving under coach Steve Spagnuolo. Finishing one game out of the playoffs after winning only three games between 2008-09, the Rams have a very real shot to win the division. 

What this team needs perhaps more than anything is a veteran receiving presence. 

A team that appears to have a stable locker room, this could be a place for a veteran reclamation project to shine.

Most Likely Options: Plaxico Burress or Randy Moss of the Tennessee Titans.  

7) Chicago Bears

Passing Rank:  28th in the NFL with 3,015 yards. 

The Bears are a curious team because you would think they have the pieces in place to be a much better passing team.  They have a potential 1,000-yard man in Johnny Knox with Earl Bennett and Devin Hester in reserve.

The problem is the Bears have a lot of No. 2 receivers but no man that truly jumps out at you.  The question is would a guy like Braylon Edwards be interesting in going to a team with a quarterback that has has a lot of consistency issues? 

If they're able to land a guy that Cutler can rely on in the tough situations, it's just going to make everyone around the team that much more potent.

If they can't get any prime player, the size of someone like Malcom Floyd could perfectly compliment the speedy receivers of Knox and Hester.

Most Likely Options: Braylon Edwards of the New York Jets and Malcom Floyd of the San Diego Chargers.  

6) Jacksonville Jaguars

Passing Rank: 27th in the NFL with 3,065 yards.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have been a team that's been in the middle of the pack for what seems like an eternity.  They aren't bad enough to get a great franchise changing first-round pick, yet they've not been bad enough to get into the playoffs.

They did draft what they hope is their quarterback of the future in Blaine Gabbert.  The biggest issue now facing the Jags is who is he going to throw the ball to?

Mike Sims-Walker is a free agent and may very go off to another team.  If he leaves, that means Mike Thomas, an emerging talent will be the only main receiver left as well as Marcedes Lewis, their Pro Bowl tight end.

The scary thing is Thomas and Lewis both had great 2010 seasons, but neither have proven themselves over a long period of time.

Without Walker, the Jags face a real problem of having to rely on Maurice Jones-Drew even more.  With his late season injuries last year, it's anyone's guess how much he has left in the tank.

Most Likely Options: Re-sign Walker, Malcolm Floyd of the San Diego Chargers or the New York Giants Steve Smith.  

5) Tennessee Titans

Passing Rank:  25th in the NFL with 3,107 yards

The Tennessee Titans were a picture of franchise stability for many years after moving from Houston.  With Jeff Fisher in control and Steve McNair at quarterback, the franchise often fielded competitive teams and lost a close Super Bowl to the St. Louis Rams in 1999.

That was until Vince Young came along, who, it's now public knowledge, Fisher did not want but was forced to take him anyway.  Four years after that selection, Young is on his way out of town, Fisher has been fired and the team has officially hit the reset button.

Vince Young and Fisher rarely saw eye to eye and Young had a constant issue passing the ball.  Part of that problem though could be attributed to the lack of receiving weapons he had on his team. 

The Titans went so far as to pluck Randy Moss off of the street last year, but it yielded little to no results.

Right now, the Titans don't have a single receiver with over 50 catches from 2010.  What they do have at least are receivers with size, though with the repeated legal issues of Kenny Britt, who knows how much longer he'll be on the team.

The Titans will unlikely be able to sign a No. 1 receiver this year, as many of the remaining players are similar to a Britt or Nate Washington, but if nothing else, they should seek a player with speed.

Most Likely Options: James Jones of the Green Bay Packers or taking a leap of faith on a speedster like Johnnie Lee Higgins of the Oakland Raiders.   

4) Minnesota Vikings

Passing Rank:  26th in the NFL with 3,097 yards.

Coming into 2010, I doubt many would have guessed the Vikings would finish with one of the worst passing games in the NFL.

Coming off their 2009 near miss to the Super Bowl, many expected to see the same high flying show that made Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin a star.

Instead, Rice started the year injured, Favre looked brittle, Harvin had migraines and the wheels came off the train from the very beginning. 

Now, Favre is gone, and Rice just signed with the Seattle Seahawks.  Considering the team desires to cut Bernard Berrian and his bloated contract, the receiving corps all of a sudden looks quite small in Minny.

With the arrival of Donovan McNabb, the team needs to bring in another receiver. They cannot rely on having Harvin, with his health issues to be the main guy. 

The roster still has an ability to make a run for the playoffs, but they need more threats.  With some money to spend on a receiver, this position should now be their main offseason priority.

Most Likely Options: Braylon Edwards of the New York Jets or Steve Smith of the New York Giants 

3) Oakland Raiders

Passing Rank:  23rd in the NFL with 3,180 yards.

The Oakland Raiders are a team that seems to take three steps back for every one step forward.  In response to their first non-losing season since they went to the Super Bowl in 2002, the Raiders fired their coach Tom Cable. 

Now, their franchise cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha appears destined to leave amongst other players on the Raiders.   While Oakland boasts a dynamic running attack, they're still looking for their first true No. 1 receiver since Tim Brown. 

Randy Moss was a disaster, and the Raiders have had a history of overrating rookie receivers.  Because of this, only one receiver on their roster had more than 40 receptions. 

If any team needed a No. 1 receiver, the Raiders are it.

The main issue of course is the drama that ensnares this franchise thanks to their owner Al Davis, whose sanity many question these days.  That brings up the question if the Raiders could ever sign a top-tier receiver. 

Most Likely Options: Malcolm Floyd of the San Diego Chargerss and the Baltimore Ravens T.J. Houshmandzadeh

2) Cincinnati Bengals

Passing Rank:  13th in the NFL with 3,767 passing yards

Don't let the high pass ranking fool you, as this is a team that is in need of another good receiver. 

In case people forget, this is a team that is now without last year's starter Carson Palmer and their two best receivers Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco, who presumably will be traded or cut in the coming days. 

Around 6:30 p.m., it was reported that Ochocinco has just been traded to the New England Patriots.

They did draft A.J. Green who by all accounts should turn into a fine franchise receiver.  Other than him though, the team has Jordan Shipley, who is built to be a slot receiver and tight end Jermaine Gresham.

With rookie Andy Dalton most likely starting Week 1 of the season, this team needs more receiving option for its young QB. The question is, will any potential top free agent receiver want to go to this uncertain situation? 

The odds probably say no.

Most Likely Options: Mark Clayton of the St. Louis Rams and Legedu Naanee of the San Diego Chargers.  

1) Cleveland Browns

Passing rank:  29th in the NFL with 2,989 yards.

The good news for the Browns is they made a great find with tight end Ben Watson who had 68 receptions for 763 yards and three touchdowns last year. 

The bad news is only one receiver had more than 40 receptions last year, Mohamed Massaquoi.

If the Browns want to succeed, they desperately need some more wide receiving options. Massaquoi, Chansi Stuckey (who is himself a free agent) and Brian Robiskie are not going to cut it.

Braylon Edwards, possibly the best option left in this free agent group won't sign there as he and the Browns already burned each others bridges. The question is, will another prime target sign there? 

Another guy like Mike Sims-Walker would be leaving a similar situation in Jacksonville to go to the Browns. 

The Browns are a team at a crossroads.  Signing a big guy could be huge for emerging quarterback Colt McCoy.  Signing anyone near the top of the list will also help. 

However, if they ignore the market, Browns fans can likely look forward to another struggling five-win season.  

Most Likely Options: Mike Sims-Walker of the Jacksonville Jaguars and James Jones of the Green Bay Packers.