Markus Wheaton Can Be More Than Just Another Emmanuel Sanders for Steelers

Heading into Week 1 of the regular season, there were some questions about whether newly minted Pittsburgh Steelers starting receiver Markus Wheaton could fill the shoes of the departed Emmanuel Sanders.

Those questions mainly stemmed from the preseason, in which Wheaton caught five passes for 67 yards and a touchdown. In particular, Week 3 against the Philadelphia Eagles in the team's dress rehearsal cast some doubt on his readiness to take such a prominent role.

In that game, Wheaton caught two passes on four targets for 24 yards and was catchless on two targets in the first half. Wheaton drew quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's attention frequently—likely trying to get him more comfortable with the offense—and the result was multiple miscommunications between the receiver and quarterback.

However, those wrinkles appear to have been well ironed in the intervening weeks, because Wheaton had a stellar regular-season starting debut in his team's 30-27 defeat of the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. 

Wheaton was the Steelers' third-round draft pick in 2013 but had limited playing time in his rookie season thanks to broken pinky finger that shelved him from Weeks 5 through 10. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Wheaton played just 161 snaps—or 20.3 percent of the team's total—last year. He had six catches for 64 yards on the season.

On Sunday, Wheaton matched his catch total from last year while significantly surpassing his yardage. On seven targets, Wheaton caught six passes for 97 yards, averaging 16.2 yards per reception. He was also on the field for practically all of the Steelers' offensive snaps—94.4 percent of them, to be precise. He looks ready to take over for Sanders—and perhaps even surpass his accomplishments in Pittsburgh.

	Tgts.	Rec.	Rec.%	Yds.	YPC	TD
2013	13	6	46.2%	64	10.7	0
2014 Week 1	7	6	85.7%	97	16.2	0

Sanders, also a third-round draft pick, had 161 catches on 278 targets totaling 2,030 yards and 11 touchdowns in his time with the Steelers. Like Wheaton, Sanders is fast. They are both 5'11". However, they are not identical receivers.

Wheaton, out of college, was considered the better route-runner, if NFL.com's predraft scouting reports on the two receivers are to be believed. Of Wheaton, it says, "Whether taking off from the slot or outside, his feet are literally a step ahead of his defender on everything from speed outs, crossers, to jerk routes." On Sanders: "He needs work on setting defenders up and can be a bit sloppy in his routes."

Granted, Sanders had four seasons in Pittsburgh to improve his route running, and there's no doubt that he did. The Denver Broncos coveted him in free agency, after all, and his quarterback, Peyton Manning, is a stickler about proper route running from his receivers.

Player	Tgts.	Rec.	Rec.%	Yds.	YPC	TD
Sanders	278	161	57.9%	2,030	12.9	11
Brown	418	266	63.6%	3,677	13.8	16

However, the most notable piece of information from Wheaton's scouting report is the fact that his NFL comparison is fellow Steelers receiver Antonio Brown. Sanders was Brown's complement in Pittsburgh; Wheaton has the capability of being Brown's counterpart, his true peer.

Speed and route-running ability are both components of a dynamic receiver, but in order to really be a game-changer, he must also be reliable. Sanders in Pittsburgh was marginally so, with a catch percentage of 57.9 percent. Brown, in contrast, has caught 63.6 percent of the passes thrown to him. 

Wheaton's reliability was hinted at in both the NFL.com scouting report, which said he "displays the flexibility to grab throws behind him or over his shoulder when running deep. He'’ll also extend away from his body to bring in high or wide throws, and will stutter on the sideline to ensure he makes the catch in-bounds," as well as on Sunday against Cleveland.

Sanders' report had this to say about his hands: "He is confident in his hands and will reach out to pluck the ball. However, he also will drop some when he tries to make a move before securing the catch," and "Will not out-muscle defensive backs for jump balls." Both of those issues were on display during his time in Pittsburgh and were contributing factors to his low catch percentage during those years.

The most interesting difference between Sanders and Wheaton, considering their similar heights and weights, is that Wheaton can actually get physical with defenders. He's an aggressive player for his size, which is why he received the favorable comparison to Brown. 

Wheaton looks to be much more than a chains-mover, though the sample size is small. Surely his comparison to Sanders will continue as the season plays out. But as much of a versatile playmaker Sanders had been at times in Pittsburgh, it looks as though Wheaton can surpass that.