Ranking the NFL's Best WR Groups after A.J. Brown Trade

The NFL is more pass-heavy than ever before. But no matter how good a quarterback is, he still needs someone to throw it to.

That has led to something of a Golden Age at wide receiver. The highest-paid non-QB on offense in the NFL is Seattle Seahawks wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba at over $42 million a season.

However, it's not just the situation that is driving wide receivers' big contracts. The league has seen a huge influx of immensely talented pass-catchers over the past several years.

One of those big-name receivers just got traded. Just shy of his 29th birthday, A.J. Brown was traded to the New England Patriots for a Day 3 pick next year and a first-rounder in 2028.

On paper, it's a sizable boost to the offense of a team that won the AFC last year. It was also a move that gives New England one of the most formidable wideout trios in the NFL.

Where does the Patriots' new-look wide receiver corps stack up against the rest of the league? And who has the most fearsome wide receivers in all the land?

Let's start answering those questions.

10. Houston Texans

AP Photo/Maria Lysaker

Texans WR Nico Collins

Top Three Receivers: Nico Collins, Tank Dell, Jayden Higgins

After a 2025 postseason beset by turnovers, Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud has a lot on the line this year. But if he fails to meet expectations, it won't be because of a lack of passing-game talent.

Nico Collins doesn't get the run he deserves as one of the league's elite receivers. But the 27-year-old has topped 1,000 receiving yards three years running and has averaged 15 yards a reception for his career.

However, it could be the return of a healthy Tank Dell that takes Houston's passing game to a new level. Dell appeared on the track to stardom before a devastating knee injury at the end of the 2024 season wiped out all of last year.

Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans told reporters that Dell has been grinding in an effort to be ready for Week 1:

"Tank has been around, working out all throughout the offseason while no one else was here. Tank has been here working, grinding in the background. I'm excited to see Tank when it is his time to get back out and play football, as is everybody here. We all love Tank. We've seen the ability that he has, the big playmaking ability."

With Dell and Collins outside and promising youngster Jayden Higgins in the slot, Stroud has the weapons to win the AFC South in 2026.

Now all he has to do is deliver.

9. New England Patriots

AP Photo/Ashley Landis

Patriots WR Kayshon Boutte

Top Three Receivers: A.J. Brown, Kayshon Boutte, Romeo Doubs

The New England Patriots made it all the way to Super Bowl LX last season, but after getting flattened by the Seattle Seahawks, the team apparently decided the wide receiver room needed a makeover. First the Pats signed Romeo Doubs in free agency. Then they swung a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles for three-time Pro Bowler A.J. Brown.

Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports hailed the Brown trade as one of the NFL's most impactful this offseason.

"Even at this later stage of his career," he said, "Brown is a game-tilter and the biggest alpha wide receiver the Patriots have had since Randy Moss. If Drake Maye continues to emerge as an MVP-caliber quarterback after finishing second in 2025, he may have just been given nitrous in the form of a true No. 1 weapon."

Brown has posted six 1,000-yard seasons in seven years. Doubs has yet to have that sort of statistical impact over four years in Green Bay, but he's a weapon out of the slot. Boutte showed flashes of being a big-bodied downfield weapon in the vein of Brown last season in New England.

Drake Maye has all the ingredients for a huge 2026 season and the weapons to make it happen.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars

AP Photo/John Raoux

Jaguars WR Brian Thomas Jr.

Top Three Receivers: Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers, Parker Washington

Were Brian Thomas Jr. coming off his 2024 season instead of a disappointing 2025 campaign, the Jaguars would be much closer to the top of these rankings. In fact, they might well be ranked No. 1.

Parker Washington enjoyed a breakout season in 2025, setting career highs across the board while averaging a robust 14.6 yards per catch. Meyers' numbers weren't as good, but the 29-year-old had his moments after coming over in a mid-season trade with the Las Vegas Raiders.

But it's Thomas who could be the key to truly unlocking this passing game. Thomas flirted with 1,300 receiving yards and scored 10 touchdowns as a rookie, but last year he missed three games and just wasn't the same guy.

Thomas told reporters he has dedicated this offseason to both getting in top shape and strengthening his rapport with Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence:

"With all the better or great quarterbacks and the wide receiver, I feel like they had great chemistry. Just the quarterback knowing where the wide receiver's going to be at certain times and at certain points. Knowing that he can rely on them and trust them to go be there at a certain time when he needs them to be there."

If he can recapture his 2024 form this year, Jacksonville's aerial attack is going to be hard to stop.

7. Seattle Seahawks

AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Top Three Receivers: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Cooper Kupp, Rashid Shaheed

Make no mistake: This ranking is mostly about one player—Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

The 24-year-old joined the ranks of the NFL's superstars at his position last year. He caught 119 passes for an NFL-high 1,793 yards and 10 scores on the way to Offensive Player of the Year honors and a victory in Super Bowl LX.

Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold had nothing but praise for Smith-Njigba while speaking to the media:

"The way that he runs routes, and I've used this a ton, but it looks like he's skating out there. And he doesn't really change levels, so I think he just runs routes at the same level, just kind of glides. And I think it makes it really hard on defenders to be able to cover him because they don't know whether he's going to put it down on the ground and change directions, or whether he's going to give them a hesi and keep going on that same line, or if he's going to just run by him."

Cooper Kupp isn't the player he once was, but we're talking about a former triple-crown receiver and Offensive Player of the Year in his own right. Rashid Shaheed doesn't post big numbers, but the speedster can take the top off a defense in the blink of an eye.

But Seattle is Smith-Njigba's world—everyone else is just living in it.

6. Denver Broncos

AP Photo/Ashley Landis

Broncos WR Courtland Sutton

Top Three Receivers: Courtland Sutton, Jaylen Waddle, Troy Franklin

The Denver Broncos made it as far as the AFC Championship Game last year, but the team decided that an upgrade was needed at the wide receiver position. The team spent big to get one, dealing a first-round pick to Miami for Jaylen Waddle.

Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga told reporters that the 27-year-old has been as advertised on the field at OTAs:

"Everything he is expected to be. His ability to make every route look the same is pretty important. As a defender when you can make a 10-yard stop look like a go [route], 10-yard dig look like a go, a 10-yard out route, everything looks the same, it puts pressure on your back pedal."

Waddle hasn't topped 1,000 receiving yards since 2023, but in 2022 he led the league at 18.1 yards per reception. He joins another field stretcher in ninth-year veteran Courtland Sutton, who posted the third 1,000-yard season of his career last year and who has 25 touchdowns the last three seasons.

With that duo wreaking havoc down the field, there should be room galore underneath for third-year pro Troy Franklin, who caught 65 passes for 709 yards and six scores a year ago.

5. Detroit Lions

AP Photo/Ryan Sun

Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown

Top Three Receivers: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa

The Detroit Lions missed the postseason last year, but it certainly wasn't because of the passing game—only two teams threw for more yards per game last season.

The engine of that passing game is sixth-year wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown, who caught 100 passes for the fourth straight season last year.

The 26-year-old topped 1,100 receiving yards every game over that span and posted three years with double-digit touchdowns.

As St. Brown told reporters, he'll stack Detroit's wideout room up against any in the NFL:

"Internal competition is great. I feel like our receiver room is, I might be biased, but we have one of the best in the league. How much competition is there going to be in the receiver room? It's going to be tough, but you always want to bring guys in. Like for me, I want to have that mentality that my job is always on the line."

Jameson Williams has become one of the league's best vertical threats, averaging 17 yards a catch over his career and topping 1,000 receiving yards each of the past two seasons. Isaac TeSlaa had just 16 receptions as a rookie, but six went for touchdowns.

It's an imposing group.

4. Los Angeles Rams

AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman

Rams WR Puka Nacua

Top Three Receivers: Puka Nacua, Davante Adams, Jordan Whittington

The Los Angeles Rams were the NFL's No. 1 offense in terms of yards per game and points per game last year—in no small part because they had the league's No. 1 wide receiver in terms of both catches and touchdowns.

Davante Adams was the league's touchdown king, scoring 14 times in 14 games during his first season in Los Angeles. That marked his third time leading the NFL in receiving touchdowns in 12 seasons.

The six-time Pro Bowler turns 34 in December, but quarterback Matthew Stafford believes he and Adams can take things to the next level in 2026:

"I'm excited. Obviously, had a really good first season with him. He was ultra-productive, ton of touchdowns, bunch of yards and catches, and I think there's even another level to it for myself and for him. So, just excited to continue to get those reps and that understanding. I feel really lucky to play with a player like Davante that has done it at a high level for such a long time."

Adams isn't even the Rams' best receiver. That would be Puka Nacua, who led the league with 129 catches last year and averaged a gaudy 107.2 yards per game.

In three NFL seasons, Nacua has averaged 95.2 receiving yards per game. No player in league history has averaged more.

3. Cincinnati Bengals

AP Photo/Jeff Dean

Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase

Top Three Receivers: Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Andrei Iosivas

It's no secret that Ja'Marr Chase is one of the best wide receivers in the league.

The 26-year-old has never failed to amass 1,000 yards in a season, and as recently as two years ago, he won the receiving triple crown, leading the league in receiving yards, receptions and touchdown catches.

Bengals coach Zach Taylor said that Chase showed up to OTAs looking like a man on a mission in 2026.

"[Chase is] always working," he said. "He's a guy who, even when he wasn't here in the building, you know that. When he stepped foot on the field yesterday for the first time…there's such an explosion there, and confidence. He looks really good right now."

Chase isn't the only high-end weapon at Joe Burrow's disposal—seventh-year veteran Tee Higgins would be a No. 1 receiver on many NFL teams.

Durability has been something of an issue in recent years (12 missed games the past two seasons), but the 27-year-old has scored 21 touchdowns the past two seasons and has a pair of 1,000-yard campaigns on his NFL resume.

Higgins is fully capable of taking over a game in his own right.

2. Dallas Cowboys

AP Photo/Jerome Miron

Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb

Top Three Receivers: CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy

The Dallas Cowboys were second in the league in total offense last year, largely because of one of the league's most dangerous one-two punches in the NFL in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens.

Lamb has been one of the best in the league at what he does for several years—despite missing three games last year he topped 1,000 yards for the fifth consecutive season.

As Tommy Yarrish noted for the team's website, Lamb has entered rarefied air in franchise history:

"With a fifth-straight 1,000 yard receiving season in 2025, Lamb joined fellow 88-club member Michael Irvin as the only Cowboys receivers in franchise history with five consecutive 1,000 yard receiving seasons. Lamb is the only player in franchise history to post 1,000 receiving yards in five of his first six seasons. Lamb's 571 receptions and 7,416 receiving yards through his first six seasons in Dallas are the most in franchise history during that time span."

As good as Lamb has been, in 2025 at least Pickens was even better—in his first year in Dallas, he set career highs in receptions (93), receiving yards (1,429) and touchdowns (nine) on the way to his first Pro Bowl.

1. Minnesota Vikings

AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson

Top Three Receivers: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Jauan Jennings

The Minnesota Vikings may not know who their quarterback will be in 2026, but one thing is for sure: Who ever that quarterback is has a loaded cadre of wideouts at his disposal.

The group is headlined by Justin Jefferson, who is arguably the best wide receiver in the game. His 1,048 receiving yards and 12.5 yards per reception last year were both career lows, but that had a lot more to do with the quarterback play in the Twin Cities than anything Jefferson did.

The seventh-year veteran has never failed to hit 1,000 yards in a season, has averaged just over 90 receiving yards a game for his career and reeled in 42 career touchdowns.

Jordan Addison may not be Jefferson, and his 2025 season was the worst of his three years in the league. But he has shown a nose for the end zone, scoring 19 touchdowns over his first two years in the pros.

Add in Jauan Jennings, who has 132 catches and 15 touchdowns over the past two years, and you have a trio of experienced, productive pass catchers—and a nightmare for opposing defensive coordinators.