NFL Players Who Deserve Larger Roles in 2017

Deserving something doesn't mean you're going to get it. The NFL is a cruel business, and a lot of circumstances—financial, political or even being in the wrong place at the wrong time—can prevent a player from having an opportunity that his play indicates he deserves.

Still, the cream usually rises to the crop. Here are 10 NFL players who have earned chances to rise in 2017.

Tennessee Titans RB Derrick Henry

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It's not as though Tennessee Titans starting running back DeMarco Murray deserves a decreased role after finishing third in the NFL with 1,287 rushing yards and making the Pro Bowl in 2016, but that doesn't change the fact second-year second-round pick Derrick Henry deserves more reps.

The Alabama product quietly averaged more yards per carry (4.5) than Murray (4.4) as a rookie last season, and he appeared to gain steam late. All five of his touchdowns came in his final eight games of the season, and he averaged 5.0 yards per carry from Week 12 on.

At the very least, the Titans would be smart to give Henry more opportunities to spell the 29-year-old Murray, especially since Murray has carried the ball way more than any other back in football over the last three seasons.

Henry is only two years removed from a ridiculous 2,219-yard junior season at Alabama and flashed while remaining under the radar as a rookie. It's time for a bigger role.

Cleveland Browns WR Ricardo Louis

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Veteran Kenny Britt should essentially replace the departed Terrelle Pryor as the No. 1 receiver for the Cleveland Browns, while 2016 first-round pick Corey Coleman will have an edge over the competition for the other starting job if he can get healthy.

With Pryor and Andrew Hawkins gone, second-year Auburn product Ricardo Louis should be in line to win the No. 3 job. But should Louis get a shot to start? The fourth-round pick had a four-game stretch last year in which he caught 13 passes for 146 yards, but he was basically phased out of the offense once Coleman returned from an early-season hand injury.

First-round picks get more love than fourth-round picks, period.

But Coleman is hurt again—he missed minicamp with a sore hamstring and was also recovering after falling awkwardly on a football—and the Baylor product caught only 45.2 percent of the passes thrown his way last season (compared to 51.4 percent for Louis).

Meanwhile, Louis has been drawing rave reviews this offseason.

"Ricardo is a big, tall, athletic, fast guy, strong," Browns head coach Hue Jackson said, per Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. "And he's really improved on his route running, improved initial quickness off the line. I think he understands the National Football League game better. I think he's worked extremely hard."

And wide receivers coach Al Saunders called him "a different guy," according to Cleveland.com's Dan Labbe.

So, should Coleman be guaranteed anything?

Oakland Raiders WR Cordarrelle Patterson

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When you aren't a regular starter on offense or defense and a new team gives you a two-year, $8.5 million contract, you can probably expect an increased role in your new home. That should be the case with new Oakland Raiders weapon Cordarrelle Patterson, who caught a career-high 52 passes for 453 yards and averaged 6.1 yards per carry on seven attempts last season.

More importantly, of course, Patterson was a force in the return game. He averaged a league-high 31.7 yards per kickoff return and took one back 104 yards for a touchdown and the winning points against the Arizona Cardinals. That earned him a Pro Bowl nod, and he'll again have a chance to play that role with the Raiders.

But Patterson has also been putting on a show on offense at practices this offseason. He caught three touchdown passes in one session last week, sending teammates "into a tizzy," according to Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

"He's a fun tool," offensive coordinator Todd Downing said, per Gehlken. "I won't speak too much about how he was used in the past; that's somebody else's job. But I can tell you that we're going to have fun looking for ways to get him involved in the offense. He's a big, strong, physical, dynamic-with-the-ball-in-his-hands type player, and we're excited to see what he can do for us."

Patterson was on the field for 50.4 percent of Minnesota's offensive snaps last season, but that rate should climb in Oakland. No. 1 receiver Amari Cooper is a stud, but fellow starter Michael Crabtree dropped a league-high 13 passes last season, per Pro Football Focus, and Patterson is much more dangerous than last year's No. 3 wideout, Seth Roberts.

Los Angeles Chargers TE Hunter Henry

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Not only should Los Angeles Chargers tight end Hunter Henry's role grow after the 2016 second-round pick shined despite being on the field just 53.8 percent of the time as a rookie, but Henry might even possess what it takes to become a star.

Among 32 tight ends who were targeted at least 50 times in 2016, Henry was one of only four who averaged more than 13.0 yards per reception while also catching more than 65 percent of the passes thrown their way.

Henry also led the Chargers in receiving touchdowns with eight (five of which came in his final seven games), even though veteran tight end Antonio Gates played more snaps than he did. But that'll almost certainly change in 2017.

"With another offseason of work with quarterback Philip Rivers," ESPN.com's Eric D. Williams wrote, "Henry should be even better in Year 2 while shouldering more of the workload."

Coming out of Arkansas, NFL.com's Lance Zierlein called Henry "by far, the premier tight end in the 2016 draft" and "a big body with the athleticism to get open, the hands to finish catches in traffic and the blocking ability to help give a running game the additional kick it might be missing on the edge."

Look for that to come together this season.

Baltimore Ravens TE Nick Boyle

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The Baltimore Ravens released veteran tight end Dennis Pitta after the injury-prone starter came down with yet another hip injury in early June, and now Crockett Gillmore, Benjamin Watson and Maxx Williams stand out to most on the tight end depth chart.

But in the battle to take over Pitta's vacated spot with the first-team offense, third-year fifth-round pick Nick Boyle could be the dark horse.

According to Zierlein, the 24-year-old Delaware product entered the league with the "size and athleticism to be an every-down tight end," and he's yet to do anything to indicate that can't happen. Boyle has caught 82.8 percent of the 29 passes thrown his way during the first two seasons of his career, and at least a few have come in traffic on intermediate to deep throws.

He is by no means a speed demon, but he just might be fast enough to become a starting-caliber tight end in his third year.

Gillmore missed the majority of the 2016 season with back, hamstring and thigh injuries and is hurt again; Watson is 36 years old and tore his Achilles last preseason; and the injury-prone Williams is coming back from knee surgery. So yeah, Boyle should have a shot.

Minnesota Vikings DE Danielle Hunter

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This isn't controversial. The Minnesota Vikings have already made it clear third-year third-round pick Danielle Hunter will become a starter opposite Everson Griffen at defensive end in 2017.

"He will take over as the starting left defensive end," Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune wrote, "replacing classy veteran Brian Robison, who stood up in the defensive line meeting room this spring, congratulated Hunter for leaping him on the depth chart and encouraged him to maximize his vast potential."

We got a peek at that vast potential in 2016, when Hunter tied for third in the league with 12.5 sacks despite starting zero games and playing just 58 percent of Minnesota's defensive snaps.

It's already known that he's absurdly athletic, but Hunter has proved he deserves a shot to play virtually every down.

Head coach Mike Zimmer "figures to unleash Hunter on at least 80 percent of the snaps in 2017 and could have him switch sides with Pro Bowler Everson Griffen at times to toy with offensive tackles," Vensel wrote.

Green Bay Packers DE Kenny Clark

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Green Bay Packers defensive end Kenny Clark didn't put up big numbers as a rookie, but he came on late. The first-round pick failed to record a sack and notched just 13 solo tackles while playing primarily as Mike Daniels' backup last season, but he made a huge impact down the stretch and in the playoffs.

During the team's two postseason wins, Clark pressured the opposing quarterback on six of his 29 pass-rushing snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. And according to Packers head coach Mike McCarthy, he's built on that late-season momentum this offseason.

"Kenny Clark may be our most improved second-year guy," McCarthy said, per ESPN.com's Rob Demovsky.

That comment came three months after McCarthy predicted Clark would "take that big jump as a second-year player" based on the fact he performed "extremely well the last six weeks" of the season.

He's earned the chance to play more after being on the field for just 32.4 percent of Green Bay's defensive snaps in 2016.

Tennessee Titans DT Austin Johnson

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Derrick Henry isn't the only young Titan who deserves more opportunities in 2017. But like Henry, second-year Tennessee defensive tackle Austin Johnson will have his hands full as he tries to take snaps away from a veteran who makes a heck of a lot more money than he does.

That veteran is 2013 Denver Broncos first-round pick and three-year starter Sylvester Williams, who signed a three-year, $17.5 million deal with the Titans in March. With that pedigree and that contract, the Super Bowl champion nose tackle is without a doubt the starter entering training camp.

But Williams could be challenged by Johnson, who had a few strong performances in relief of the since departed Al Woods as a rookie.

Williams can wreak havoc, but he has struggled in run defense. PFF ranked him 68th among 73 qualified 4-3 defensive tackles in that discipline last season. And, as PFF noted, Johnson "ranked third among the nation's interior defensive linemen against the run at plus-36.9 in 2015 after finishing 33rd in 2014 at plus-16.8," and the Penn State product also posted a positive grade in run defense in limited action as a rookie.

Don't be surprised if the Titans realize Williams is a liability on early downs and start giving some of his workload to Johnson.

Dallas Cowboys CB Anthony Brown

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The Dallas Cowboys lost cornerbacks Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne in free agency and signed veteran corner Nolan Carroll, which likely means second-year sixth-round pick Anthony Brown will be a full-time starter from the get-go in 2017. And that's something to be excited about if you're a Cowboys fan, because Brown flourished late in his rookie campaign.

After surrendering completions on nearly 88 percent of the passes thrown his way during the first half of last season, the 23-year-old Purdue product cut that rate down to 50 percent during the second half, per PFF. And also per PFF, Brown allowed the fewest yards per coverage snap among all NFL corners over the final five weeks of the regular season.

It appears he picked up where he left off.

"Every day, Brown was standing out," Dan Rogers of Blogging the Boys wrote. "Whether he was covering Terrance Williams or even Dez Bryant, the second-year corner made play after play. He has been in great position and smothering Bryant as he contest passes."

It might already be time to treat him like a No. 1 corner.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers S Keith Tandy

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Despite playing only 38.1 percent of his team's defensive snaps last season, Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Keith Tandy intercepted four passes, defended nine more and recorded 52 tackles. It was a breakout season for the sixth-year West Virginia product, and it's especially promising that all of his interceptions came in the final five weeks of the season.

He made two of those picks in the final few minutes of games the Bucs won by one score, and the other two came in a one-point victory over the Carolina Panthers.

The 28-year-old sixth-round pick has started just 12 games in his career, but with 2016 starter Bradley McDougald gone, he just might have a chance to become a regular starter in 2017.

Ira Kauffman of Joe Bucs Fan is a believer.

"I have been told that in this competition—maybe a four-way competition when you add in [J.J.] Wilcox and the rookie [Justin] Evans with [Chris] Conte and Tandy—I've been told that Tandy basically has a starting job secured," Kauffman said on his podcast, per James Yarcho of the Pewter Plank. "He's basically going to be very difficult to dislodge this fall unless Evans is lights out and Wilcox is even better than they think."

It won't be easy to fight off Evans (a second-round pick) or Wilcox (who signed a two-year, $6.3 million deal in March), but it feels as though Tandy deserves more time on the field.

Honorable Mentions

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Philadelphia Eagles WR Nelson Agholor: The 2015 first-round pick has been a drop-happy disappointment so far in his career, but he's been widely praised this offseason. He might be a better option than either Torrey Smith or Jordan Matthews.

Kansas City Chiefs WR Tyreek Hill: He might be in line to play a huge role, especially after the release of veteran receiver Jeremy Maclin. But no role is big enough for one of the league's most dangerous weapons. As a rookie in 2016, Hill became the first player in NFL history to score at least three touchdowns as a receiver, runner and return man in one season. And he got better as the year wore on.

Chiefs CB Terrance Mitchell: A seventh-round pick of the Cowboys in 2014, he played a big role late last season, holding opposing quarterbacks to a completion percentage of 42.9 and a passer rating of 55.5 in eight games (including the playoffs). It's a small sample, but Mitchell was targeted 35 times opposite star corner Marcus Peters during that stretch, and he surrendered just 4.3 yards per target and allowed zero touchdowns. He should start over Phillip Gaines and Steven Nelson.