72. Julian Edelman, WR, Patriots

Perhaps it’s his appearance, but people tend to think of Edelman as more of a slot receiver than he really is.

Doug Farrar | Jul 12, 2016

72. Julian Edelman, WR, Patriots /

Over the last few years, Edelman has replaced Wes Welker as the best option route runner in the NFL, making him a perfect fit on the Patriots, who have more option routes in their playbook than any other team. No receiver is better at reading coverage and adjusting his routes based on opponent tendencies, a mandatory skill for earning trust with Tom Brady in the New England offense. Edelman is tough, he’s quick and he understands how to sneak in and out of various coverage concepts. Perhaps it’s his appearance, but people tend to think of Edelman as more of a slot receiver than he really is: He ran just 51.2% of his routes in the slot last season, catching 32 passes on 42 targets for 362 yards and five touchdowns. At this point, he’s a true multi-position receiver who can get things done from anywhere on the field within the Patriots’ unique offense.

Published Jul 12, 2016

DOUG FARRAR

SI.com contributing NFL writer and Seattle resident Doug Farrar started writing about football locally in 2002, and became Football Outsiders' West Coast NFL guy in 2006. He was fascinated by FO's idea to combine Bill James with Dr. Z, and wrote for the site for six years. He wrote a game-tape column called "Cover-2" for a number of years, and contributed to six editions of "Pro Football Prospectus" and the "Football Outsiders Almanac." In 2009, Doug was invited to join Yahoo Sports' NFL team, and covered Senior Bowls, scouting combines, Super Bowls, and all sorts of other things for Yahoo Sports and the Shutdown Corner blog through June, 2013. Doug received the proverbial offer he couldn't refuse from SI.com in 2013, and that was that. Doug has also written for the Seattle Times, the Washington Post, the New York Sun, FOX Sports, ESPN.com, and ESPN The Magazine. He also makes regular appearances on several local and national radio shows, and has hosted several podcasts over the years. He counts Dan Jenkins, Thomas Boswell, Frank Deford, Ralph Wiley, Peter King, and Bill Simmons as the writers who made him want to do this for a living. In his rare off-time, Doug can be found reading, hiking, working out, searching for new Hendrix, Who, and MC5 bootlegs, and wondering if the Mariners will ever be good again.