Inside AFC South: Who Will Be Each Team's Top Receiving Threat?

With DeAndre Hopkins now out of the AFC South, who can be the new top wide receiver in the division?

Since its inception, the AFC South has been defined in large part by its wide receiver talent. Players such as Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, T.Y. Hilton, DeAndre Hopkins, Allen Robinson, and many more have all spent time in the division, making their mark by producing electrifying plays after electrifying plays. 

But what about the current state of AFC South wide receivers? Who is currently slated to be the top targets for each of the four teams? We spoke with each of the AFC South publishers throughout our network to get the answers.

Jacksonville

The answer of who will be Jacksonville's top passing-game target this season is clear for the first time in several years. This year, it is obvious from the jump that DJ Chark is "the man".

As a Pro Bowler last year, Chark recorded 73 catches for 1,008 yards and eight touchdowns, all career-highs for the 2018 second-round draft pick. Chark displayed the ability to win as a downfield threat against tight coverage, in the middle of the field and in the red zone. He was truly Jacksonville's best offensive player by a long-shot, and it'd be surprising if this didn't replicate itself in 2020.

While Chark has plenty of fellow talented wide receivers in the receiver room, his role shouldn't be expected to diminish. Chris Conley, Keelan Cole, Dede Westbrook, Laviska Shenault and Collin Johnson will likely take snaps from one another, but not from Chark -- Chark is simply the most talented offensive player the Jaguars have, and new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden has already remarked about the type of weapon he is.

Add in the fact that Chark led all Jaguars' receivers in targets with 118 last year despite dealing with an ankle injury over the last quarter of the season, and it is hard to imagine he doesn't continue his tenure as Jacksonville's top wide receiver.

-- John Shipley, JaguarReport

Tennessee

It is not just that A.J. Brown led the Titans in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns in 2019 that make him the most likely to do so in 2020. It is how he got to the top of those lists that make a repeat seem inevitable.

From Week 7 on, when Ryan Tannehill took over as Tennessee’s starting quarterback, Brown was one of the NFL’s most productive receivers. He caught 38 passes for 778 yards and six touchdowns in those final 10 games. He ranked seventh in the NFL for yards, tied for seventh in touchdown catches and averaged better than 20 yards per reception over that span.

In short, Tannehill helped bring out the best in the rookie wide receiver. The quarterback got a big contract extension during the offseason and is unquestionably the man in charge for 2020, which is good news for the 2019 second-round pick out of Ole Miss.

Brown was targeted 61 times in the 10 games Tannehill started, which was 19 more than any of his teammates. He had more than twice as many receiving yards as anyone else on the offense as well as more receptions and more touchdown catches.

Now that Brown and Tannehill have a full offseason and training camp (such as they have been in the year of COVID-19) to work together there is no telling what they might accomplish over 16 games of a regular season. It is safe to say, however, that there is no one more likely to be the Titans’ top target in the passing game than Brown.

-- David Boclair, AllTitans

Indianapolis

A series of offseason moves have raised Colts expectations for this season, but if this team is going to be a legitimate playoff team, wide receiver T.Y. Hilton has to stay healthy and put up the numbers that have made him a four-time Pro Bowl star and one of the NFL’s speediest deep threats.

The Colts expect others to share the pass-catching workload — most notably drafting wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. in the second round and signing free-agent tight end Trey Burton — but Hilton is still the key. Since his third-round selection in 2012, the Colts are 1-9 when Hilton has been sidelined by injuries.

He missed six games due to a calif injury in 2019. The Colts lost five of them. Hilton had a career-low 501 receiving yards and tied his previous low of 50 receptions, previously set in his rookie year when he started only once.

The 30-year-old wide receiver is entering a contract year and says this next deal will be his last, and that he would like to be a “Colt for life.” General manager Chris Ballard is expected to ante up if Hilton is himself again, that is, a player who before last season had season-long catches ranging between 63 and 87 yards.

He’s caught 45 career TD passes, including five last season despite being hurt. He has 552 career receptions for 8,598 yards in the regular season, and 45 receptions for 749 yards and three TDs in eight playoff games.
There’s no question Hilton needs to be the Colts’ No. 1 target. And Hilton needs to be to ensure he gets paid and stays put.

-- Phillip B. Wilson, AllColts