Wide receiver

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The wide receiver (WR) position in American and Canadian football is the pass-catching specialist. Wide receivers (also referred to as wideouts or simply receivers) are among the fastest and most agile players in the game, and they are frequent highlight-reel favorites.

The wide receiver position is among the most famous in American football because they are often responsible for the biggest plays made on by the offensive team.^{[citation needed]} However, they do not get all the credit for the plays they make because at least some credit will almost always go to the quarterback who throws the pass to them.^{[citation needed]} Sometimes fans or sports writers^{[attribution needed]} will argue that a receiver only appears to be great when actually most of his success is really due to the quarterback. Other times, the situation is reversed. Fans or sports writers will argue that a quarterback is only successful because he has outstanding receiver(s) who can catch anything thrown in their general direction.^{[attribution needed]} Usually, it is accepted that having both a great quarterback and great receiver is a formula for success, and that both the receiver and quarterback are valuable.^{[weasel words]}

Contents 1 Role in football 2 Importance to Team 3 Specific terminology 4 References

[edit] Role in football

First and foremost, the wide receiver's job is to catch passes from his quarterback. On passing plays, the receiver attempts to avoid, outmaneuver, or simply outrun defenders (typically cornerbacks or safeties) in the area of his pass route. If the receiver becomes open, or has an unobstructed path to the destination of a catch, he may then become the quarterback's target. Once a pass is thrown in his direction, the receiver's goal is to first catch the ball and then attempt to run downfield. Some receivers are perceived as the deep threat because of their speed, while others may be possession receivers, a term derived from their dependable accurate routes and safe hands which give their team a better chance of converting on 3rd down situations. Dropped passes are common when receivers plan the downfield run prior to catching the ball.

Receivers must be fast and have good catching ability. Receivers are particularly important when a team must conserve clock time. In addition to the ability to gain large amounts of yardage at once, receivers can position themselves to run out of bounds and stop the clock (a failed (incomplete) pass attempt will also stop the clock).

The receiver has two potential roles in running plays. Particularly in the case of draw plays, he may run a pass route with the intent of drawing off defenders. Alternately, he may block normally for the running back. Well-rounded receivers are also noted for blocking defensive backs, either downfield once another receiver has made a catch, or on running plays. An example of a good blocking receiver is Pittsburgh Steeler's wide receiver Hines Ward who has been known to make blocks on even the best defensive backs.

Sometimes wide receivers are used to run the ball. This can be effective because they are often faster than running backs and the defense usually does not expect them to be the ball carrier on running plays. One somewhat common running play for receivers is the end reverse. On this play, a running back takes a handoff or lateral from the quarterback and runs to the right or left as it was a normal running play. But before he crosses the line of scrimmage, he hands the ball off to a wide receiver going in the opposite direction, i.e. reverse of where the running back was going. If the defense was drawn to the side of the field the running back was running towards, the receiver can outrun the defense to the other side of the field and make a big gain. Although receivers are rarely used as ball carriers, running the ball with a receiver can be extremely successful. For example, in addition to holding nearly every National Football League receiving record, wide receiver Jerry Rice also rushed the ball 87 times for 645 yards and 10 touchdowns in his 20 NFL seasons.

In some even rarer cases, receivers are used to pass the ball. This most often occurs on the end reverse. To add another component of surprise to the play, the receiver may have option of passing the ball after he takes the handoff, similar to a halfback option play. Although this is one of the rarest things a receiver will ever do, some receivers have proven to be capable passers. For example, Washington Redskin Antwaan Randle El (who played quarterback in college) threw a touchdown pass in Super Bowl XL while playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers to receiver Hines Ward. He has thrown for three touchdowns in his professional career.

Wide receivers also serve on special teams as return men on kickoffs and punts, or as part of the hands team during onside kicks.

Finally, on bad passes, receivers must frequently play a defensive role by attempting to prevent an interception. If a pass is intercepted, receivers must use their speed to chase down and tackle the ball carrier to prevent him from returning the ball for a long gain or a touchdown.

[edit] Importance to Team

It is an arguable point as to how valuable a wide receiver is to a football team. Some maintain that wide receivers are amongst the top three, if not overall, most valuable players to a professional team.^{[weasel words]} These supporters^{[attribution needed]} point to Chad Johnson or Marvin Harrison (among others) as "game changers," athletes who force an opposing team to double or triple team the coverage upon them, thus opening up offensive holes for other receivers and running backs. These persons^{[attribution needed]} claim a good wide receiver adds quick strike ability to an offense, enabling a quick, demoralizing score that can swing momentum. They also point to the fact that wide receivers score a majority of the points on a team, and place their health in the most danger, as a catch frequently involves a hit that is unprotectable. Furthermore, the loss or addition of a wide receiver can have a dramatic effect on the success of a team's quarterback and the fortunes of a team. One notable example is Bill Walsh's San Francisco 49ers, which relied heavily on receivers for Walsh's offensive scheme and won five Super Bowls with two different quarterbacks---but these teams were also praised for having excellent offensive lines and tight ends during the runs, bringing the question of just who is responsible for the Montana/Young ascendance into even more controversy. Similarly, many blame the recent failures of the Atlanta Falcons on their poor receiving corps ---although others attribute it to quarterback Michael Vick's shortcomings as a passer.^{[attribution needed]}

Others disagree, claiming the importance of wide receivers is vastly overblown by the media search for prototypical "Greek god"-looking athletes. Wide receivers are typically tall and physically impressive; additionally, many have been known to make controversial statements (moreso than most football players) and highlight-reel impressive catches, which increases their exposure. These superficial personality traits, critics assert, make the media focus more on wide receivers than, say, a right tackle who makes a key block, or a linebacker who plugs a hole, forcing a running back to gain minimum yardage. Critics also state a wide receiver is merely one of five eligible receivers at any time, and their catches are merely a byproduct of the other receivers running the correct routes and the quarterback hitting them perfectly with a pass. These critics point to Randy Moss disappearing statistically once he left quarterback Daunte Culpepper and the Minnesota Vikings for the Oakland Raiders (Culpepper's failings have been attributed to his career-threatening injuries more than to any personnel losses); and to the current Detroit Lions, who drafted three receivers in the first round in 3 consecutive years, all of whom are claimed to be excellent, and yet still are mired in the cellar, with the exception of Pro Bowler Roy Williams. These critics claim wide receivers are on par with punters in terms of valuableness: a nice asset, but easily replaceable, and not as valuable as a running back, quarterback, or linebacker.

[edit] Specific terminology

While the general fan base and most commentators use the generic term wide receiver for all such players, specific names exist for most receiver positions:

• Split end (X or SE): A receiver on the line of scrimmage, necessary to meet the rule requiring seven such players at snap. Where applicable, this receiver is on the opposite side of the tight end. The split end is farthest from center on his side of the field.
• Flanker (Z or FL): A receiver lining up behind the line of scrimmage. Frequently the team's featured receiver, the flanker uses the initial buffer between himself and a defender to avoid jamming, legal contact within five yards of the line of scrimmage. The flanker is generally on the same side of the formation as a tight end. As with the split end, this receiver is the farthest player from center on his side of the field.
• Slot receiver (SL): A less-formal name given to receivers in addition to split ends and flankers. These receivers line up between the split end / flanker and the linemen. If aligned with a flanker, the slot receiver is usually on the line of scrimmage, and if with a split end, off the line of scrimmage. As with the flanker position, a featured receiver often takes a slot position with a split end to avoid jamming.
• Slot back: A receiver lining up in the offensive back field. Canadian and Arena football allow them to take a running start at the line. They are usually larger players as they need to make catches over the middle. In American football slot backs are typically used in flexbone or other Triple Option offenses while Canadian football uses them in almost all formations.

[edit] References