- A multi-level evaluation of the WR position: PFF runs nearly a dozen distinct data collection processes, and several of them are dedicated to evaluating wide receivers. That includes detailed tracking of route types, route nuances and separation on a per-play basis. When combined with our play-by-play grading, these layers of data come together to create one of the most comprehensive receiver databases in football.
- The root of the grading system: Each player starts every snap with a baseline grade of 0, awarded when they do exactly what’s expected on that play. From there, grades move in 0.5-point increments — positive or negative — based on how much the player’s performance exceeds or falls short of those expectations.
Welcome to part three of our series on how PFF grades every position on every play. This time, we’re turning our focus to wide receivers.
If you missed the earlier installments on how we grade quarterbacks or running backs on a play-by-play basis, it’s worth revisiting those to understand the foundational principles behind our system.
To quickly recap: at the heart of PFF’s grading lies the concept of expectation. Each player starts every snap with a baseline grade of 0, awarded when they do exactly what’s expected on that play. From there, grades move in 0.5-point increments — positive or negative — based on how much the player’s performance exceeds or falls short of those expectations. It’s a simple but powerful framework that forms the foundation of every PFF grade you see.
How does that work for receivers?
PFF runs nearly a dozen distinct data collection processes, and several of them are dedicated to evaluating wide receivers. That includes detailed tracking of route types, route nuances and separation on a per-play basis. When combined with our play-by-play grading, these layers of data come together to create one of the most comprehensive receiver databases in football — rich with context, depth and insight into how players win at the position.
Did the receiver create separation with sharp route-running or pure speed, or did he benefit from a defensive back slipping or blowing the coverage? Did he make an exceptional catch in a tight window, or did he make a routine play harder than it needed to be? Did he convert a key first down, or leave one on the field? Did he go down immediately after the catch, or did he force missed tackles and create explosive plays?
It’s never just about the stat line. It’s about the performance behind it.
That’s why a receiver can earn a higher grade on an 18-yard sideline toe-tap than on a 40-yard touchdown. If a coverage bust leaves a receiver wide open with nothing more to do than catch and coast into the end zone, that play won’t grade as highly as a short catch turned into a big gain through broken tackles or elite acceleration.
A look at positively graded play rate
As we did in our quarterback and running back breakdowns, we’ll now examine wide receiver performance from the 2024 NFL regular season using positive grade rate, a metric that highlights how often a player earns any level of positive grade while on the field.
Let’s start with the raw positive grade rate: how often receivers are making impactful plays worthy of a positive grade.
While a raw positive grade rate offers some insight, it doesn’t remotely represent the top 10 wide receivers from 2024, nor does it reflect the top 10 in terms of overall PFF grade. That stat doesn’t factor in the strength of each grade, frequency of negatively graded plays, target volume or the many layers of context required to complete the picture.
So, let’s apply a more nuanced lens: by weighting each positive grade — giving more value to +1.0, +1.5, and +2.0 plays over the more routine +0.5s — we get a much clearer view.
Here’s what the top 10 wide receivers look like based on weighted positive grade rate.
You can see the picture starting to shift — but only slightly. That’s because wide receiver grading is overwhelmingly driven by +0.5 plays, which made up just over 80% of the positive grades for the 88 receivers who saw at least 50 targets last season.
To better refine our signal, we’ll add one more critical component: target volume. Since receivers are only graded on targets (except for rare blocking situations), we now weight the previous metric using the square root of a receiver’s target count.
This adjustment maintains snaps as the denominator — preserving a measure of total on-field involvement — while scaling the result by how many actual graded opportunities a player had. The result? A clearer signal without losing context. Here’s what the top 10 looks like after applying that final layer.
We’re not at the full picture yet, but each layer brings us closer. By starting with raw positive grade rates, adjusting for grade strength, and scaling by target volume, we begin to spotlight receivers who consistently generate value — and do it at scale.
This is where grading evolves beyond a simple number into a more complete lens on performance.
Play-by-play grades: Wide receivers
This news was originally published on this post .
About the author
US Open 2025 live updates: Women’s semifinals latest with Osaka vs. Anisimova into decider, Sabalenka awaits in final
Anisimova 6-7(4), 7-6(3), *0-0 OsakaAmanda Anisimova quickly jumps out to a 3-0 lead on three errors by Naomi Osaka — 4-0 after a backhand long from Osaka. A strong serve stiffles Anisimova. 4-1.A beautiful backhand winner catches the back line. 5-1.Now Osaka hits a backhand winner. 5-2.Another powerful backhand, this time from Anisimova. 6-2.Anisimova finds the net. 6-3.But that’s as far as Osaka gets, finding nylon to drop the tiebreak and the second set.
Golden State Valkyries clinch playoff berth
The Golden State Valkyries are heading to the postseason.For the first time in league history, an expansion team is set to compete in the playoffs, as the Valkyries clinched a playoff berth with their 84-80 victory over the Dallas Wings on Thursday night. Golden State has now won five consecutive games, a franchise record for its longest-ever win streak, and though the Valkyries are currently the No. 6 seed in the playoffs, they could climb as high as No. 5, depending on how the New York Liberty close out the season.AdvertisementIt’s been a season of firsts for the Bay Area franchise, as Golden State set a WNBA record for the most wins by an expansion team in mid-August. Forward Kayla Thornton made the July All-Star Game for the first time in her career, becoming the first player to represent an expansion […]
The BookKeeper: Real reason for Premier League PSR complaints is the 217% rise in costs
As the dust settles on another chaotic summer of extravagant Premier League spending, there’s time to take a step back. To look at things with less emotion. To remember we’re all here to watch talented footballers actually play the game, not just wonder where their short, peripatetic careers may take them next.AdvertisementAlternatively, there’s also more time for everyone to bemoan profit and sustainability rules (PSR). Grumbles about PSR have been a theme of the past three months. As Premier League spending ballooned over the £3billion mark — more than the other four main European domestic leagues combined — PSR and its supposed influence remained a constant in the background, a grim reaper bearing a calculator rather than a scythe.How we’ve arrived at PSR taking up such prominence in footballing discourse is, mostly, not a result of rules tightening. Domestic PSR […]
Is this the end of #FSGOut?
It has never been an organised campaign, more a largely faceless online movement without a leader but united by a single interest.It has rolled and foamed for nearly 15 years, often surfacing during transfer windows when Liverpool have been less active or successful than their competitors. Those involved are a persistent and vocal enclave of sizeably tracked social media handles pushing the same hashtag — #FSGOut — demanding the removal of Fenway Sports Group, the U.S. company that owns the Premier League club, because of its supposedly craven lack of investment.AdvertisementFramed as cranks more than reasonable critics, the #FSGOut contingent have penetrated rather than defined the conversation around Liverpool since FSG took control in late 2010. But for a few high-profile flashpoints, however, debate about the Americans’ suitability has largely remained restricted to the internet rather than the match-going fans.Ultimately, […]
With Mourinho, Solskjaer and Ten Hag sacked in one week, what remains of their Manchester United legacy?
On August 28, Besiktas decided to part ways with their head coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer following their elimination from the Conference League at the play-off stage. A day later, Fenerbahce dismissed Jose Mourinho, in part due to the defeat to Benfica in the Champions League play-offs. Two days after that, Bayer Leverkusen sacked Erik ten Hag. The Dutchman had only been in place for three competitive matches.AdvertisementSo, in the space of a week, three former Manchester United managers were dismissed from their jobs. All the while, speculation swirled around Ruben Amorim’s position as the current head coach.To be a United manager is to become one of the most scrutinised people in world football. The 12 years following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement have seen six permanent managers/head coaches and one interim attempt to secure long-term success in one of the sport’s […]
How Ederson transformed conventional wisdom about goalkeeping in the Premier League
Pep Guardiola is well accustomed to challenging conventional wisdom, sticking faithfully to his footballing principals until others see the light. But for a long time, it looked as if establishing a ball-playing goalkeeper at Manchester City would be his most divisive sell.It didn’t help that his search for a more adventurous distributor between the sticks started so poorly, as the decision to replace the safe hands of Joe Hart with risk-taker Claudio Bravo was met with huge resistance from the stands.AdvertisementBut it says a lot that now, eight years down the line, the overriding consensus surrounding Gianluigi Donnarumma’s arrival into the Premier League is that a goalkeeper who mainly excels in keeping the ball out of the net may well struggle to live up to what is required with the ball at his feet.Ederson has changed the game. His unerring […]
Related
US Open 2025 live updates: Women’s semifinals latest with Osaka vs. Anisimova into decider, Sabalenka awaits in final
Anisimova 6-7(4), 7-6(3), *0-0 OsakaAmanda Anisimova quickly jumps out to a 3-0 lead on three errors by Naomi Osaka — 4-0 after a backhand long from Osaka. A strong serve stiffles Anisimova. 4-1.A beautiful backhand winner catches the back line. 5-1.Now Osaka hits a backhand winner. 5-2.Another powerful backhand, this time from Anisimova. 6-2.Anisimova finds the net. 6-3.But that’s as far as Osaka gets, finding nylon to drop the tiebreak and the second set.
Golden State Valkyries clinch playoff berth
The Golden State Valkyries are heading to the postseason.For the first time in league history, an expansion team is set to compete in the playoffs, as the Valkyries clinched a playoff berth with their 84-80 victory over the Dallas Wings on Thursday night. Golden State has now won five consecutive games, a franchise record for its longest-ever win streak, and though the Valkyries are currently the No. 6 seed in the playoffs, they could climb as high as No. 5, depending on how the New York Liberty close out the season.AdvertisementIt’s been a season of firsts for the Bay Area franchise, as Golden State set a WNBA record for the most wins by an expansion team in mid-August. Forward Kayla Thornton made the July All-Star Game for the first time in her career, becoming the first player to represent an expansion […]
The BookKeeper: Real reason for Premier League PSR complaints is the 217% rise in costs
As the dust settles on another chaotic summer of extravagant Premier League spending, there’s time to take a step back. To look at things with less emotion. To remember we’re all here to watch talented footballers actually play the game, not just wonder where their short, peripatetic careers may take them next.AdvertisementAlternatively, there’s also more time for everyone to bemoan profit and sustainability rules (PSR). Grumbles about PSR have been a theme of the past three months. As Premier League spending ballooned over the £3billion mark — more than the other four main European domestic leagues combined — PSR and its supposed influence remained a constant in the background, a grim reaper bearing a calculator rather than a scythe.How we’ve arrived at PSR taking up such prominence in footballing discourse is, mostly, not a result of rules tightening. Domestic PSR […]
Is this the end of #FSGOut?
It has never been an organised campaign, more a largely faceless online movement without a leader but united by a single interest.It has rolled and foamed for nearly 15 years, often surfacing during transfer windows when Liverpool have been less active or successful than their competitors. Those involved are a persistent and vocal enclave of sizeably tracked social media handles pushing the same hashtag — #FSGOut — demanding the removal of Fenway Sports Group, the U.S. company that owns the Premier League club, because of its supposedly craven lack of investment.AdvertisementFramed as cranks more than reasonable critics, the #FSGOut contingent have penetrated rather than defined the conversation around Liverpool since FSG took control in late 2010. But for a few high-profile flashpoints, however, debate about the Americans’ suitability has largely remained restricted to the internet rather than the match-going fans.Ultimately, […]
With Mourinho, Solskjaer and Ten Hag sacked in one week, what remains of their Manchester United legacy?
On August 28, Besiktas decided to part ways with their head coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer following their elimination from the Conference League at the play-off stage. A day later, Fenerbahce dismissed Jose Mourinho, in part due to the defeat to Benfica in the Champions League play-offs. Two days after that, Bayer Leverkusen sacked Erik ten Hag. The Dutchman had only been in place for three competitive matches.AdvertisementSo, in the space of a week, three former Manchester United managers were dismissed from their jobs. All the while, speculation swirled around Ruben Amorim’s position as the current head coach.To be a United manager is to become one of the most scrutinised people in world football. The 12 years following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement have seen six permanent managers/head coaches and one interim attempt to secure long-term success in one of the sport’s […]
How Ederson transformed conventional wisdom about goalkeeping in the Premier League
Pep Guardiola is well accustomed to challenging conventional wisdom, sticking faithfully to his footballing principals until others see the light. But for a long time, it looked as if establishing a ball-playing goalkeeper at Manchester City would be his most divisive sell.It didn’t help that his search for a more adventurous distributor between the sticks started so poorly, as the decision to replace the safe hands of Joe Hart with risk-taker Claudio Bravo was met with huge resistance from the stands.AdvertisementBut it says a lot that now, eight years down the line, the overriding consensus surrounding Gianluigi Donnarumma’s arrival into the Premier League is that a goalkeeper who mainly excels in keeping the ball out of the net may well struggle to live up to what is required with the ball at his feet.Ederson has changed the game. His unerring […]
Be the first to leave a comment