With Antonio Brown trying to force his way out of Pittsburgh, and Odell Beckham perpetually on that special we’re-not-actively-shopping-but-if-you-happened-to-call trading block, we’ve heard a lot about the value of a franchise wide receiver as he relates to a functional, Super Bowl-winning offense.
In case you need reminding, here are the last 18 years’ worth of leading receivers from championship teams…
2000: Ravens—Shannon Sharpe (TE), 67 catches, 810 yards, five touchdowns
2001: Patriots—Troy Brown, 101 catches, 1,199 yards, five touchdowns
2002: Buccaneers—Keyshawn Johnson, 76 catches, 1,088 yards, five touchdowns
2003: Patriots—Deion Branch, 57 catches, 803 yards, three touchdowns
2004: Patriots—David Givens, 56 catches, 874 yards, three touchdowns
2005: Steelers—Hines Ward, 69 catches, 975 yards, 11 touchdowns
2006: Colts—Marvin Harrison, 95 catches, 1,366 yards, 12 touchdowns
2007: Giants—Plaxico Burress, 70 catches, 1,025 yards, 12 touchdowns
2008: Steelers—Hines Ward, 81 catches, 1,043 yards, seven touchdowns
2009: Saints—Marques Colston, 70 catches, 1,074 yards, nine touchdowns
2010: Packers—Greg Jennings, 76 catches, 1,265 yards, 12 touchdowns
2011: Giants—Victor Cruz, 82 catches, 1,536 yards, nine touchdowns
2012: Ravens—Anquan Boldin, 65 catches, 921 yards, four touchdowns
2013: Seahawks—Golden Tate, 64 catches, 898 yards, five touchdowns
2014: Patriots—Rob Gronkowski (TE), 82 catches, 1,124 yards, 12 touchdowns
2015: Broncos—Demaryius Thomas, 105 catches, 1,304 yards, six touchdowns
2016: Patriots—Julian Edelman, 98 catches, 1,106 yards, three touchdowns
2017: Eagles—Zach Ertz (TE), 74 catches, 824 yards, eight touchdowns
2018: Patriots—Julian Edelman, 74 catches, 850 yards, six touchdowns
The conventional wisdom goes like this: Almost none of these teams needed a tempo-setting wideout (the kind of receiver who needs 10 targets a game; the kind whose mood is attached to the effect he was able to have on the game).