By: James Emery
The wide receiver position is one of the most boosted in the league because of the rare combination of skills that the elite receiver has to have in today’s NFL.
There are three categories of receivers in the league, not technically, but ranked in order of their influence on their franchise. There are the hot-hands: the players who can make that big play, but often don’t.
You have your standouts: the players who are consistent, but not that explosive. Then there’s the category titled: Calvin Johnson. These are your receivers that can truly change the pace of the game. There are not too many of those in the NFL right now, but there are some sprouting receivers that can dip in at any moment this season and change the Pro Bowl race around entirely.
Brian Hartline, Miami Dolphins (AFC)
Having a rookie quarterback find his target early in the season is one of the keys to success coach Joe Philbin was hoping Ryan Tannehill would find in 2012. The red carpet was rolled out for Brian Hartline to man that dependable receiver position, barring his injury held him back any longer.
It didn’t and against the Oakland Raiders, when the Dolphins were expected to fail, they didn’t either.
The highlight of the game was Reggie Bush, hands down. He had the most impressive performance offensively in the conference in Week 2. Just zip over to Michael Sigora’s Twitter page. Hartline’s 111 receiving yards cannot be ignored though. Tannehill has found his new favorite target and that will work wonders for Hartline with a lot of the receivers beside him paling in comparison to his production in the past. Tannehill does not have a gang of weapons which will serve the few he does have well in the end.
