There’s still time for wide receivers taken in the 2015 NFL Draft to come into their own, but after three years of evidence it’s clear that the two best receivers from that draft are Oakland’s Amari Cooper and Minnesota’s Stefon Diggs.
The difference between the two is 142 draft picks. Cooper went fourth overall to the Raiders while Diggs waited for the Vikings to call his name in the fifth round with the 146th overall pick.
Their career numbers… much closer.
Cooper has 203 receptions for 2,903 yards and 18 touchdowns. Diggs has 200 catches for 2,472 yards and 15 touchdowns, and Diggs out-produced Cooper last season by 16 catches, 209 yards and one touchdown.
Basically, Diggs has put up numbers resembling that of a top five pick, even though he watched 18 wide receivers get drafted ahead of him. Look at this laundry list of regrets 17 other teams have because they passed on Diggs in favor of another receiver.
- Amari Cooper, 4th to the Raiders
- Kevin White, 7th to the Bears
- DeVante Parker, 14th to the Dolphins
- Nelson Agholor, 20th to the Eagles
- Breshad Perriman, 26th to the Ravens
- Phillip Dorsett, 29th to the Colts
- Devin Smith, 37th to the Jets
- Dorial Green-Beckham, 40th to the Titans
- Tyler Lockett, 69th to the Seahawks
- Jaelen Strong, 70th to the Texans
- Chris Conley, 76th to the Chiefs
- Sammie Coates, 87th to the Steelers
- Ty Montgomery, 94th to the Packers
- Jamison Crowder, 105th to the Redskins
- Justin Hardy, 107th to the Falcons
- Vince Mayle, 123rd to the Browns
- DeAndre Smelter, 132nd to the 49ers
- Rashad Greene, 139th to the Jaguars
- Stefon Diggs, 146th to the Vikings
The only receiver other than Cooper drafted ahead of Diggs that has an argument to say they’re among the best from the Class of 2015 is Jamison Crowder, who had Kirk Cousins throwing him the ball his first three seasons in the NFL.
Diggs now gets that chance in his first year with Cousins, and the two were on point in thier first preseason game together against the Broncos on Saturday night.
