WIDE RECEIVERS BEST ON SHORT ROUTES 2026 NFL Draft

2026 WIDE RECEIVERS BEST ON SHORT ROUTES

Excellence in running short routes is often a less heralded, yet vital skill for wide receivers, establishing a foundation for a dynamic and sustainable passing game. Wes Welker (Texas Tech) and Julian Edelman (Kent State) carved out notable careers by being maestros of the short game, capitalizing on quick cuts and intelligent route running to secure critical yardage.

Navigate through the data below, concentrating on current college wide receivers who are demonstrating prowess on short routes. Metrics such as completion percentage, yards after catch (YAC), and first-down conversions bring into focus the players orchestrating impactful plays within limited yardage.

2026 Wide Receivers ranked by SHORT RECEIVING

RANK Player Pos Team HANDS SHORT MEDIUM DEEP BLOCKING Rating
1

Makai
Lemon

WR
USC   Mascot
USC Mascot
87 86 90 91 59
89.1
2

Eugene
Wilson III

WR
Florida   Mascot
Florida Mascot
93 84 87 76 58
85.5
3

Eric
Singleton Jr...

WR
Georgia Tech   Mascot
Georgia Tech Mascot
71 83 88 89 64
84.4
4

Dane
Key

WR
Kentucky   Mascot
Kentucky Mascot
76 82 90 88 66
82.7
5

Carnell
Tate

WR
Ohio State   Mascot
Ohio State Mascot
79 80 88 87 65
87.5
6

Johntay
Cook II

WR
Texas   Mascot
Texas Mascot
67 80 87 67 64
91.4
7

CJ
Daniels

WR
LSU   Mascot
LSU Mascot
83 78 82 84 62
74.4
8

Caullin
Lacy

WR
Louisville   Mascot
Louisville Mascot
76 77 84 82 65
77.2
9

Zachariah
Branch

WR
USC   Mascot
USC Mascot
75 76 79 79 46
90.3
10

Marquis
Johnson

WR
Missouri   Mascot
Missouri Mascot
85 76 76 82 59
81.3
11

Duce
Robinson

WR
USC   Mascot
USC Mascot
71 75 82 85 62
87.2
12

Antonio
Williams

WR
Clemson   Mascot
Clemson Mascot
60 74 74 83 50
81.5
13

Christian
Leary

WR
Georgia Tech   Mascot
Georgia Tech Mascot
70 74 76 81 49
72.6
14

Nic
Anderson

WR
Oklahoma   Mascot
Oklahoma Mascot
51 72 81 81 55
80.1
15

Evan
Stewart

WR
Oregon   Mascot
Oregon Mascot
78 71 80 82 48
83.5
16

Noah
Thomas

WR
Texas A&M   Mascot
Texas A&M Mascot
67 69 77 75 57
76.2
17

Semaj
Morgan

WR
Michigan   Mascot
Michigan Mascot
65 68 58 72 65
83.7
18

Barion
Brown

WR
Kentucky   Mascot
Kentucky Mascot
51 67 65 76 64
82.1
19

Kevin
Concepcion

WR
NC State   Mascot
NC State Mascot
58 67 73 77 63
85.0
20

Rico
Flores Jr.

WR
UCLA   Mascot
UCLA Mascot
74 67 73 68 64
83.5