top of page
unnamed.jpg
unnamed.jpg
download.png
2136743.png

JuJu Smith-Schuster

WR, Steelers

1200px-U+25CB.svg.png

Juju had a disappointing season last year, but we should expect him to see some sort of a rebound. He saw a massive dip in efficiency last year, with his yards per catch falling to 8.6. That’s more than five yards lower than his career average. Juju’s average depth of target also fell to 5.5 yards, which explains why he was so inefficient. Juju still had 97 catches last year, so the volume is there. Part of the reason Juju saw his average depth of target fall was that the Steelers had literally no run game last season, so they needed to rely more on short passes as an extension of the run game. Defenses didn’t need to worry about stopping the run, so they could put a lot of effort into stopping the deep pass, which made most open routes underneath. Now that the Steelers have drafted Najee Harris, the run game should be much better, so they won’t need to rely as much on short passes. While that does mean Juju will likely see less volume, he’ll be much more efficient. Also, a better run game means a better offense for Pittsburgh, so they’ll be on the field for longer which will help offset the volume Juju will lose to Najee Harris. Overall, Juju Smith-Schuster seems primed to rebound this year, giving him WR1 upside with a solid floor.

Standard Analytics-Based Projected Points: 147.9

PPR Analytics-Based Projected Points: 248.8

unnamed.jpg
bottom of page