Ranking the Best AFC East Wide Receivers After Bills Trade Stefon Diggs

6. Kendrick Bourne, New England Patriots

Kendrick Bourne's raw numbers weren't nearly as good as Khalil Shakir's, but we really need to consider the offenses around them. It was a lot easier to put up numbers in the 2023 Bills' offense than the 2023 Patirots'.

Bourne's 7.4 yards per target weren't an impressive average, but they blew away the Pats' team average of 6.3 and were the most for any of the team's wideouts.

if the Patriots do right by Bourne and get him a good QB in the draft, we'll get to see what he's really capable of as a WR1.

5. Curtis Samuel, Buffalo Bills

The new WR1 in Buffalo after the Diggs trade, Curtis Samuel is another guy who hasn't been able to put up numbers that match his real skillset thanks to playing in poor offenses. Sam Howell ranked No. 26 in the NFL with 6.4 yards per pass attempt, but Curtis Samuel was still able to rack up 62 receptions for 613 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Pro Football Focus also graded Samuel out well. His 70.5 receiving grade would have ranked No. 7 among AFC East wideouts who saw 25-plus targets in 2023.

4. Mike Williams, New York Jets

Sticking on PFF grade, Mike Williams put up a 77.6 in 2021, 79.3 in 2022 and 73.5 in 2023. That 2023 number was over an especially small sample due to his injury, of course, but that makes for three consecutive years with grades that would have ranked anywhere from tied for 6th to 3rd in the AFC East last year.

The "injury-prone" label has haunted Williams, and he never climbed out of Keenan Allen's shadow in L.A.. But even still, he's been one of hte NFL's premier deep threats for years. He's averaged no fewer than 8.9 yards per target in any of the past six seasons, with an average of 9.6 yards per target since 2022.

Of course, the gap between everyone we've discussed so far and the top three is absolutely massive.