It was well known that the Washington Football Team's pass-catchers were young and had a lot to prove heading into the 2020 season. Terry McLaurin had already shown he was a talented player, but the rest of the group still needed to show what it could do at the professional level.
From what former pass-catcher Santana Moss saw, Washington's receivers put plenty of potential on display.
"I think those guys are young and in their prime. They're going to be great, they're going to be better," Moss told Senior Vice President of Media & Content Julie Donaldson on an episode of "Washington Football Today."
"Last year for them to have the season that they had as a whole, knowing what went on with the offseason, that leads you to have great hopes for those young guys and just give them another year underneath that. You know that system can also pay dividends."
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Head coach Ron Rivera wanted to see what he had at the receiver position, and several players had memorable high points during the season. McLaurin finished with 87 receptions for 1,118 yards (13th in the league) and four touchdowns and was unanimously voted as a team captain. Third-year veteran Cam Sims, who closed out the season with 32 receptions for 477 yards and a touchdown, emerged as a reliable No. 2 option for Washington's quarterbacks.
"I think we have a lot of guys that can fly," Moss said. "When you look at what Terry can do, when you look at what our running backs can do, I mean we have a lot of guys that can get up and down the field."
Even more impressive was the performance of tight end Logan Thomas, who capped off his seventh season in the league with 72 receptions for 670 yards and six touchdowns. Thomas was still learning the position when Washington signed him in March, but in one season he surpassed his previous career totals in receptions, targets, yards and touchdowns.
"He was the one-man wrecking crew," Moss said of Thomas. "Honestly, he did it all for us this year and we didn't expect that. He showed us that he's worthy of being that guy for the future."
Another future receiving weapon to consider is Kelvin Harmon, who suffered a torn ACL in the offseason and did not play this year. Harmon was a steady receiver for Washington in 2019, capping off his rookie year with 30 receptions for 365 yards. Throughout the past six months, Harmon has shared recovery progress on social media and has given Washington fans hope that he'll be back next season.
"Hopefully, this year he can be that guy that can bounce back and hopefully make the roster because I think that he has a bright future," Moss said. "I'm saying this based off some of the things I've seen him do in college and his rookie season. He was a guy that was a sure-hands guy that was always there for the quarterback."
With free agency and the 2021 NFL Draft on the horizon, Moss shared his thoughts on the players he believes could help solidify the group. But regardless of who Washington might target when the new league year begins in March, Washington's pass-catchers have at least shown they are ready to take another step in their development.
"See right now, we have the luxury where we don't have to worry about going out and getting one of those blockbuster studs. I think year after year we were trying to get one of those home run hits," Moss said. "Offensively I don't think we need a home run hit with our wide receiver position. But I do think there are a lot of home run hits out there in free agency. So, we can get an older guy in here easily through free agency knowing that we have the cap space and find that next guy. But I'm not counting those other guys out."
