Mr. TD: Breshad Perriman

At long last, the Ravens 2015 first round draft pick, Breshad Perriman, has made good on the investment the Ravens placed on him. Drafted out of the University of Central Florida as a deep threat with elite speed, Perriman missed his rookie season following a torn ACL in the 2015 preseason.

Now back and at full strength, Perriman is proving what he can do, and boy, its been fun to watch.

Perriman caught the first touchdown of his career in Week 10 against the Browns, via a spectacular diving catch in the left side of the end zone.

In Week 12 against the Bengals, Perriman hauled in another score, again, using his size to come up with a spectacular catch.

And in Week 13 against the Dolphins, the NFL world finally saw the speed that Perriman had been heralded for, burning multiple Miami defenders as he streaked downfield for a 53 yard score.

As noted by UCF, Perriman reached almost 21 miles per hour on his run. That is fast.

Perriman has now scored three touchdowns in four games and becoming one of Flacco’s favorite targets near the end zone. Perriman’s touchdown against the Browns a similar route and field position as his touchdown against the Bengals. Perriman has the size to become an elite red zone target, something the Ravens don’t seem to have right now.

But what has been even better than the points Perriman has produced has been his flashes of potential to be an elite playmaker.

No, he doesn’t have a huge share of the offense currently, but this is Perriman’s first full year of playing in the NFL. His numbers are nothing to gawk at, but the potential is obvious.

The emergence of other playmakers, in addition to Steve Smith Sr. and Mike Wallace, in the Ravens passing was essential to the offense’s success against the Dolphins in Week 13. Perriman proved himself to be a player that can take the top off of a defense, and take pressure off of Smith and Wallace.

The Ravens offense could use all the playmakers it can get to keep playing at the level it did against Miami, but the Ravens will need playmakers, like Perriman, to step up for beyond 2016 as well. With Smith likely to be gone after this season, and Kamar Aiken set to hit the free agent market, the rise of another Ravens receiver has been crucial. The possibility of running Mike Wallace on one side and Breshad Perriman on the other could morph the Ravens into an offense capable of creating a big play at any time.

The Ravens drafted Perriman to be an elite receiver, the likes of such other stud AFC North receivers Antonio Brown and A.J. Green. While Perriman is not at that level yet, he has proved that he has elite potential. The Ravens offense is finally alive.