Who has the best duo of wide receivers in the NFL?
Is it the Falcons with Julio Jones and Roddy White or the Chicago Bears with Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall?
When the Bears (2-3) and the Falcons (2-3) meet at 4:25 p.m. at the Georgia Dome, the wide receivers will be the X-factor.
Through five games, the stats are nearly identical.
White and Jones have combined for 56 catches, 765 yards and five touchdowns this season. Jeffery and Marshall have combined for 58 receptions, 671 yards and six touchdowns.
“They are legit,” Falcons cornerback Desmond Trufant said of Jeffery and Marshall. “They are big and strong. They adjust to the ball very well. We just have to be in position when the ball is in there and we’ll be all right.”
Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler loves his two primary passing targets and also acknowledged the play of Jones and White.
“Their wide catching radius makes it easy on the quarterback,” Cutler said. “I think that Matt (Ryan) probably has a pretty good idea down there with Julio and Roddy. They make it easy for you because you can put (the ball) in a wide array of places and they are going to go get it. I like the big guys.”
White, who recorded his 700th career catch last week, is struggling somewhat this season.
He’s been targeted 31 times and has caught 48.5 percent of his targets. Jones is tied with Philadelphia’s Jeremy Maclin for the most targets in the league with 55. He’s caught 72.7 percent of his targeted passes.
Jeffery has been targeted 38 times and has caught 68.4 percent of his passes. Cutler has thrown 35 passes at Marshall, and he’s caught 54.3 percent of them.
