Player
Alec Pierce
WR · Colts
Pierce hit 1,000 yards on 47 catches — a profile almost no modern WR carries. The Colts' deep-shot scheme around Anthony Richardson/Daniel Jones converts him from a low-volume secondary option into a real WR1-yardage producer without changing his usage shape.
He's quietly become a 1,000-yard receiver — on under 50 catches.
TrendPierce regular-season production
| Year | G | Tgts | Rec | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 16 | 78 | 41 | 593 | 2 |
| 2023 | 17 | 65 | 32 | 514 | 2 |
| 2024 | 16 | 69 | 37 | 824 | 7 |
| 2025 | 15 | 84 | 47 | 1,003 | 6 |
Receiving yards per season
| Season | Yards |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 593 |
| 2023 | 514 |
| 2024 | 824 |
| 2025 | 1003 |
1,003 yards on 47 catches in 2025 — the first 1,000-yard season of his career and one of the most efficient lines in the NFL. Among WRs with 1,000+ yards in 2025, only a few matched his 21.3 Y/Rec.
The arc is unusual: catches went 41 → 32 → 37 → 47, not a steady ramp. The yardage doubled because the per-catch number kept climbing every year.
Why it matters. Pierce hit 1,000 yards on 47 catches — a profile almost no modern WR carries. The Colts' deep-shot scheme around Anthony Richardson/Daniel Jones converts him from a low-volume secondary option into a real WR1-yardage producer without changing his usage shape.
He led the entire NFL in yards per reception in 2024 — at 22.3 Y/Rec, more than 4 yards above #2.
Rare2024 NFL leaders in Y/Rec (min 30 receptions, WRs)
| Player | Rec | Yds | Y/Rec |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alec Pierce | 37 | 824 | 22.27 |
| Keon Coleman | 32 | 578 | 18.06 |
| Jameson Williams | 59 | 1,020 | 17.29 |
| Demarcus Robinson | 35 | 602 | 17.20 |
| Rashod Bateman | 51 | 846 | 16.59 |
| Calvin Ridley | 64 | 1,017 | 15.89 |
| A.J. Brown | 79 | 1,242 | 15.72 |
| Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | 32 | 497 | 15.53 |
22.27 Y/Rec is 4.21 yards higher than #2 Keon Coleman (18.06). A 4+ yard gap at the top of a WR rate stat is unusual — the leaderboard normally clusters between 15-18.
It also wasn't a small-sample fluke: 37 catches is real volume, and the league-average Y/Rec among WRs with 30+ catches that year was 12.77. Pierce was nearly 10 yards per catch above the typical starter — a sign Indianapolis had pulled almost every short-target rep out of his role.
Why it matters. Leading a rate stat by 4+ yards over the second-place player is structural, not random — it reflects a deliberate Colts decision to use Pierce only on vertical routes after Anthony Richardson took over. Most efficiency leaders sit on tiny samples; Pierce did it on 37 catches.
93 of his career targets have come 20+ yards downfield — 32% of his entire usage.
SplitPierce career targets by air-yards depth
| Depth | Tgts | Catches | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short (<10) | 101 | 60 | 495 | 3 |
| Mid (10-19) | 102 | 61 | 1,000 | 5 |
| Deep (20+) | 93 | 36 | 1,439 | 9 |
Nearly half his career receiving yards (1,439 of 2,934) come from deep targets. The 38.7% catch rate on deep balls is solid for that depth, and 9 of his 17 career TDs are deep shots.
For context: most starting WRs see deep targets on 12-15% of their usage. Pierce sees them on 31.4% of his career looks. He's specialized into a deep-only role at a level only Jameson Williams approaches.
Why it matters. Modern starting WRs run a balanced route tree; a 31.4% deep-target share is extreme specialization. Pierce's career line essentially is his deep-ball line — 49% of his receiving yards and 53% of his TDs come from that one bucket.
Two career games with 40+ Y/Rec, and four with 33+ — almost no WR posts even one.
MilestonePierce single-game Y/Rec leaders (min 3 catches)
| Date | Opp | Rec | Yds | Y/Rec |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 W5 | vs JAX | 3 | 134 | 44.67 |
| 2024 W1 | vs HOU | 3 | 125 | 41.67 |
| 2023 W13 | vs TEN | 3 | 100 | 33.33 |
| 2025 W18 | vs HOU | 4 | 132 | 33.00 |
| 2024 W11 | vs NYJ | 3 | 74 | 24.67 |
Two games at 40+ Y/Rec on 3+ catches (44.67 vs JAX, 41.67 vs HOU) and two more at 33+. For comparison, a typical WR1 will go a full season without a single 33-Y/Rec game on 3+ catches.
The 2024 Week 5 vs Jacksonville (3-134-1, 44.67 Y/Rec) is the signature of his career: minimal volume, maximum impact, all deep.
Why it matters. These games are what makes Pierce playable as a low-volume WR — the boom outcomes are large enough that the Colts and fantasy users tolerate the quiet weeks. The cluster in 2024 is also when his role officially flipped to pure field-stretcher.
His 18.7 career Y/Rec leads the entire 2022 WR class — by nearly 2 yards over #2.
Comparison2022 rookie WR class — career totals through 2025
| Player | Rec | Yds | Y/Rec |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Pickens | 277 | 4,407 | 15.91 |
| Drake London | 309 | 3,961 | 12.82 |
| Chris Olave | 291 | 3,728 | 12.81 |
| Garrett Wilson | 315 | 3,644 | 11.57 |
| Alec Pierce | 157 | 2,934 | 18.69 |
| Khalil Shakir | 249 | 2,809 | 11.28 |
| Romeo Doubs | 222 | 2,795 | 12.59 |
| Jameson Williams | 155 | 2,611 | 16.85 |
| Wan'Dale Robinson | 268 | 2,465 | 9.20 |
| Christian Watson | 138 | 2,320 | 16.81 |
Pierce's 18.69 career Y/Rec is the highest in the 2022 WR class by 1.84 yards over Jameson Williams (16.85). The next two efficient guys — Williams and Christian Watson (16.81) — are also pure field-stretchers.
He sits 7th in career yardage in the class despite being taken at pick No. 53 in the 2nd round, behind Wilson, Olave, London, and Pickens. But on yards-per-touch, no one in the class is close.
Why it matters. Draft-class comparisons usually anchor on yards or receptions, which favor possession players. Sorting the 2022 class by efficiency puts Pierce — the lowest-volume name in the top 10 — at the very top, showing his role is the most specialized of any first/second-round WR from that draft.
His ADOT more than doubled across his career — from 11.7 in 2022 to 21.7 in 2024.
AnomalyPierce average depth of target by year
| Year | Tgts | Air Yds | ADOT | Y/Rec |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 78 | 914 | 11.72 | 14.46 |
| 2023 | 65 | 977 | 15.03 | 16.06 |
| 2024 | 69 | 1,500 | 21.74 | 22.27 |
| 2025 | 84 | 1,593 | 18.96 | 21.34 |
Y/Rec trajectory by season
| Season | Y/Rec |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 14.46 |
| 2023 | 16.06 |
| 2024 | 22.27 |
| 2025 | 21.34 |
His 2022 ADOT of 11.7 is a normal NFL WR depth. By 2024 it had jumped to 21.7 — among the deepest in the league for any WR with 60+ targets. It settled at 19.0 in 2025, still well above any league norm.
The role evolution is deliberate, not accidental. Indianapolis moved him explicitly into the field-stretcher role when Anthony Richardson took over, and even through QB changes the assignment has held.
Why it matters. ADOT north of 19-21 is an extreme assignment — it means almost every play he runs is a vertical route. That this trajectory survived three different starting QBs is the strongest evidence the Colts designed the role around him rather than around any quarterback.
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