T.Y. Hilton: Grading the 2014 Season

What grade does Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton get for his 2014 season?

T.Y. Hilton and the Indianapolis Colts were very impressive during the 2014 season, and they ended up losing to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship. There is absolutely no reason for them to hang their heads after the season despite losing 45-7 to the Patriots, and they moved yet another step closer to reaching the Super Bowl.

Andrew Luck led the Colts’ passing offense to being the top-ranked unit in the NFL, and his wide receivers were very impressive throughout the season. No one was quite as impressive as Hilton, although there were games where he simply didn’t show up.

Throughout 15 regular season games, Hilton ended up catching 82 passes for 1,345 yards and seven touchdowns. He may not have been the most consistent wide receiver, but he is still a young receiver with plenty of room to grow. At 25 years of age, he has been growing perfectly alongside of Luck, and will likely come back as an even better player next year.

Hilton had three games in which he broke 150 yards receiving, but only one game where he broke 10 receptions. He wasn’t the most used receiver in the red zone, but he is more of a deep threat at this point rather than being a possession receiver. The Colts are going to begin using him more in the open field when Donte Moncrief improves a bit more, which will likely be early on next season.

Without Hilton on the roster, the Colts’ offense isn’t even close to being as dangerous as it is with him on the field. Luck and Hilton have great chemistry between each other, and there is no question that Hilton is Luck’s favorite target.

All of that being said, he put together a great season that no one can be upset about. Hilton will need to work on being a consistent wide receiver that comes through each and every game for his team. If he can get to that point and make those improvements next season, he is going to take yet another leap forward for the Colts.