After three games, both Darrell Jackson and Deion Branch are leading their teams in receiving yards.
D-Jack has 166 yards in 11 catches and Deion Branch has 199 yards in 13 catches, including a touchdown.
The stats, however, don't really show how much more valuable Branch has been to the Seahawks than D-Jack has been to the 49ers. I've now watched all of each team's games, and D-Jack has been involved in relatively few pivotal plays. The most important plays I can think of came in week 1, when he recovered an offensive fumble, setting his team up for the game-winning TD, and when he dropped an easy touchdown in the same game.
Deion Branch was a non-factor as far as receiving goes in week 1, but in week 2 he was absolutely amazing, and if the Hawks had won, he along with Hasselbeck would have been the reason. Likewise, yesterday he had an excellent game, including an amazing 42 yard TD reception.
So far the trade is looking pretty decent -- but this weekend's matchup between the 49ers and Hawks will be the first real test.
I've been looking around for some good stats on dropped passes and will update this post if I find any.
UPDATE: I found this page showing D-Jack with two drops and Deion Branch with none, but given that Nate Burleson doesn't show up on the list, I am not terribly confident in the data.
© Jed Lewison