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Originally Published: June 11, 2009
Jones-Drew has clear path to stardom
By John Clayton
ESPN.com


US Presswire
Jacksonville RB Maurice Jones-Drew, left, Pittsburgh WR Santonio Holmes and Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers head an impressive list of ascending offensive players.

Last season, as is the case just about every year, several young offensive stars had breakthrough seasons.

At wide receiver, Roddy White of the Falcons caught 88 passes for 1,382 yards. Dwayne Bowe had an 86-catch, 1,022-yard season for an offensively challenged Chiefs team. Brandon Marshall reached star status for the Broncos, catching 104 passes for 1,265 yards.

At running back, rookies Matt Forte of the Bears, Kevin Smith of the Lions and Chris Johnson of the Titans immediately established themselves as factors by having 1,000-yard seasons.

At quarterback, Matt Ryan of the Falcons and Joe Flacco of the Ravens were rookie successes, while Matt Cassel of the Patriots went from non-starter to franchise player and was traded to the Chiefs.

As teams start to wrap up minicamps and OTAs, let's look at 10 young offensive players who could hit it big in 2009.

2. Santonio Holmes, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers: In his final 10 games last season -- including the playoffs and Super Bowl -- Holmes had 39 catches for 628 yards and five touchdowns. With the Steelers' coaches feeling more comfortable letting Ben Roethlisberger have 30-pass games, Holmes should be on target for his first 1,000-yard season and come close to 10 touchdown receptions. Holmes had a career game in the Super Bowl, catching nine passes for 131 yards and a touchdown. The confidence and momentum from that performance will carry over to this season. Roethlisberger will try to get the ball to Holmes at least five times a game, depending on the coverage.

Darren McFadden and Maurice Jones-Drew are among the NFL's potential breakout offensive players - ESPN