Anquan Boldin has seen a lot of receivers come and go in his three years with the Ravens.
And he thinks this year's receiving corps is the best of the bunch.
"From an overall standpoint, I have to say yes," Boldin responded when asked Tuesday whether he believes this group is the best during his time in Baltimore.
The Ravens have Boldin and second-year wideout Torrey Smith as the top two receivers – Boldin is a three-time Pro Bowler and Smith is coming off a breakout rookie campaign – and behind them are a handful of players competing for playing time.
Jacoby Jones, LaQuan Williams, Tandon Doss, David Reed and rookie Tommy Streeter are all fighting for spots, as the No. 3 and No. 4 receiver spots are up for grabs.
"Anytime you have a bunch of guys that are competing for two, three jobs, you're going to bring out the best in them, and I think that's exactly what it's doing," Boldin said.
Williams, Doss and Reed are all going through their first full offseason, which Boldin sees as a key opportunity for them to develop. Williams and Doss were thrown into the mix as rookies during training camp last year because of the NFL lockout and had to learn the offense on the fly.
They showed promise in practice, but had limited opportunities to impact the offense in games. Williams finished the year with four catches and Doss didn't have a catch on the season. Both of them have been steady faces in the building during the voluntary offseason workouts.
Reed has also had a consistent presence throughout the offseason, as he's recovering from knee surgery. Even though he hasn't been able to participate during practice, Reed has still been able to participate in team meetings.
"The good thing for them this year is that they got a chance to get in early and learn the offense," Boldin said.
This year's rookie class has also been able to go through the offseason to learn the offense, and Boldin noticed a difference when he stepped onto the field with them for minicamp practice.
"They got a chance to grasp the offense, and the guys are able to play right now as opposed to going out thinking about it," he said.
