5 NFL Red Zone Trends to Monitor for Week 15

JuJu Smith-Schuster Leads the League in Red Zone Targets

JuJu Smith-Schuster's role has developed into so much more than a speedy, big-play threat this year.

His potential was clear as a rookie in 2017, when he turned 79 targets into 58 receptions, 917 yards and 7 touchdowns. Those scores came with only 15 red zone targets, though, and his scoring wasn't likely to be sustainable unless his role changed.

He's up to 6 touchdowns this season, and he's already got 27 red zone targets -- the most in the NFL.

Those looks have been good for 36.5% of the red zone targets available in Pittsburgh, while Antonio Brown is second on the team with 19 targets (25.7%).

Brown has only seen more red zone targets than Smith-Schuster in three games this season. The pair have equal numbers in four games, and Smith-Schuster has more in six games.

Two of his six receiving touchdowns have come from outside the red zone again, but this huge increase in volume inside the 20 positions him to be a reliable touchdown scorer who still has the upside to break off big-play scores as well.