With so much use of the Read and RPO schemes in football today, many people think that wide receivers need to block even less on the perimeter than ever. I tend to disagree because in many of these cases the ball is getting out to the perimeter even faster and usually to a multiple-receiver formation where only one receiver is intended to get the ball. This means the other receivers will be tasked with blocking the perimeter defenders to maximize the gain of the play.
There is no question that a successful running game begins with a potent offensive line and skilled running backs. But once that back breaks into the secondary, the difference between him going for a contained gain or for huge yards is often determined by if his wide receivers are willing and effective blockers.
