# NFL Receiver Question **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 20, 2011, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569 "2011-11-20T19:28:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SanDiegoTim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2011, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/1 "2011-11-20T19:28:37Z")
Every week you see amazing receptions. How much of an impact do the gloves the receivers wear make? I assume it’s significant. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2011, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/2 "2011-11-20T20:00:31Z")
It’s probably a contributing factor (though also probably a small one). Many receivers do wear gloves with tacky surfaces (though any sort of sticky substance is illegal, and has been for decades). Tacky gloves only get you so far; you still see plenty of dropped passes, and the human factors (skill, concentration), as well as weather conditions (cold or wet ball) likely play a much greater role in determining whether a pass is caught or not. ---
**Author:** ![Cubsfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Cubsfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cubsfan)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2011, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/3 "2011-11-20T21:47:35Z")
From my days playing flag football I can say that receivers gloves so make a significant difference. At least when your receivers are all shitty. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2011, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/4 "2011-11-20T23:03:28Z")
Gloves can make bad-average receivers look better than they are, but if you’re already a really good receiver than you’ll stay about the same. From a complete and total amateur stage (I only play intramurals and catch with friends) the gloves make a huge difference and I am a much better receiver with them on. Once the gloves get wet they become worthless though since it actually makes the rubber of the glove slipperier, and once they’re worn they’re gone; although professionals would have new gloves every game (and probably every drive) ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/5 "2011-11-21T14:22:11Z")
I’ve played in flag football leagues for a few years and for me, personally, it doesn’t make a huge difference. I think for the guys who need them it’s more of a mental thing. One thing that does make a huge difference is the size of an NFL receiver’s hands. Some of those guys have giant hands. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/6 "2011-11-21T14:45:34Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I’ve played in flag football leagues for a few years and for me, personally, it doesn’t make a huge difference. I think for the guys who need them it’s more of a mental thing. > > One thing that does make a huge difference is the size of an NFL receiver’s hands. Some of those guys have giant hands. It’s a combination of the gloves, the size of these guys’ hands, and a mental edge. I’d say it’s a lot more mental than anything else, really. I use a receivers’ glove to play racquetball and it’s extremely tacky. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/7 "2011-11-22T20:01:51Z")
> [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](#): > > It’s a combination of the gloves, the size of these guys’ hands, and a mental edge. I’d say it’s a lot more mental than anything else, really. I use a receivers’ glove to play racquetball and it’s extremely tacky. I like receivers gloves better than batting gloves for when I play softball because the grip is better. I use them as winter gloves as well because I have to talk outside a lot and use my hands (I’m a college tour guide) and I like using them for better dexterity and grip than normal winter gloves ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/8 "2011-11-22T20:07:28Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > It’s probably a contributing factor (though also probably a small one). Many receivers do wear gloves with tacky surfaces (though any sort of sticky substance is illegal, and has been for decades). Tacky gloves only get you so far; you still see plenty of dropped passes, and the human factors (skill, concentration), as well as weather conditions (cold or wet ball) likely play a much greater role in determining whether a pass is caught or not. In my experience they make a huge difference. And for an NFL WR I suspect that they make an even bigger difference due to the relative size of the hands and velocity of the passes. When I was playing the gloves were night and day and I think the gloves of today are orders of magnitude stickier. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/9 "2011-11-22T20:18:07Z")
> [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](#): > > I use a receivers’ glove to play racquetball and it’s extremely tacky. > [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > I use them as winter gloves as well I think using receiver’s gloves as every-day wear is significantly more tacky than wearing them to play racquetball. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/10 "2011-11-22T21:22:23Z")
> [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](#): > > It’s a combination of the gloves, the size of these guys’ hands, and a mental edge. A combination of gloves, the size of these guys’ hands, a mental edge and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/11 "2011-11-22T22:25:21Z")
Let’s not forget the [nice red uniforms](http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/8277/photos;_ylt=ArdLovQJrZv2FXInbEk_vu3.uLYF?slug=0b339a2f53928595ed5961c34f2d9fc3-getty-132685793). ---
**Author:** ![Frosted\_Glass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frosted_glass/32/3926_2.png) [@Frosted\_Glass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frosted_Glass)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/12 "2011-11-22T23:09:46Z")
When I played in high school I noticed that wearing gloves helped the most for passes that were off target or thrown into traffic (less likely to drop the ball wearing gloves if I got hit right after the catch). It was also helpful for receivers who did not have “soft” hands and tended to let the ball just drill their hands. There is definitely a mental “I can catch anything now” factor that helps a lot too. Personally, I generally hated wearing gloves at running back unless it was freezing. I found it very difficult feel and control the ball when opposing players went to strip the ball out. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/13 "2011-11-23T14:18:09Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > A combination of gloves, the size of these guys’ hands, a mental edge and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope. Ah. A_mongst_ our weaponry… ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-receiver-question/603569/14 "2011-11-23T16:29:16Z")
> [@Frosted\_Glass](#): > > When I played in high school I noticed that wearing gloves helped the most for passes that were off target or thrown into traffic (less likely to drop the ball wearing gloves if I got hit right after the catch). It was also helpful for receivers who did not have “soft” hands and tended to let the ball just drill their hands. There is definitely a mental “I can catch anything now” factor that helps a lot too. > > Personally, I generally hated wearing gloves at running back unless it was freezing. I found it very difficult feel and control the ball when opposing players went to strip the ball out. IMO gloves are good for catching for those who can’t catch. Like you said - if you didn’t have soft hands or had trouble keeping an eye on it in traffic, or if it’s not tossed right into your breadbasket (catch with your fingers, not your body) then sure. Sticky hands will help. However, in the NFL? where those guys mitts are massive? I think gloves are marginal. It’d be like asking if gloves would help you catch a volleyball. Maybe? If it was a one-handed snag by the tips of my fingers… not really though. And you’re right about the lack of “touch”. I’m baffled by any QB wearing gloves. You NEED to feel the ball in your hands. Same thing with a RB.