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Netflix's 'Receiver' series to follow five NFL players, including George Kittle, Justin Jefferson, Deebo Samuel

Tampa Bay Buccaneers v San Francisco 49ers SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 19: George Kittle #85 and Deebo Samuel #19 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrate after a third quarter touchdown during a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Levi's Stadium on November 19, 2023 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

Netflix is jumping back into the NFL as they announced its latest sports docuseries "Receiver," which will feature the 2023 seasons of Davante Adams of the Las Vegas Raiders, Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings, George Kittle and Deebo Samuel of the San Francisco 49ers and Amon-Ra St. Brown of Detroit Lions.

The eight-episode series, which is being produced by NFL Films, 2PM Productions and Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions, will premiere this summer. "Receiver" follows last year's "Quarterback" series that featured the 2022 seasons of Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs, Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings, and Marcus Mariota of the Atlanta Falcons.

"The natural progression is from a pass to a catch, so we're excited to dive into the 'Receiver' world after the success of our 'Quarterback' series," said Gabe Spitzer, vice president, nonfiction sports, Netflix. "NFL Films, Omaha Productions and 2PM Productions have delivered again in finding unique and dynamic athletes who will further highlight the drama of this sport on and off the field."

The change from following quarterbacks to receivers in the second was not the original plan. There was hope that "Quarterback" would have a new set of signal callers to document for a second season, but there was a lack of interest from players to sign on for the project.

"I think maybe some guys are thinking that it is going to be a distraction, even though I told a couple of them, 'I guarantee you'll win the Super Bowl like Mahomes if you do it,'" <a data-i13n="cpos:3;pos:1" href="https://sports.yahoo.com/peyton-manning-netflix-struggling-to-find-subjects-for-season-2-of-quarterback-185810728.html">Manning said in September</a>.

There should be a good amount of interesting content in each of the eight episodes considering the receivers chosen for the next season.

Samuel and Kittle helped lead the 49ers to Super Bowl LVIII where they fell to Mahomes and the Chiefs.

Adams posted his fourth straight 1,000-yard receiving season as the Raiders struggled to an 8-9 record and made a midseason coaching change.

St. Brown finished third in the NFL in receiving yards (1,515) as the Lions not only made the playoffs for the first time since 2016, they won a postseason game for the first time since 1991 and reached the NFC Championship game.

Jefferson battledinjuries that caused him to miss seven games, but still recorded 1,000-plus receiving yards as the Vikings missed the playoffs. There was also speculation about his future with his name bubbling up in rumors ahead of the trade deadline as well as whether he will sign an extension to stay with the franchise.

Netflix is going back to the sports market against following the success of previous series like "Quarterback," "Formula 1: Drive to Survive," "Full Swing," among others. It was also announced in February that the company will follow the Boston Red Sox during the 2024 season to get an inside look at a major league team over a 162-game season.

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