Tag: Jerry Rice

Former Washington wide receiver DeSean Jackson retires from NFL

Jackson played 15 seasons in the NFL, including three excellent years in Washington. He ends his career as one of the greatest deep threats in NFL history.

Longtime NFL wide receiver DeSean Jackson announced his retirement on Wednesday after 15 seasons.

Jackson is best known for his two stints with the Philadelphia Eagles, but after Philadelphia cut him in March 2014, Jackson signed a three-year deal with the then-Washington Redskins. During his three seasons in Washington, Jackson caught 142 passes for 2,702 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Jackson went over 1,000 yards receiving in two of his three Washington seasons.

After Washington, Jackson played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before returning to the Eagles. He finished his career with stints in Las Vegas, Los Angeles (Rams) and Baltimore. In total, Jackson spent eight seasons with Philadelphia.

For his career, Jackson finished with 641 receptions, 11,263 yards, 58 receiving touchdowns, four rushing touchdowns and four punts returned for touchdowns. Jackson averaged a remarkable 17.6 yards per reception over the course of his lengthy career.

His greatest successes came against the Dallas Cowboys. He had 1,330 receiving yards vs. Dallas. He also had over 1,000 yards against the Giants. However, he had seven career receiving touchdowns against Washington, his most against any team.

During his time with the Redskins, Jackson made Philly pay as he had some big games against his former team.

How good was Jackson? Check out this statistic, courtesy of Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports.

Jackson should be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as he’s the best deep-ball receiver of his era and arguably the greatest ever.

Congratulations on an outstanding career.

Dolphins duo of Tua Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill pacing for a first in NFL history

Miami’s QB-WR tandem on historic, potentially record-setting paces.

In NFL history, there’s never been a wide receiver named Most Valuable Player.

Since the league created the MVP award in 1957, a quarterback was given the top honor 44 times, a running back or fullback was named league MVP 18 times and a defensive player won the award twice (defensive tackle Alan Page of the Minnesota Vikings in 1971 and linebacker Lawrence Taylor in 1986 for the New York Giants).

Mark Moseley of the Washington Redskins won the award in a strike-shortened 1982 season and was the only placekicker in NFL history to win MVP. The last non-quarterback winner was Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who took the award home in 2012, along with Offensive Player of the Year that season.

In 28 seasons, the same player won both the league MVP and Offensive Player of the Year awards, and the last to do so was Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes in 2018. Segueing nicely from Mahomes and his next opponent, the Miami Dolphins are in the middle of a potential historical run for a pair of players.

Tua Tagovailoa is playing remarkable football and is arguably the league leader in the MVP race thus far. While others like Mahomes himself, Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen have their candidacy as well, a non-quarterback is having a season for the ages and could shatter records come season’s end.

Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill is currently on pace to exceed 2,000 receiving yards, something never done in the history of football. The closest anyone ever got was Calvin Johnson in 2012 when he was painfully close with 1,964 yards. As good of a season Johnson had, he was awardless and didn’t even take home the OPOY, as Peterson took home both top awards. A wide receiver has taken home the OPOY just five times, and only four individuals have won it, as Jerry Rice won the award twice in 1987 and 1993.

Recently, Cooper Kupp made a run for 2,000 in 2021 and fell short of breaking Johnson’s mark by just 18 yards. Kupp did receive the OPOY that season, and last season, Justin Jefferson was given the prestigious honor. Michael Thomas won the award in 2019 and was the first receiver since Rice to claim the title.

Hill is on pace for 2,152 receiving yards, heading into Week 9, ironically against Mahomes and his other former Chiefs teammates. Hill is leading the NFL in yards and touchdown receptions, and he’s just four receptions from overtaking Stefon Diggs as the league’s leader in receptions, so a huge effort on Sunday in Germany could place Hill in the “triple-crown” at the receiver position.

There’s an exclusive fraternity of “triple-crown” receivers that have finished a season leading the NFL in catches, receiving yards and touchdown receptions.

The fictitious yet formidable frat was started in 1932 when New York Giant Ray Flaherty ran off a season unseen at that point in pro football. He led the league in all main categories, recording 21 catches, 350 receptions, and five touchdowns.

The next five times the “triple-crown” was won it was by the same man – Don Hutson. The Green Bay Packers legend first accomplished the feat in 1936, then rattled off four straight seasons from 1941-44 as the game’s top-receiving thoroughbred.

The following decade was the next time the crown was placed on the metaphorical helmet of a wideout when Los Angeles Ram Elroy Hirsch ran the receiver’s table in stats in 1951. That was followed by Philadephia Eagle Pete Pihos in 1953 and in 1959 by Baltimore Colt Raymond Berry.

Entering the dawn of the Super Bowl era, a pair of receivers in Chicago Bear Johnny Morris and San Fransisco 49er Dave Parks punched their ticket to this “frat” in 1964 and 1965 respectively. In 1966 Lance Alworth led the NFL in receptions (73), yards (1,383) and receiving touchdowns (13).

To put into scale how difficult this task has become, the first person in this Super Bowl era to claim this was, in fact, Rice in 1990; in a non-OPOY season for him. In that season, Warren Moon was the Offensive Player of the Year, and the MVP was Rice’s quarterback, Joe Montana.

Three other receivers have made this club since Rice – they’re Sterling Sharpe (1992), Steve Smith Sr. (2005) and Kupp (2021). That makes 12 men in the history of football who can say they’ve won the NFL’s “triple crown.”

Hill is looking to be the league’s 13th to do so, and if this comes with a 2,000-yard campaign, it’d be extremely hard to not call him the MVP. If history is any guide, it’d take the most prolific year in all of history to potentially break that seal.

As impressive as the stat line is for Hill, and when one looks at his games from last season without Tagovailoa, it’s the combo of these two that’s creating this remarkable dual campaign for another potential first in NFL history.

No quarterback-wide receiver tandem has ever won the MVP and OPOY as teammates in the same season. The only teammates to do so, did the feat twice, in 1999 and 2001. They were “The Greatest Show of Turf’s” quarterback Kurt Warner and running back Marshall Faulk. Faulk took both awards in the middle of this in 2000.

Yet, what’s more coincidental is the fact that “The Greatest Show on Surf” could produce the next pair of teammates and the first-ever passer-receiver duo to claim this dual honor.

One last thing: in 1999 as well as 2001, the Rams went to the Super Bowl.

Hall of Fame WR weighs in on Tyreek Hill’s MVP case

One of the best to ever do it shares his thoughts on The Cheetah’s MVP case.

The Miami Dolphins are off to a hot start through their first seven games, as they’ve amassed a 5-2 record, with their two losses coming against Super Bowl contenders in the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills.

One huge reason that Miami has been successful is the performance of wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Before the season, he predicted that he’d become the first player in NFL history to record 2,000 receiving yards in a season, and through seven weeks, he’s on pace to do just that. Hill has recorded 53 receptions for a league-leading 902 yards and seven touchdowns, making life easier on his quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa. Many have begun to question if Hill could become the first wide receiver to win the league’s MVP award.

Earlier this week, Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, widely considered the greatest wideout ever, shared his take on the matter.

“I think he has a great chance (to be named MVP) because speed kills, man,” Rice said on an episode of NFL Network’s “The Insiders.'” “What’s happening is you cannot play him one-on-one, you cannot play him bump-and-run and you cannot play him man-to-man. He’s making plays over the middle. He’s catching deep balls. He’s doing everything. I think he has a great chance of being the Most Valuable Player.”

If Hill continues this pace, the only thing stopping him from winning MVP will be the performance of Tagovailoa. The award has become synonymous with quarterbacks, and if Tagovailoa stays healthy and is the one getting the ball to Hill and others, the voters have shown they tend to give the nod to QBs.

These are champagne problems in Miami, but it’s incredible that these conversations are being had.

A.J. Brown names his top 5 wide receivers of all time with a warning to older players

Philadelphia #Eagles A.J. Brown names his top 5 wide receivers of all time with a warning to older players

A.J. Brown is one of the best pass catchers in football, and after three straight monster performances, he’s second in the NFL in receiving yards (672), and he’s on pace for close to 1,900 yards after six games.

Brown and the Eagles are preparing for Tyreek Hill and the Miami Dolphins, with their speedy pass catcher leading the league with 814 yards, and he cruises towards 2,000+ yards on the season.

On Friday, the Eagles All-Pro was asked to name his top five wide receivers all time, and he’s catching some flak for excluding some massive names.

Brown joked that he meant no disrespect to any older player left off his list.

The best player ever for all 32 NFL teams

Who’s the GOAT for every team?

Some NFL players are so much more than the basic sum of their parts.

They are not mere cogs in The Machine, doing their job, punching in and out while carrying a lunch pail. They are the genuine difference-makers, the tone-setters, the memorable faces of the franchise, and the people who inherently make the uniforms they wear iconic by default.

No matter how long an NFL team has actually been around, they’ve had at least one great player. It’d be impossible not to. Everyone has had that one superstar who was a bright magnet of charisma and someone who never shied away from the spotlight — either from the opposing team or fans. Everyone has had that player who made folks fall in love with their team.

The following list takes a look at the finest player in franchise history for all 32 NFL teams. It takes into account individual accomplishments, peer comparisons, influence on their team and city, and how well their skills translated to the tests of time. If you’re even a casual pro football observer, you will undoubtedly guess some of the more obvious selections, while others had more of a back-and-forth.

Let’s break it down.

Also check out:

DK Metcalf names his top 5 WRs of all time, top 3 in the NFL today

Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf was a guest on the All Things Covered podcast earlier this week.

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Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf was a guest on the All Things Covered podcast earlier this week. One of many subjects Metcalf touched on was his list of the greatest wide receivers of all time.

Metcalf listed his top five of all time as such:

  1. Antonio Brown
  2. Randy Moss
  3. Terrell Owens
  4. Jerry Rice
  5. Julio Jones

A pretty reasonable list, aside from Seahawks legend Jerry Rice being ranked a few spots too low. Then again, Rice retired when Metcalf was only nine years old, so we’ll give him a pass on that.

As for his top receives currently in the league, Metcalf named three:

  1. Justin Jefferson – Vikings
  2. Davante Adams – Raiders
  3. A.J. Brown – Eagles

Jefferson is also at the top of our recent rankings for the top 33 wide receivers in the league. Our only objection here is that Tyreek Hill should probably be included in any top-three list, but to be fair it is a very-crowded picture at the top. As for Metcalf, we have him ranked just outside the top 10 at No. 12 in the league.

More Seahawks Wire stories

One player from each team under pressure in 2023

Ranking the top 33 wide receivers in the NFL

Best-case scenario for every NFC West team

Worst-case scenario for every NFC West team

Raiders well represented in Touchdown Wire’s list of best players by jersey number

Several Raiders greats made Touchdown Wire’s list of the NFL’s best ever by jersey number, but a staggering number did not.

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In the past, I have put together a list of the best Raiders ever to wear each jersey number. But that’s just comparing Raiders players. Would those players be the greatest to wear the number if compared to every other player in NFL history to wear that number?

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar went about finding that out.

His list includes a good number of Raiders players. Starting, of course, with No. 00 himself and working from there. Here are all the former Raiders who made the list:

00 — Jim Otto
26 — Rod Woodson
29 — Eric Dickerson
37 — Lester Hayes
42 — Ronnie Lott
46 — Todd Christensen
80 — Jerry Rice
83 — Ted Hendricks

Raiders greats who didn’t make the list (and who made it instead):

3 — Daryle Lamonica (Jim Thorpe)
8 — Ray Guy (Steve Young)
12 — Ken Stabler (Tom Brady)
16 — George Blanda, Jim Plunkett (Joe Montana)
17 — Davante Adams (Philip Rivers)
21 — Cliff Branch (LaDainian Tomlinson)
22 — Mike Haynes (Emmitt Smith)
24 — Willie Brown, Charles Woodson (Darrelle Revis)
25 — Fred Biletnikoff (Richard Sherman)
32 — Marcus Allen (Jim Brown)
41 — Phil Villapiano (Eugene Robinson)
48 — Lionel Washington (Stephen Davis)
50 — Dave Dalby (Mike Singletary)
52 — Khalil Mack (Ray Lewis)
63 — Gene Upshaw (Willie Lanier)
75 — Howie Long (Joe Greene)
76 — Steve Wisniewski (Orlando Pace)
78 — Art Shell (Bruce Smith)
81 — Tim Brown (Calvin Johnson)
87 — Dave Casper (Willie Davis)

As you can see, while eight Raiders greats is a decent number to make the list, there’s a staggering number of Raiders greats who did not.

I’m sure many you probably disagree with a few of the snubs here, and I do as well. The one that stands out to me is Darrelle Revis being named the best No. 24. I like Revis a lot, but no way would I have placed him above either Old Man Willie or CWood. As I see it, the title for best No. 24 should go through them.

Building an offense out of the All-Time Saints Villains

Building an offense out of the All-Time Saints Villains: Who makes your list at QB, RB, TE, WR, and along the offensive line?

Who are the biggest villains in New Orleans Saints history? What do we mean by that? We’re talking about the most challenging opponents the Saints have ever faced, who became key fixtures in rivalries with other teams. Not just loudmouths like Roddy White and Mike Evans, or iconic playoff villains like Marshawn Lynch and Vernon Davis — players who showed up and played hard against New Orleans on a regular basis.

We aren’t just highlighting players who were known for their big personalities (though of course that deserves some credit). Pro Bowls matter. All-Pro teams matter. Hall of Fame induction matters. The longevity of a player’s presence in the rivalry is a key part of our process. So with that in mind, here are our picks for the All-Time Saints Villains Offense:

Jerry Rice’s record for touchdowns will never be touched

This graphic perfectly illustrates how dominant Jerry Rice was in his 16 seasons with the 49ers.

Every now and then it’s worth revisiting just how outlandish Jerry Rice’s career numbers are.

It’s not hard to find praise for the Hall of Famer. Some regard him as the greatest football player ever thanks to his 20-year career that saw him finish with virtually every receiving record, 13 Pro Bowls, 10 First-Team All-Pro nods, three Super Bowl wins, a Super Bowl MVP and two Offensive Player of the Year awards. He also led the NFL in receptions twice, receiving yards six times, and receiving touchdowns six times.

Touchdowns is where we’re going to focus now thanks to OptaStats’ Greg Harvey, who put together an infographic that illustrates just how ludicrous Rice’s touchdown production was while he wore red and gold:

Rice scored 33 more touchdowns after he left the 49ers to finish his career with 208 — by far the most in NFL history. Had Rice retired after leaving the 49ers though he still would’ve been the all-time TD leader. Former Cardinals running back Emmitt Smith is second with 175.

It’s not really in play that any player on the 49ers’ roster will ever catch Rice. That’s the case for any player on any team. However, the graphic shows the top 15 TD scorers in 49ers franchise history. No current 49ers are on the list, but there’s a real chance a couple players get in there either this year or next.

Let’s look at who’s close:

All-Time Saints Villains: Who has put up the most receiving yards against New Orleans?

Who has put up the most receiving yards against the New Orleans Saints? All-time rivals include Jerry Rice, Julio Jones, and Steve Smith Sr.:

New Orleans Saints fans have had the misfortune of watching a lot of talented receivers play against their team over the years — including bona fide Pro Football Hall of Famers and many of the best pass-catchers to ever suit up for some franchises.

But which of those players did the most damage? Who would you say have been their biggest rivals? Thanks to StatMuse, here are the players with the highest all-time receiving yardage in games against the Saints: