Most importantly, he has accumulated a sizzle reel full of memorable moments, and signature plays can be as important to a Hall of Fame case as stats or rings. HOF Qualifications: POOR. Opening up to Gene Frenette of Jacksonville.com in 2016, Smith admitted that his fight against drug addiction is a constant obstacle. Antonio Brown: Hes clearly a Hall of Famer, but I dont feel like dealing with his whole thing. Fred Taylor, who rushed for over 11,000 yards, is unlikely to receive serious consideration. He remained a good player for years afterwards, but there are lots of good receivers. Im human. Maybe. When you see wide receivers motion into the slot, hide in the backfield, or haul in a tunnel screen, you are seeing some of the things Green Bay Packers coach Mike Holmgren and his staff made popular in the NFL in an effort to funnel the ball into Sharpes hands. Those are 16-game seasons, after the Mel Blount Rule and the changes that opened up pass blocking. He was also one of the best punt returners of his generation, and still holds the rookie record for all-purpose yards. Next Article: Julian Edelman Retires: Looking back at his 12-year career with the Patriots. He led the league in both receptions and receiving yards in 1973. Drew Pearson Had five standout seasons and played in seven NFC Championship Games. Can a team with a dozen HOFers really end up with just two championships? By the end of Rice's 20-year career, he had obliterated every receiving record imaginable. Smith looks terrible on that list. My frenemies in analytics circles may have missed the fact that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers acquired Tom Brady in exchange for money and won a Super Bowl as a result. Defenses fear the deep threat, the guy who can burn you on any given play. In 1968, the Eagles finished 14th in the 16-team NFL in passing yardage, and 15th in scoring, with just 14.4 points per game. When you think about someone who was maybe the 2nd-best receiver of the decade, certainly no lower than 4th it's a different perception than right now. He didn't live up to his contract in Cleveland, he got a bad reputation, Left Eye burned his house down, and he played for seven teams, eight if you count the Argos. Larry Fitzgerald: Also a lock when he retires in the year 2269. 2023 NFL Draft: Pro comparisons and analytical team fits for top wide Anyway, three All-Pro berths and four 100-yard seasons form the backbone of what is becoming an impressive Hall of Fame rsum for Hopkins. Irving Fryar But when you're talking about the Hall of Fame, does it distinguish him from guys like Cris Carter and Henry Ellard and Tim Brown? Hall of Fame Wide Receivers | Pro Football Hall of Fame Both players also have to fight the perception that they were good for a long time without being true standouts. Mel Gray was certainly a fine player. 1945-54: Tom Fears, Elroy Hirsch, Dante Lavelli, Pete Pihos He led the NFL in receiving touchdowns twice, and in . Here are the 25 best undrafted free agents (UDFAs) in NFL history. His career-highs after '76 were 59 receptions (1980), and 858 yards and 7 TDs (both '81). Johnson should eventually be enshrined, but his case exemplifies the folly of any Julian Edelman argument. He didn't play at all the next two years. 1. Smith was only the third player with multiple seasons catching 110 or more passes, the first two being Jerry Rice and Cris Carter from 1994-95. Tim Brown Great punt returner with 1,000 receptions, almost 15,000 yards, and 100 TDs. A member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1990s, Carter had 10 or more touchdowns in a season six times and led the NFL in . He played for four teams in three years, his girlfriend alleged that he was abusive, he went to the Raiders of course he went to the Raiders and Rison even played for the Toronto Argonauts after his NFL career ended (winning a Grey Cup in 2004). All Rights Reserved. It was institutes in 1974 and allowed dbs only one chuck of a receiver after 3 yards and was instigated by the mauling of Curtis by the Pittsburgh secondary in their 1973 playoff matchup with Cincy. The two who stand out on the list, obviously, are Powell and Carmichael. He probably shouldn't be in. Then again, Smith didn't play on the kind of pass-oriented offenses most of the others did. Only cause you have to look a one member of the hall of fame who went in soon as eligible. Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1960s The best time of the year to . He was a four-time Pro Bowler and made three All-Pro teams as a starter (more than Cris Carter and Tim Brown combined). Sharpe was better than any of them, but the others had long careers and lots of postseason glory. Sterling Sharpe: Hall of Fame Candidate HOF Qualifications: EXCELLENT. 489 receptions, 7,822 yards, 48 TD. They all had about three really good years, plus some others when they were above average. The 10 Best Wide Receivers Not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Dean Hybl June 21, 2009 Best of the Rest 1 of 11 10. Carter last led the Vikings in receiving yards in 1995. HOF Qualifications: GOOD. Tittle and Roger Staubach never dreamed of. That averages out to about 14th. 743 receptions, 10,205 yards, 84 TD. Choosing between the two, I'd go with Ellard. The Jets' roster doesn't look wildly different in most spots compared to last season well, unless you count the Hall of Fame quarterback they just added last week. Theres another name that should be on here for serious consideration - Isaac Curtis, Bengals 1973-84. Best Wide Receivers Not in The Hall of Fame - YouTube The off-field stuff isn't supposed to factor into HOF voting, but Rison's uneven career and locker room impact are fair game. To me, those are the Hall of Famers, and Smith is just barely that next group down. That distinguishes him from almost every receiver in history. To keep the statistics from skewing, I used top-five rankings (instead of top-10) for seasons before 1970, when the leagues were 8-16 teams rather than 26-32. He's 5th all-time in receptions and 6th in receiving TDs. Rank'Em: Cowboys Now Have 20 Hall of Famers - Dallas Cowboys Three: Chandler, Hill, Morgan, Reed, Rison, Hugh Taylor But I think the voters have been reluctant to enshrine him partly for the same reason Art Monk had to wait so long. Smith was occasionally dogged by drug issues, and his four-game suspension in 2003 probably kept him from becoming the only person besides Rice with 10 straight 1,000-yard seasons. Morgans career was in decline by the time the Patriots got hammered by the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX. But you can't really compare Jimmy Smith to Rison, because Rison was basically finished by the time Smith became a starter. Super Bowl rings well sure the does matter. Troy Aikman, and Emmitt Smith. According to the True Receiving Yards metric I created with Chase Stuart of FootballPerspective.com which adjusts a receivers stats for era, schedule length and team passing volume only Harrison (8,311 TRY) was more productive over that span than Smith (8,271). 1960-69: Lance Alworth, Don Maynard Sports Central is the longest-running independent sports fan publication online, established in 1998 and featured by the BBC, NY Times, Chicago Tribune, and more. This isn't a guy who caught 60 passes for 800 yards every year for 15 years. These NFL wide receivers do not count toward our list of 10 worthy Hall of Famers. Effectively, Jackson stands alone atop his era, leading all players in the '70s in every major receiving category receptions, yards, and TDs. I believe only about five of those players deserve induction, but there's a case to be made for all of them. So this is really a list of 15. The next step for Smith could be Canton, though he appears to have been swept aside in the wave of modern stat-stuffing wideouts who have inflated the statistical requirements for Hall of Fame entry. Rison played for seven NFL teams. *JAWS is an average of a players career and seven-year peak Approximate Value. Hall will be the 48th player and 52nd individual inducted into the Chiefs . Brian Branch, S, Alabama. Also, continue to visit. Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1980s He was a team leader on a three-time Super Bowl champion. Shortly before Jackson retired, the NFL moved to a 16-game schedule and made several rules changes to substantially open up the passing game. Hall Of Good (13). . Drew Pearson (part of the 2021 class) was a great player, and I grew up worshipping Harold Carmichael (2020 Centennial class), but Branch is more qualified than either of them. at Jacksonville Jaguars (30) Thereafter, he was out-gained every year by either Jake Reed or Moss. 1987-2002, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings, Miami Dolphins Irvin gained almost 1,400 yards and led all receivers in first downs. Based in Charlotte, NC, we specialize in intelligent sports fan commentary and colorful interpretation. That said, Hopkins may have to wait in line behind another recent Houston Texans receiver and former teammate. Raider fans want Branch and Ken Stabler and Ray Guy and maybe a couple others in, as well. Think again. Branch, Carmichael, and Pearson were all very good receivers, and all had great seasons and unbelievable moments. Their stats in the decade are comparable, but Pearson found the postseason glory that eluded Branch until the 1980s, and teammates called him Mr. 1973-83, Dallas Cowboys Here's my list of 25, ranked by the number of times they were among the top 10 in their league in receiving yards: Seven: Powell Branch's stat line in the '80s dwarfs Pearson's, by over 1,000 yards 50% more yardage. When you talk about a player like Irving Fryar, I think there's some truth to the idea that he had a lot of pretty good seasons without necessarily establishing true greatness. He literally changed the game as the first of the series of liberalized passing rules which the 1970s would see was called the Isaac Curtis rule. Jerry Rice has 1549 receptions, 22895 receiving yards, 197 touchdown catches when playing wide receiver. The most by any current Hall of Fame receiver is five (Tommy McDonald). R.Smith: 849 rec, 11,389 yds, 68 TD HOF Qualifications: EXCELLENT. His detractors would point out that while Smith did have exceptional years, and did play well in several others, he had so few seasons on the field that his overall statistics don't measure up to the best players of his generation. Carmichael begins this exercise in a hole, as the only player on the list who ranked among the top 10 in receiving yardage fewer than three times. As Pro-Football-References Doug Drinen once astutely noted, football receivers are teammates but they are also competitors, vying for the quarterbacks attention in addition to fighting off defenders. So its telling that Smith never finished behind McCardell in TRY (whether total or per game) during any of their six seasons together. Standing at 5-8, Hall's size scared off a number of NFL teams during the 2000 NFL draft, though his incredible versatility as a converted wide receiver caught the eye of the Kansas City Chiefs, who went on to draft him in the fifth round with the 153rd pick. Besides, we should compare players to their contemporaries, not guys a decade younger. Tittle and Roger Staubach never dreamed of. Carter just doesn't have the highlight reel those guys do, and he never won a championship. Reaching those round numbers makes his stats look a lot different. He may be over-qualified, but Sharpe is not the most overqualified receiver on our list. He had three tremendous seasons, yes, but so did all the others, and they were effective players for much longer. 1992-2005, Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars Pearson: 489 rec, 7,822 yds, 48 TD NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1980s - Pro Football Hall of Fame He lacks Johnsons best seasons and Smiths image. Harrison is in the Hall of Fame, along with a number of Smith's other receiving peers: Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Isaac Bruce, Tim Brown, Cris Carter and, of course, Jerry Rice. Swann, for instance, is generally thought of as a '70s guy. The Best Wide Receivers in Los Angeles Rams Franchise History Well this days i think so. But for a few seasons, Morgan was one of the most dynamic players in the NFL. Steve Smith - legendary wide receiver for the Carolina Panthers hops on the podcast with Takeo and Steve's former Panther teammate Tutan to talk about Steve's career in the game, where his drive comes from and how his next chapter as an analyst has allowed him to see the game in a whole new light. The Hall of Fame also generally wasnt kind to receivers who played during the transition to the 16-game season era, unless they played for the Steelers. He's here for the statheads. NFL Rumors: DeAndre Hopkins To Remain With the Arizona Cardinals? Stroud Could Slide, Bijan Robinson, and More, Ranking the Best NFL Draft Steals of All Time From Tom Brady to Tony Romo. Cliff Branch Four-time All-Pro and three-time Super Bowl champion who was exceptional in his prime. Morgan was one of the greatest deep threats in NFL history. The 2023 NFL Draft has wrapped -- but the team-building process continues with the signing of undrafted rookie free agents. This affected Hennigan, Howton, Speedie, Hugh Taylor, and Wilson, once each. When he's in the zone like that, you try to just get him in his spots, get him the ball and get out of the way. But hes no Hall of Famer. Everyone else on this list has a strong case, though some are stronger than others. He shared receiving chores with Keenan McCardell for a team just good enough to reach AFC Championship games, which means his stats were a little low and he never enjoyed any Super Bowl glory. Maybe it's a by-product of Irvin's fame and flamboyance, but Carter isn't exactly low-profile, either. That hurts Brown, who was a dazzling punt returner (3,320 yds, 10.2 avg, 3 TDs). HOF Qualifications: FAIR. His first 1,000-yard season came in 1991, when Fryar was 29 and playing his eighth year in the NFL. Well popularity rings and of course the team. Four time pro bowler and 3 time 2nd team all-pro. Hall of Fame QB's son will get NFL chance after signing rookie free agent deal. And then theres Jimmy Smith, a five-time Pro Bowler who led the NFL with 116 receptions in 1999. Harrison is one of the best wide receivers in NFL history, currently ranked fourth all-time in career receptions and fifth all-time in receiving yards. Based in Charlotte, NC, we specialize in intelligent sports fan commentary and colorful interpretation. It's about his peak. For Washington in the '80s and early '90s, that was Gary Clark, not Monk. We'll expand on this next week, but how would Rison's career look different without Rice in the landscape? Art Monk<br>1980-1995. 1945-54: Tom Fears, Elroy Hirsch, Dante Lavelli, Pete Pihos Is it stats some times wonder maybe but not really. Also, continue to visit Pro Football Network for NFL news and in-depth analysis concerning the 2021 season and beyond. But those guys had a lot of other really good seasons, too. Charley Taylor. For this project, we'll examine in depth 25 eligible wide receivers with strong backing for the Hall of Fame: Cliff Branch, Tim Brown, Harold Carmichael, Cris Carter, Wes Chandler, Gary Clark, Henry Ellard, Irving Fryar, Charley Hennigan, Harlon Hill, Billy Howton, Harold Jackson, Herman Moore, Stanley Morgan, Drew Pearson, Art Powell, Andre Reed, Andre Rison, Sterling Sharpe, Del Shofner, Jimmy Smith, Mac Speedie, Hugh Taylor, Otis Taylor, and Billy Wilson. How many Pro Football Hall of Fame players went to Ohio State? Jackson led the league in receiving touchdowns and was a consensus All-Pro. This is a Game 7 I will forever remember as the Steph Curry game." Moore had four 1,000-yard receiving seasons in the '90s. In 1977, he led the NFL in receiving yardage and was a consensus All-Pro. For what it's worth, neither has ever reached the Finalist stage of voting. Carter, once 2nd all-time in both catches and receiving TDs, is now 4th in both categories. Hill is an instant-impact player, and voters typically prefer that sort of player to someone who just accumulates lots of stats by being a cog in a machine. To me, they're both great players, but probably not Hall of Famers. Just looking at career numbers, Fryar and Rison both compare well to Irvin. Neil Paine was the acting sports editor at FiveThirtyEight. Five: Brown, Carter, Clark, Jackson, Pearson, Shofner, Smith, Speedie, Wilson He also had several very good seasons in the '80s, making the Pro Bowl in 1980 and going over 1,000 yards in '81. He was a showboat in Atlanta, but you can get away with that when you're performing at a high level. Branch is not a member of any NFL All-Decade team, receiving only one vote for the All-70s Team. Stallworth: 537 rec, 8,723 yds, 63 TD Rison signed a big free agent contract with the Browns, then publicly cursed at the Cleveland fans. Fourth all-time in both receptions and receiving TDs, Carter joined Jerry Rice as the starting wide receivers on the 1990s NFL All-Decade team. He may be over-qualified, but Sharpe is not the most overqualified receiver on our list. That means he will probably fall well short of enshrinement, which is just another indicator of how high the bar to Canton is. Whom you ask why stats or ok not great nothing like carters or Tim brown who enter the league same year and was so far ahead and higher in stats and records even with horrible qbs and team. Best players available on Day 2 of the 2023 NFL Draft That's an average of 9th or 10th. . His Hall of Fame candidacy came up just as the committee was flailing to clear an embarrassing Art Monk-Andre Reed-Tim Brown logjam. He was selected to eight Pro Bowls and was twice named first-team All-Pro. Instead of ripping Edelman, however, lets celebrate ten NFL wide receivers of the last 50 years or so who really do deserve Hall of Fame consideration. No current HOF receiver was drafted later than 1988 (Michael Irvin) and no likely HOF receiver was drafted between '88 (Tim Brown, Sterling Sharpe) and '94 (Isaac Bruce). In 2000, they chose Carter, not Michael Irvin, to join Rice on the All-90s Team. They play in high-efficiency pass-oriented offenses, as opposed to the exciting but reckless bomb-it-down-the-field passing games of the past, when running was a way of life and throwing a sneaky change of pace or a mark of desperation. From 200-2006, Hall became one of the premier playmakers for the franchise, gaining . Keeanu Benton, DT, Wisconsin Chronologically, there's really no one to compare him to. Andre Rison's average 5th, 9th, and 3rd. Mark Clayton and Mark Duper NFL Draft: Clayton was the 223rd selection in the 8th round of the 1983 Draft. Ten Worthy Hall of Fame Receivers (Not Named Julian Edelman) April 15, 2021, 11:20 am ET 38 Our own Mike Tanier wades into the Hall of Fame debate with this list of wide receivers he believes deserve consideration for the Hall of Fame. Herman Moore Remarkably consistent in the mid-'90s, with three straight seasons of more than 100 receptions. He is one of only five receivers with nine or more 1,000-yard seasons (Tim Brown, Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Rice), and one of five with six straight 1,100-yard seasons (Marvin Harrison, Torry Holt, Moss, Rice). HOF Qualifications: FAIR. Just play along. Visual Edge IT Logo. Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1950s, Tim Brown That's a much different rsum, particularly on the touchdowns. The premier deep threat and speed burner in the league in his prime. This is a Game 7 I will forever remember as the Steph Curry game." Aggie Football: Chiefs to induct Dante Hall into their Hall of Fame Dante Hall to Be Inducted Into Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame Wards Hall of Fame candidacy is held back by unimpressive statistics and a lack of All-Pro appearances. This doesn't really tell you anything. In 2007, though, they elected Irvin to Canton, and in each of the next five seasons, they've passed on Carter. 1975-84: Charlie Joiner, Steve Largent, John Stallworth, Lynn Swann What are some wide receivers that are currently in the hall of very Branch made four Pro Bowls, was four times first-team All-Pro, and played on three Super Bowl winners. NFL players with four consecutive seasons of double-digit receiving TDs: Tommy McDonald, Jerry Rice, Rison, Cris Carter, Randy Moss, and Marvin Harrison. Art Monk. Can a guy be a Hall of Famer even if he was never the best at his own position? But I believe it shows that even looking only at his best seasons, Moore is not strongly distinguished at least not statistically from other great receivers yet to be enshrined in Canton, most of whom had longer careers and more good seasons. Essentially, Carter is battling the notion that he usually wasn't even the best receiver on his own team, that he was a system player who seldom had to deal with double-teams and caught a bunch of short passes. Between 1988-94, you've got Andre Rison ('89) Herman Moore ('91), Keenan McCardell ('91), and Smith. 1955-64: Raymond Berry, Tommy McDonald, Bobby Mitchell 30, 2023, 5:11 p.m. Kansas State wide receiver Kade Warner (85) carries the ball as Alabama . Smith was a star from 1996-2005. Smiths post-NFL life has been peppered with issues, but that has little to do with his Hall of Fame candidacy. In 1990 and 1991, Rison would have led or tied for the league lead in receiving TDs. No, it was Carter." That's when Steve Largent and James Lofton and the Air Coryell teams in San Diego were shattering receiving records. He is ranked 15th in NFL history with 13,777 yards, but he is not in the Hall of Fame, though he was nominated in . During the 1970s, Jackson led all players in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving TDs. During his NFL career, Rison caught touchdown passes from Jack Trudeau (4), Chris Miller (25), Scott Campbell (2), Billy Joe Tolliver (6), Wade Wilson (3), Bobby Hebert (11), Jeff George (9), Vinny Testaverde (1), Eric Zeier (2), Mark Brunell (2), Brett Favre (1), Elvis Grbac (7), and Rich Gannon (11). Why did they change their minds? Projecting the Jets' depth chart after the NFL Draft, Aaron Rodgers The two who stand out on the list, obviously, are Powell and Carmichael. To keep the statistics from skewing, I used top-five rankings (instead of top-10) for seasons before 1970, when the leagues were 8-16 teams rather than 26-32. A guy's career looks fragmented when he moves around so often, hard to view as a whole. Jimmy Smith Who is the best wide receiver eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but not yet enshrined? Here's how I rank the best non-HOF receivers of the '70s: 1. Finally, the Seniors Committee and the Centennial Committee appear determined to enshrine just about every 1970s receiver, ) to stay in the loop on all things around the NFL. Branch also led the NFL in yardage once, receiving touchdowns twice, and was named an All-Pro three times in the mid-1970s. Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1950s Tim Brown 1988-2004, Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1,094 receptions, 14,934 yards, 100 TD The Hall of Fame voters, in recent years, have almost entirely ignored special teams contributions. But in totality, it's . He played his entire career for the. Thats what makes healthy Hall of Fame debates fun. Smith had more receptions and yards than anyone but Marvin Harrison, with the 4th-most receiving TDs (Harrison, Owens, Moss). Work at the Hall; Buy Tickets; FAQs; Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1990s 1975-84: Charlie Joiner, Steve Largent, John Stallworth, Lynn Swann It's true that Harrison, Moss, Owens, and Isaac Bruce have caught Brown and Carter on the all-time lists, and it's true that Brown and Carter played at a time when receiving statistics exploded, to unheard-of levels. According to computer vision, Addison has the third-fastest burst (speed achieved in the first 3 yards traveled) of any receiver in this draft class when . 1972-85, Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders "The Marks Brothers" have better numbers than some of the receivers in the Hall of Fame. These NFL wide receivers do not count toward our list of 10 worthy Hall of Famers. Many fans identify the HOF plights of Cliff Branch and Pearson together. 1980-89: James Lofton, Art Monk What about the Cardinals Mel Gray? Those assessments proved to be true. Jackson led the team in touchdowns (9) and led the NFL in receiving yardage. The Best Wide Receivers Of All Time In NFL History [2023 Updated] Seventh, 9th, and 14th. Kansas City Chiefs running back Dante Hall (82) is chased by Oakland Raiders defenders Keyon Nash (42) and David Terrell (35 . The way the receiving game is today, I think we're going to see a lot of players string 1,000-yard seasons together, some of them as many as Smith. Receiving statistics are exploding, and their numbers don't look as glorious now that guys like Marvin Harrison, Randy Moss, and Terrell Owens have played full careers. "Imagine growing up with a hall of fame qb as your dad and playing football? Andre Rison Touchdown machine in the early '90s who revived his career with a 54-yard TD in the Super Bowl and a Pro Bowl with the Chiefs. He played his entire career for the Colts, retiring after the 2008 season with 1,102 receptions, 14,580 receiving yards, and 128 touchdowns. The Pro Football Hall of Fame voters are the same people who select All-Decade Teams. But he was an effective player for something like 15 years, and he was an impact performer on special teams. Average rank in five best seasons: This is a quick-and-dirty rating method, underemphasizing the most important stat (yards) and unduly skewed by a couple of bad TD years, so I wouldn't want to draw any specific conclusions from it. When you think about his numbers in the context of 14-game seasons and the defense-dominated '70s, they're nothing short of remarkable. 4. Branch made four Pro Bowls, was four times first-team All-Pro, and played on three Super Bowl winners. Rather than three years finishing second and one tied for first, he's got two seasons alone at the top and another tied for the lead. I know you probably don't think Moore belongs on this list. Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1960s (Hennigan, Powell, Shofner, Otis Taylor) 862 receptions, 12,287 yards, 67 TD. But Smith's. Top 10 Wide Receivers Not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
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