Now lets talk seriously about getting Cliff Branch and Sterling Sharpe into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 1971-84, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys Look at that empty 1970s slot in the list of Hall of Fame receivers. @Neil_Paine, NFL (976 posts) From 1996 through 2002, Smith may have been the best receiver in football. Tittle and Roger Staubach never dreamed of. [Related: The Football Hall Of Fame Has A Receiver Problem]. 1975-84: Charlie Joiner, Steve Largent, John Stallworth, Lynn Swann The Hall of Fame argument in Rison's favor is that he has good career stats for his era, and he was a remarkable player in his prime, with five 1,000-yard seasons and four years of double-digit TDs. He caught two touchdowns in Super Bowl XV and could easily have been named the games MVP. Jimmy Smith is a harder case. Visual Edge IT Logo. They all had about three really good years, plus some others when they were above average. Well popularity rings and of course the team. 1992-2005, Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars HOF Qualifications: POOR. Looking at each player's best seasons, though, it's not apparent to me that Moore stands out from the best of his contemporaries. He may be over-qualified, but Sharpe is not the most overqualified receiver on our list. Branch played very well in Super Bowls XV and XVIII and won three rings. Rod Smith, WR, Missouri Southern State (1994) Denver Broncos Smith was signed by the Broncos and went on to be a starting. It was a pleasure to watch and cover you for many years! But in totality, it's . THE 2,000-YARD CHALLENGE FOR A WIDE RECEIVER. 1,101 receptions, 13,899 yards, 130 TD. I was surprised when Carter didn't get elected to Canton in either of his first two years of eligibility. During the 1970s, Jackson led all players in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving TDs. NFL Career: Clayton played from 1983 to 1993. For years, it was Lynn Swann or Art Monk. In this article, I count down the Rams' top five wide receivers of all time. Im scared as hell. The premier deep threat and speed burner in the league in his prime. 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. Today's wide receivers play 16-game schedules. 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. Swann, for instance, is generally thought of as a '70s guy. The Jacksonville Jaguars of the 1990s cannot catch a break. Can a guy be a Hall of Famer even if he was never the best at his own position? Chiefs announce Dante Hall to be 2023 inductee into team Hall of Fame. 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). But thats a topic for another column. Carter, in his third-best season, led the NFL in receiving touchdowns. 1989-2000, Indianapolis Colts, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders During those five seasons, Moore ranked 11th, 3rd, 3rd, 6th, and 24th in receiving yards. Defenses fear the deep threat, the guy who can burn you on any given play. When football fans cry "snub", there's a good chance they're talking about a wide receiver. But since he caught only 11 passes as a rookie in 1974 and was a non-factor in Super Bowl IX, he fits better in the 1975-84 group. Swann and Stallworth were legendary postseason performers. That shifted with the end of the decade. But let's review each player's rsum, beginning this week with receivers of the 1990s. Brown made nine Pro Bowls and was a second-team selection to the 1990s NFL All-Decade team. Although Rice played in only five seasons during the decade of the 1980s, he was regarded by many to be on the path to be called the greatest receiver of all-time. I got struggles. Moore had four 1,000-yard receiving seasons in the '90s. Five: Brown, Carter, Clark, Jackson, Pearson, Shofner, Smith, Speedie, Wilson In 1994, he set the single-season record for receptions (122, since broken), and in three other seasons he led the NFL in receiving TDs. Those teams were consistently good, but they played in two Super Bowls. 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. That means consistency and durability. In his final season, Rison became just the seventh player in history with 700 receptions, 10,000 yards, and 80 touchdowns. There's a comparison to be drawn between Smith from '95-'04 and Big Game Torry Holt in the 2000s, when BGTH led the league in receptions and yards, with about half as many touchdowns as Moss and Owens. Folks appear to have forgotten just how great and groundbreaking those early Jaguars teams were. Finally, the Seniors Committee and the Centennial Committee appear determined to enshrine just about every 1970s receiver except Branch. In most eras, there are 2-4 wide receivers honored with Hall of Fame recognition. He played seven games and never caught a pass. Cliff Branch Four-time All-Pro and three-time Super Bowl champion who was exceptional in his prime. Both the Eagles and Rams improved dramatically when they acquired Jackson. He was reliable more than explosive, and he was tough like Monk, not graceful like Lance Alworth or Lynn Swann. Think again. Didnt make it trouble past comes up yet cant use that no rings yes probably. Fryar eventually recorded five 1,000-yard seasons, and his accomplishments as a returner are significant, something that should factor into any consideration of his Hall of Fame case. Mark Clayton and Mark Duper NFL Draft: Clayton was the 223rd selection in the 8th round of the 1983 Draft. Branch made four Pro Bowls, was four times first-team All-Pro, and played on three Super Bowl winners. New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman announced his retirement from the, Lets start by running through five obvious cases of overly-qualified receivers who have not yet been enshrined. Duper played from 1982 to 1992. And Smiths best set of seven straight seasons (1996 through 2002) earns him sole possession of seventh place since 1960, trailing only Rice, Harrison, Reggie Wayne, Michael Irvin, Alworth and Moss. But Fryar was effective for so much longer, I think he did more to help his teams. Many fans identify the HOF plights of Cliff Branch and Pearson together. The same thing happened to Brown with receiving yardage. There's a bevy of top-end defensive players sitting atop the draft board Friday night. 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? Statistically, hes far behind his contemporaries, and thats probably why hes never been taken seriously as a Hall of Fame candidate. Irving Fryar Five-time Pro Bowler and standout punt returner who played 17 seasons and scored 88 total TDs. Comparing Smith to Keenan McCardell is just silly, which I guess leaves Herman Moore and maybe Rod Smith. His Hall of Fame candidacy came up just as the committee was flailing to clear an embarrassing Art Monk-Andre Reed-Tim Brown logjam. The expanded 16-game season and increased offensive levels also made Branchs 46-to-60 catch stat lines look like something any receiver could accomplish. His career-highs after '76 were 59 receptions (1980), and 858 yards and 7 TDs (both '81). If you're here for another era, check out our previous articles in this series: Best Wide Receivers Not in the Hall of Fame: 1990s (Brown, Carter, Fryar, Moore, Rison, Smith) But those guys had a lot of other really good seasons, too. NFL's top 20 players not in the Hall of Fame: Torry Holt, Zach Thomas, Ken Anderson headline all-time list These greats are still waiting for their call to Canton By Bryan DeArdo Aug 18,. Anything that causes a player's career to be broken up usually dampens the perception of his greatness. Becoming a wide receiver is almost just an inevitable part of life at that point lmao" He lacks Johnsons best seasons and Smiths image. "Flash 80" is the best WR of all time in NFL history. His career yards-per-reception rate of 19.2 ranks 10th in history and is the highest of any player whose career began after the AFL-NFL merger. How in the hell going to put him in and pass on player like brown and carter. Theres no reason to belabor the arguments for them. Hill is no Hall of Famer yet, but it will only take a few more deep playoff runs with Patrick Mahomes to put him over the top. Despite his qualifications, hes probably not getting in on the first ballot. I suspect it is here that Jackson's consistency has worked against him. You know what, let's just do a chart. But that was the widespread impression at the time; Rison's success with Green Bay was a real surprise coming from someone most fans thought was finished as an impact player. Let's break this down a little more, looking at both the Hall of Famers and the contenders we've examined. . Well this days i think so. If a guy was the best receiver besides Jerry Rice, that's the sort of player I feel is a legitimate snub. The chart above demonstrates the weakness of Moore's HOF case. I view Fryar much the same way I viewed Rafael Palmeiro (before the positive test for PEDs). From 1998-2000, Carter caught 34 TD passes, more than anyone except Moss, who had 43. Brown also holds the rookie record for all-purpose yards (2,317), a record he took from Gale Sayers and has now owned for more than two decades. 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. He made five Pro Bowls (one as a returner) and was second-team All-Pro twice (once as a returner). A wide receiver who was the 5th- or 6th-best of his generation is a player I'm okay leaving out of Canton. Brian Branch, S, Alabama. 1968-83, Los Angeles Rams, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks 13. Various/Getty Images. Monk was repeatedly dismissed as a guy who caught 900 eight-yard hooks, and who wasn't the most dangerous receiver on his own team. The argument against Brown is that he was consistent rather than exceptional.
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