The first member under the microscope is my favorite player out of the new class, Cris Carter.
Cristopher D. Carter of Troy, Ohio is one the greatest wide receivers to ever grace the field on Sunday's in the NFL. The former star at The Ohio State University was drafted in the 4th round of the 1987 Supplemental Draft by Buddy Ryan and the Philadelphia Eagles. By drafting Carter, Ryan showed his football knowledge and intelligence (which he did not pass down to his sons) but he then showed his quick temper and attitude (which he did pass down to his sons) by releasing Carter after the 1989 year due to an off the field incident. If only the Eagles knew that they were cutting ties with a Hall of Fame wide receiver who "only catches touchdowns", they may have made a different decision.
The release by the Eagles was great news for the Minnesota Vikings who swooped in and signed Carter and never looked back. He went on to star for the Vikings from 1989 to 2001 where he played in 8 straight Pro Bowls while being a 1st team All Pro twice and 2nd team All Pro once. After the 2001 season Carter temporarily, like most guys who struggle to let go, signed with and played for the Miami Dolphins before retiring. Carter will always be remembered for his role on the Vikings above all else.
As recently as this past Friday I was in a discussion about who the 2nd greatest wide receiver in the history of the NFL may be behind Randy... oops I mean Jerry Rice (Sit down and shut up Randy Moss, you may not even grace the top 5). I immediately stated Cris Carter. The man could make catches with one hand while falling out of the back of the end zone that the rest of the world could only imagine in their backyard and still not complete. Such as this catch:
When he was done making an acrobatic catch in the end zone, he simply stood up and handed the ball to the official like he had done it 130 times or something, oh wait he did score 130 TOUCHDOWNS! I feel bad for the young fans today who only get to watch the numerous "look at me" wide receivers who celebrate every first down and every three yard catch (we know its a first down fellas, you don't have to do a stupid dance and throw your hand forward as hard as possible)
Carter completed his career in the top 10 all time in Receptions, Receiving Yards, and Touchdowns.
Carter also excelled off the field as part of the ESPN family, but the following video is easily his best moment on the air. Also, I challenge anyone to tell me that Stevie Johnson has not murdered at least four people after watching this video.
Congrats Cris Carter on the Hall of Fame nomination. Your ticket to Canton was punched a long time ago, please remember to wear that Gold Jacket over your wife beater.
(Tomorrow will be Warren Sapp day)
I like how you analyzed Carter first, since we had this discussion Friday night. I decided to go back and really rank my top 5 receivers. I was fairly confident in how I ranked them the other night, but this time, I didn't have Jim Beam influencing my choices or reasoning. So here is my finalized "Top 5 NFL Wide Receivers of All Time" list...
ReplyDelete5. Michael Irvin (750 Rec, 11,904 Yds, 65 TDs)
4. Cris Carter (1,101 Rec, 13,899 Yds, 130 TDs)
3. Randy Moss (954 Rec, 14,858 Yds, 153 TDs)
2. Terrell Owens (1,078 Rec, 15,934 Yds,153 TDs)
1. Jerry Rice (1,549 Rec, 22,895 Yds, 197 TDs)
I really struggled with putting Michael Irvin back at 5. I think he is better than his numbers reflect (Chad Johnson has almost identical numbers to Irvin, but Chad is nowhere near the caliber of player as Irvin.) He only played in 8 full seasons, and won three Super Bowls. He may have had Aikman throwing him the ball and Emmit running up the gut, but Irvin was BADASS, period.
When I really look at my list, though, I came to one conclusion. Jerry Rice is the best wide receiver ever. Period.
I honestly think that you could rank my 2-5 in any order, and come up with fair justification as to why they could be arranged in such an order. All comparable, all badass, and all will be inducted into Canton, if not already.
I do not buy in to Randy Moss being a top 5 receiver of all time but the numbers show a different story.
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