Calvin Johnson is apparently hanging up his cleats early, retiring at 30. Does he get into the Hall of Fame? And how does he stack up against the other prominent candidates right now? Terrell Owens, Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt are all up for consideration right now.
It’s not easy, and invariably some good players get left out. Otis Taylor and Cliff Branch, for example, aren’t in the Hall of Fame. When you adjust for the game being different now than in the ‘60s and ‘70s, you can argue that they’re better than some of the receivers who’ve joined the club in recent years – in particular Tim Brown, Andre Reed and Art Monk.
But I will limit this debate to the four guys who are getting all the pub right now, and whose careers are free in our minds.
Calvin Johnson
He had four really good seasons. Most notably when he went for 1,964 yards in 2012, and when he caught 96 passes for 1,681 yards and 16 TDs in 2011. If you look at just these four receivers, he’s got four of the 10 best seasons. But he’s stepping out early, so his overall production lags well behind all of them. He’s caught 170 fewer passes than any of the others. And not much of an impact in the postseason – 0 for 2 in his career playoff games (though I remember him going for over 200 yards in a playoff loss at the Superdome). When he was on his game, he was a physical freak who commanded a lot of defensive attention.
Terrell Owens
Straight off the numbers, he’s definitely the best of this group. He’s got the best overall numbers, including 64 more touchdowns than any of the other candidates. He’s got over twice as many touchdowns as Holt. If you look at the best seasons by these guys, he’s got half of the top 12 seasons. He was a big, fast, monster who couldn’t be covered by one man and took over a lot of game. The downside is that he was a major pain in the rear to work with. Most of his own teammates and coaches didn’t like playing with him. He was great in San Francisco, but he had major feuds with Steve Mariucci and Jeff Garcia and eventually left. He had two big years in Philadelphia, but he was unhappy with his contract and couldn't get along with Donovan McNabb, so they let him go. He caught double-digit touchdowns all three years in Dallas and they dumped him. If his own teams didn’t even like him or want him, how can he be held up as an all-timer ideal player?
Isaac Bruce
He had the longest career, so his all-time numbers are No. 2 in all categories behind TO – catches, yards, touchdowns. He was really good, and he did it in some different systems – he was good for the Rams even before the Greatest Show on Turf came around. Not a huge physical freak like Megatron or TO, but he got it down. In his prime, he was like Antonio Brown. Of the top 20 seasons by these guys, he’s got only 3 of them. Caught a 73-yard game-winning touchdown in a Super Bowl.
Torry Holt
For catches and yards, he’s a notch behind Bruce and Owens. For touchdowns, he’s last among these guys – 18 fewer than Bruce and less than half as many as Owens. Unlike Johnson and Owens, was never a guy who terrorized opponents with size, speed and playmaking ability. So to me, he was always more of a good or very good receiver rather than a great one. Of the top 13 seasons by these receivers, he’s got only one of them.
What say you? Which one of these receivers is most deserving of a spot in the Hall of Fame.
Here are the top 40 seasons by these receivers. I have put them in fantasy order (that is, 6 points for touchdowns and 1 point for every 10 yards).
TOP 40 SEASONS BY Owens-Bruce-Holt-Johnson | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player | No | Rec | Avg | TD | Points |
2011 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 96 | 1,681 | 17.5 | 16 | 265.2 |
1995 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 119 | 1,781 | 15.0 | 13 | 259.8 |
2003 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 117 | 1,696 | 14.5 | 12 | 242.1 |
2001 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 93 | 1,412 | 15.2 | 16 | 239.3 |
2012 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 122 | 1,964 | 16.1 | 5 | 226.4 |
2000 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 97 | 1,451 | 15.0 | 13 | 226.2 |
2007 | Terrell Owens, Dall. | 81 | 1,355 | 16.7 | 15 | 226.0 |
2002 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 100 | 1,300 | 13.0 | 14 | 221.9 |
2013 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 84 | 1,492 | 17.8 | 12 | 221.2 |
2008 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 78 | 1,331 | 17.1 | 12 | 207.0 |
1998 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 67 | 1,097 | 16.4 | 15 | 207.0 |
2004 | Terrell Owens, Phil. | 77 | 1,200 | 15.6 | 14 | 203.5 |
2000 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 87 | 1,471 | 16.9 | 9 | 202.2 |
2000 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 82 | 1,635 | 19.9 | 6 | 200.2 |
2006 | Terrell Owens, Dall. | 85 | 1,180 | 13.9 | 13 | 198.0 |
2004 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 94 | 1,372 | 14.6 | 10 | 197.2 |
1999 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 77 | 1,165 | 15.1 | 12 | 190.5 |
2010 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 77 | 1,120 | 14.5 | 12 | 189.2 |
2005 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 83 | 1,287 | 15.5 | 10 | 189.1 |
2006 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 93 | 1,188 | 12.8 | 10 | 178.8 |
2001 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 81 | 1,363 | 16.8 | 7 | 178.3 |
1996 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 84 | 1,338 | 15.9 | 7 | 175.8 |
2015 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 88 | 1,214 | 13.8 | 9 | 175.4 |
2008 | Terrell Owens, Dall. | 69 | 1,052 | 15.2 | 10 | 168.5 |
2004 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 89 | 1,292 | 14.5 | 6 | 165.2 |
2003 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 80 | 1,102 | 13.8 | 9 | 164.0 |
2007 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 93 | 1,189 | 12.8 | 7 | 162.9 |
2002 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 91 | 1,302 | 14.3 | 4 | 156.0 |
2014 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 71 | 1,077 | 15.2 | 8 | 155.7 |
2010 | Terrell Owens, Cin. | 72 | 983 | 13.7 | 9 | 152.3 |
2002 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 79 | 1,075 | 13.6 | 7 | 151.3 |
2001 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 64 | 1,106 | 17.3 | 6 | 148.9 |
1997 | Terrell Owens, S.F. | 60 | 936 | 15.6 | 8 | 141.6 |
2009 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 67 | 984 | 14.7 | 5 | 135.7 |
2006 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 74 | 1,098 | 14.8 | 3 | 129.8 |
2003 | Isaac Bruce, St.L. | 69 | 981 | 14.2 | 5 | 129.8 |
2008 | Isaac Bruce, S.F. | 61 | 835 | 13.7 | 7 | 125.2 |
2009 | Terrell Owens, Buff. | 55 | 829 | 15.1 | 6 | 124.3 |
2005 | Terrell Owens, Phil. | 48 | 743 | 15.5 | 7 | 120.1 |
1999 | Torry Holt, St.L. | 52 | 788 | 15.2 | 6 | 114.8 |
—Ian Allan