The Best Way to Travel? By Air

COACHES TALK ALL the time about how they must establish the running game to win. Don't believe them for a second. In today's NFL, it's all about the pass.

Think we're making this stuff up? The numbers don't lie.

* In 1961, Lionel Taylor became the first player ever to post 100 receptions in a season, catching an even 100 for the Denver Broncos. From 1961 through 1993, the 100-catch plateau was reached seven times. Then things got crazy. From 1994 through 2000, there were 23 100-catch seasons. In 1995 alone, nine players did it, including a running back (Larry Centers).

* In 1978, the year the schedule was expanded from 14 to 16 games, four players had 1,000 receiving yards. Last season, 18 players reached that mark.

* Every team last season except the Pittsburgh Steelers had at least one player with 50 receptions.

* The Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl last year because of their defense--their leading receiver (Shannon Sharpe) had just 810 yards--but they were the exception for NFL champions of recent vintage. The 1999 St. Louis Rams had two 1,000-yard receivers (Marshall Faulk and Isaac Bruce), the 1998 Broncos had two (Rod Smith and Ed McCaffrey); and the 1997 Broncos had two (Sharpe and Smith).

There's no doubt about it: We live in the Jet Age. The quickest way to the endzone is through the air.

It's only logical, then, that our cover story this issue is devoted to the Wide Receiver Class of '96, which already is well 9n its way to going down as the greatest group of pass-catchers in NFL history. Marvin Harrison. Keyshawn Johnson. Terrell Owens. Muhsin Muhammad. Eric Moulds. These are some of the biggest names in the game.

Of course, the Class of '96 isn't the last word at the position. Cris Carter, Randy Moss, Bruce, Torry Holt, Jerry Rice, David Boston, Jimmy Smith, Keenan McCardell, Tim Brown, and Rod Smith so must be added to a list of quality wideouts that is so long we don't have room to run the whole thing here.

This is a golden era for pass-catchers. In 30 years, we'll look back and marvel at what these wideouts accomplished.

What is truly amazing, though, is that there seems to be no end in sight. The colleges continue to crank out first-class wide receivers. Offensively, wide receiver was considered the strongest position in this year's draft, featuring players like David Terrell, Koren Robinson, Santana Moss, Quincy Morgan, Chad Johnson, Rod Gardner, and Reggie Wayne.

Who knows? Five years from now, maybe we'll put Robinson on our cover as part of a story on the accomplishments of the vaunted Wide Receiver Class of '01. We wouldn't be a bit surprised if that happened.

COPYRIGHT 2001 Century Publishing
COPYRIGHT 2001 Gale Group