Top wide receivers in history

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Lee Elder
Posts: 145
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2014 8:55 pm

Top wide receivers in history

Post by Lee Elder »

Friends and fellow PFRA members:

I have left the original post below but it looks like the responses have stopped coming so I have tallied the results. The player whose name I did not expect to see mentioned too often was Paul Warfield. Jerry Rice was the top vote-getter. Thanks to everyone who gave a reply. I'll get to work on the Coffin Corner piece and submit it soon.

I am conducting a survey for a piece I am writing for submission to the Coffin Corner. Please reply with your short list of the best wide receivers in pro football history, regardless of era.

I begin with a supposition about a player I do not expect to see on many lists. I will wait a reasonable period of time, maybe two weeks, and then count the lists. It would only be fair for me to mention the player I do not expect to see after the two weeks are over.

I will not use the names of those who submit a list but I will tally the players listed.

I request that you list 3-5 players.

I request that you limit responses to include players who played in the NFL, AAFC, the 1960-1969 AFL, the USFL or the CFL.

With many thanks,

Lee Elder
Lee Elder
Posts: 145
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2014 8:55 pm

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by Lee Elder »

To all of you eagle-eyed readers, I had to edit my original post. I don't think any receiver played in ALL of the leagues listed, so I changed the final words to, "or the CFL" instead of "and the CFL."

Thanks again for your interest in my survey.

Lee Elder
ChrisBabcock
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Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2014 3:36 pm
Location: Tonawanda, NY

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by ChrisBabcock »

I couldn’t resist going to 6....

1. Rice
2. Hutson
3. Alworth
4. Berry
5. Fitzgerald
6. Warfield
bachslunch
Posts: 824
Joined: Tue Oct 14, 2014 7:09 am

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by bachslunch »

In order:

Rice
Hutson
Alworth
Berry
Warfield

Likely will cross over significantly or be the same as lists from others.
Oszuscik
Posts: 169
Joined: Mon Sep 30, 2019 2:34 pm

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by Oszuscik »

I feel the top 3 are...

1. Jerry Rice
2. Don Hutson
3. Randy Moss

Production-wise there have been other receivers that put up amazing numbers, but these 3 dominated the competition like no other.
conace21
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Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2014 10:08 am

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by conace21 »

Rice
Hutson
Berry
Alworth
Moss
BD Sullivan
Posts: 2318
Joined: Mon Oct 13, 2014 1:30 pm

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by BD Sullivan »

Rice
Hutson
Berry
Warfield
Charley Taylor
Reaser
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Location: WA

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by Reaser »

Rice
Hutson
Largent
Berry
Alworth
Moss
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Rupert Patrick
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Location: Upstate SC

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by Rupert Patrick »

Rice
Hutson
Alworth
Moss
Berry

I'm going to throw a name out there, since he's not really a Wide Receiver although he caught a lot of passes for his era - Lenny Moore. As great a running back as he was, I always thought he was miscast and should have been a wide receiver. After Hutson, he was really the NFL's next big breakaway player, a guy who could take the ball 80 yards. I remember once checking and I think he has by far the highest percentage of touchdowns in excess of 60 yards of any player in pro football history. From what little film I have seen of him, I think Moore was one of the best receivers I've ever seen as a running back, and he was one of the few backs who would go deep.
Last edited by Rupert Patrick on Mon Oct 14, 2019 8:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Every time you lose, you die a little bit. You die inside. Not all your organs, maybe just your liver." - George Allen
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JeffreyMiller
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Location: Birthplace of Pop Warner

Re: Top wide receivers in history

Post by JeffreyMiller »

Randy Moss
Jerry Rice
Don Hutson
Lance Alworth
Larry Fitzgerald
"Gentlemen, it is better to have died a small boy than to fumble this football."
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