03-29-2025, 07:29 PM
(03-29-2025, 04:12 PM)FormerlyBengalRugby Wrote: Was going to say the same, and Carl Pickens deserves love too!For some reason, I was bigger on Darnay Scott than Pickens.
He averaged 21.2 yard a catch on season when the team passing average in the league was less than 180 yards!
So darned good they changed the rules to stop him...
Isaac Curtis (1973–1984)
Isaac Curtis tallied 416 receptions, 7,101 yards, and 53 touchdowns over 12 seasons. His 1975 season (44 receptions, 934 yards, 7 TDs) averaged 21.2 yards per catch in an era when passing was just 178 yards per game league-wide. His 2.3 YPRR then was exceptional, and adjusting to modern volume (doubling attempts from ~25 to ~35 per game) and a 17-game slate, he’d project to ~70 receptions, 1,400 yards, and 11 TDs. Curtis’s speed forced the NFL to change rules (the “Isaac Curtis Rule” limiting contact beyond 5 yards), but his raw stats suffer from the run-first 1970s.
Carl Pickens (1992–1999)
Carl Pickens notched 530 receptions, 6,887 yards, and 63 touchdowns in eight seasons. His 1995 season (99 receptions, 1,234 yards, 17 TDs) was monstrous for the mid-1990s, when league passing averaged ~210 yards per game. His 2.01 YPRR that year, adjusted for a 17-game season and modern passing volume (+20% attempts), projects to ~120 receptions, 1,500 yards, and 20 TDs—a jaw-dropping stat line. Pickens thrived in a less pass-friendly era with inconsistent quarterback play (e.g., Jeff Blake, David Klingler), making his peak arguably the most impressive relative to context.
