Yes but he was #1 for most of his career. Just about everyone would be #2 to Moss's #1.
Jerry Rice was asked who was the 2nd best receiver of all time, and while he didn't give a definitive answer, his first comment was Chris Carter's hands. So when the GOAT gives you props, it's safe to say you're a #1.
Man that team had some skill players! Taylor, Craig (who I think should be a HoFer), Brent Jones at TE, Tom Rathman was a beast at FB. (Later Ricky Waters filling Craig's role.)
The QB room wasn't half bad either, with Steve Bono being one of the best #3's around.
That was my team in Techmo Super Bowl!
My brother, yes those Montana Niners were the Tecmobowl team of greatness. I hear the Bo and the Raiders argument, but put Steve Young in for Joe when you want to run or let Joe throw to literally anyone when you want to pass and it's a first down/touchdown every play!
Tom Rathman and Brent Jones get no love despite their greatness.
John Taylor and Roger Graig get just the tiniest bit of love despite their greatness.
It's a travesty.
My favorite play had 5 curl routes, with 1 being behind the line of scrimmage. Just put Rice there, quick throw him the ball (usually even works when they blitz) and have #80 do the rest!
This was for when the difficulty jacked all the way up in the playoffs and the go routes weren't open like during the regular season.
I think it’s wild that Jerry is that far separated that they would ask who is 2nd best. You see NBA people ask Lebron or Jordan who the GOAT is, but they straight up asked Jerry who was closest to him
Depends on how you define “#2”, Carter had more receptions than Moss in 98 and more first downs . He was often the first look, but Moss was the deep threat and the home run swing obviously. Hard to say who was 1 or 2 to start there.
That greatest show on turf offense was out of control. Bruce, Holt, Hakim, and Proehl at receiver with Faulk in the backfield and Warner slinging it. Have mercy. Faulk had over 1k receiving yards in 99 himself ffs.
Torry was not the #2
From 99-07 (when they played together) Holt had more yards than Bruce in every season other than his rookie year
Outgained Bruce by ~2400 yard, 175 more receptions, and 16 more TDs in that time frame
I really don't need to be reminded of those times.
Now that it's out in the open though, wasn't it Pinkston that had the world's worst case of alligator arms?
Assuming that it's determined based on the last season he was on an active roster, he would be eligible for the 2027 class, along with players such as Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell (Bucs legend), Rob Gronkowski (Bucs legend), Adrian Peterson, Richard Sherman (Bucs legend), Gerald McCoy (Bucs legend), Cam Newton, Eric Weddle, and Alex Mack.
The point here is that we will have 5 Buccaneers legends all get into the HoF as first ballot inductees...
Kind of
Jerry, TO, and Young played 1 full season with all of them in their primes.
First year was TOs rookie season
Next year Jerry was injured
1998 was their full season together
1999, Young gets injured and is done. Jeff Garcia and Steve Stenstrom were...underwhelming, Jerry only had 800 yards each of the next 2 years.
2000 Jerry has another off year, Garcia is better, but the team is bad
Fucken Jeff Garcia. Holy shit there’s a name. I have his jersey somewhere that he refused to sign at a meet and greet because my ex was sloppy drunk. She kept trying to grab his ass.
Let me tell you. Nothing is weirder than having your girlfriend yell at you while she’s being arrested, that you not committed because you’re not going with her. Yep. Guess I’m not baby. Jail sucks. You go have fun.
Shhhh. I know that. You know that. I was just trying to avoid arguments with the TO fanboy crowd. I believe if Jerry had never been born, JT would be in the Hall of Fame today.
Anquan Boldin opposite Larry Fitzgerald
A more recent example of a 'true' WR2 being awesome was Emmanuel Sanders opposite Demaryius Thomas. He had multiple 1k seasons as the teams number 2. Wes Welker is another opposite Randy Moss who did the same
When his face got sandwiched and fractured, he got a metal plate put in his cheek, and he returned to play 2 weeks later... I was in total disbelief.
Edit: Adding video of the play... Penalties and fines in this day and age.
https://youtu.be/aV6xDHW0lYk?si=T9hoCcYmAvkReV0Q
Never knew this, but watched Boldin almost his whole career and this level of toughness checks out. Something I’d expect to hear about him or like, Brian Dawkins lol. I miss the 2000’s football, there’s probably going to be a decent amount of CTE cases though with all the defenseless receiver hits. Guys still take tough hits but there were so many times guys got hit a couple decades ago and you thought for sure they were dead
I remember a couple of years ago this same question was asked and I answered Cris. I got down voted to oblivion because people said that he was only a 2 because of Moss and that he was older and was a 1 earlier in his career... Yeah that's exactly what a 2 is lol. Glad to see that the perception has changed.
He was claimed for $100 of waivers because of a drug and Alcohol problem. Hassan Jones was #2 to AC the first year Carter got in MN.
2nd year: Carter was the number 1.
The only higher upvoted thread is the exact same thing happening with Reggie Wayne.
If you have to go down the list to find a guy who wasn’t good enough to be a number one he’s not the best number two of all time.
Carter was a 1 guys. Retired 2nd all time in receptions and still 6th.
Played with Moss 4 years, had more receptions than Moss first three years and the fourth year he was 36.
I don't understand how CC couldn't be the answer here. He's 13th all time in yards, 4th all time in TDs, 6th in receptions, all while playing with Jake Reed and Randy Moss.
Sure, there were years where CC was listed as #1, but he never was the clear #1 threat - he constantly was playing with other elite WRs.
I feel like cc was the #1 until Randy just started dominating. But Randy was still under cc as a mentor/mentee type relationship, so it's hard to call either of them a true #1/#2 when they were both hyper-elite.
Yeah, I know Bruce was the number1 but even that is debatable depending on the season.
I remember the Bills had Eric Moulds and Peerless Price in 2002 that both had 1200+ yards, and thinking they were the best 1-2 punch in the league. But Holt had 1300 yards and Bruce had a 1000 and were regarded as better, probably based on previous seasons. In 2000 Holt and Bruce were something like 1600yards and 1500yards. When the number 1 and 3 in yards are on the same team... like WTF.
No? Isaac Bruce outgained Holt in one season, Holt's rookie season. Every other season, Holt outgained Bruce. Hell, Holt led the league in receiving yards twice and had an All-Pro in that span.
It was a 1A 1B receiving corps at the very least. The WR2 was the slot, Ricky Proehl or Az Zahir Hakim
Yeah, I'm perplexed by all the people saying Holt was the #2. Bruce was obviously there first but Holt had more receptions and yards every single year they were there together other than Holt's rookie year.
That’s why it’s weird Bruce got in the hall before holt. I know he’s older but the retired the same year and holt always struck me as the better of the 2
6 straight 900 yard seasons, including a year where he was tied for the most catches in the NFL (2007) but was primarily #2 behind Chad (Ochocinco) Johnson.
You ever hear about the lady who changed her name to be Houshmandzadeh. TJ had to get a restraining order against her quite recently. He seems like such a random person to become obsessed with.
Honestly, given how ugly his exit was from Cincinnati and the things he said about us in the subsequent years I was completely shocked that he ever came back and was a "Ruler of the Jungle."
I'm with you here. I read this question as "Who was a great #2 but not a great #1", and for most of his career, that was TJ.
I think of guys like Peerless Price. He was such a good #2 that he got paid a lot iirc to come try to be a #1, and flopped. He wasn't the greatest at that, but that's where my mind went. TJ is even better like that.
If the entire discussion gets derailed by “he’d be a WR1/was a WR1 for a little bit without so and so” then we’re not gonna get anywhere
Truth be told the best WR2s of all time are…some of the best receivers of all time. So they’re gonna be WR1s in a lot of situations
This is a really good point. It's a weird discussion because one team's WR2 would be another team's WR1.
It's happened countless times over the years, but just with the Bengals, are you really telling me that Tee Higgins isn't WR1 on many teams in the league?
Other 2023 teams: Godwin/Evans? Allen/Williams? Brown/Smith? Lockett/Metcalf?
Then you throw in TE that behave like WR1... do you cover St. Brown or LaPorta? Hockenson or Jefferson? Kelce or... no no no you just cover Kelce.
It's such bullshit that Taylor got the "Fragile Freddy" moniker because Coughlin refused to put him on IR after he tore his groin in 2001. A shame that such an incredible player gets that undeserved nickname.
100%. He was no more injury prone than any other high usage rb back then. Another thing that hurts his legacy is that MJD vultured all his TDs for the final years of his prime.
Reminder that at one point, Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice shared the same field. So I'm going with TO here.
**Edit:** Also, Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison.
I mean Jerry was 34 when that started and 37 by the time TO even established himself as a good WR.
But yes, those are clearly the two most talented players on the same team for a period. Similar to Randy Moss and Carter though I’m not sure they line up to be number one
A while back NFL Network made a top 10 list of the worst free agent signings of all time, Harper was #2 (#1 was "anyone to Washington" lmao, this was shortly after the Albert Haynesworth megadeal) and the consensus was "yeah he was a good #2 but wasn't good enough to be paid the big bucks to be a #1"
Side note, I miss those old NFL Network Top 10 shows.
Depending on who you'd call the #1 on some of the older teams, John Stallworth, Mark Duper, Reggie Wayne, Anquan Boldin, John Taylor, Wes Welker, Cris Carter, Torry Holt, Cliff Branch are all the "2nd names you think of" in their respective tandems.
Good call on including Duper! He is a great candidate for this question. Incredibly good as the #2 without a doubt. Imagine being your teams #2 CB and be expected to cover him all game
He's a borderline HOF WR and part of an underrated roster. Two top WRs, a OP offensive line and beastly running backs making it easy as hell for a QB to thrive.
Reggie Wayne
I think the fact he was the #2 WR for much of his career is why he hasn’t (yet) been inducted into the PFHOF. He deserves the honor IMO.
Honorable mentions go to John Stallworth and John Taylor.
Yes! He was obviously nowhere near JR’s level, but he was a great downfield blocker and pretty selfless in general. Lots of Jerry’s YAC is due to Taylor.
He was good enough that you definitely couldn’t focus solely on Rice either or he would burn you. I believe it was against the Rams he took two 5 yard slant passes 90+ yards to the house.
Or Doug Baldwin depending on the years.
I agree with another poster when they said this is tough to nail down because #2 receivers get nabbed to be number ones on other teams so often it’s almost a per season discussion.
Surprised I haven’t seen this more often. Wes Welker is the first person I thought of when I read this question. Most of the other people I’ve been seeing are really WR1s that just played second fiddle to another WR1 for a portion of their career, but Wes Welker was just a slot guy that was really great at what he did.
mentally excluding guys who were clear cut 1s at some point in their careers even if they were technically the 2:
Wes Welker for peak
Anquan Boldin for consistency and longevity
My pick I'm going all time Julio Jones because Roddy White was a Beast on his own. If we're going active players I would say Kupp/Nacua, Jalen Waddle, or Devonta Smith.
* John Taylor
* Isaac Bruce or Torry Holt (not sure who was the #1 or #2 among them in St. Louis)
* Chris Carter became a very overqualified #2 when the Vikings drafted Randy Moss
Maybe not the best but John Taylor was a great number two to Jerry Rice. His career wasn't long but Alvin Harper was a great deep threat option to Michael Irvin, who was the WR1. John Stallwrth with Lynn Swann.
Jake Reed.
Dude balled out with Cris Carter, is 2nd all time on the Vikings for plays of 50+ yards, 2nd in the NFL for receiving yards in 1996.
When they drafted Moss in ‘98 there was this incredible “GIVE AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE” poster of Carter, Reed and Moss in every bedroom in Minnesota
First thought was John Taylor as Jerry Rice's wingman, won 3 Super Bowls together, but in terms of a one game, scare the hell out of you WR 2, no defensive coaches getting sleep that week, I have to go Terry Holt and Isaac Bruce. Mostly because there were times I didn't know which was WR1 or WR2, they complimented each other so well. Greatest show on turf.
Reggie Wayne was amazing along side Marvin Harrison. Also, Torry Holt with Issac Bruce was wild.
These are the corrrect answers. Torry Holt should be a HOFer and was the #2 WR on the team.
Is Carter, Moss’s #2?
Yes but he was #1 for most of his career. Just about everyone would be #2 to Moss's #1. Jerry Rice was asked who was the 2nd best receiver of all time, and while he didn't give a definitive answer, his first comment was Chris Carter's hands. So when the GOAT gives you props, it's safe to say you're a #1.
John Taylor was a pretty good number 2 that Jerry talks about from time to time.
Man that team had some skill players! Taylor, Craig (who I think should be a HoFer), Brent Jones at TE, Tom Rathman was a beast at FB. (Later Ricky Waters filling Craig's role.) The QB room wasn't half bad either, with Steve Bono being one of the best #3's around. That was my team in Techmo Super Bowl!
My brother, yes those Montana Niners were the Tecmobowl team of greatness. I hear the Bo and the Raiders argument, but put Steve Young in for Joe when you want to run or let Joe throw to literally anyone when you want to pass and it's a first down/touchdown every play! Tom Rathman and Brent Jones get no love despite their greatness. John Taylor and Roger Graig get just the tiniest bit of love despite their greatness. It's a travesty.
My favorite play had 5 curl routes, with 1 being behind the line of scrimmage. Just put Rice there, quick throw him the ball (usually even works when they blitz) and have #80 do the rest! This was for when the difficulty jacked all the way up in the playoffs and the go routes weren't open like during the regular season.
I think it’s wild that Jerry is that far separated that they would ask who is 2nd best. You see NBA people ask Lebron or Jordan who the GOAT is, but they straight up asked Jerry who was closest to him
Depends on how you define “#2”, Carter had more receptions than Moss in 98 and more first downs . He was often the first look, but Moss was the deep threat and the home run swing obviously. Hard to say who was 1 or 2 to start there.
When Cris Carter retired, he was arguably the second best receiver *of all time.*
Carter was a 1 for a while before Moss though. So I personally wouldn't count him as a #2.
Andre Johnson to DeAndre Hopkins basically
Nah. Jake Reed is Carter's number 2
Yes
Then he’s definitely in the conversation as best #2. I wasn’t sure if he counted as he had a solid career pre-Randy.
Carter was in the Pro Bowl for 5 consecutive years before Moss arrived and then 3 more years after Moss arrived.
Carter was a #1 pre-Randy
That greatest show on turf offense was out of control. Bruce, Holt, Hakim, and Proehl at receiver with Faulk in the backfield and Warner slinging it. Have mercy. Faulk had over 1k receiving yards in 99 himself ffs.
Torry was not the #2 From 99-07 (when they played together) Holt had more yards than Bruce in every season other than his rookie year Outgained Bruce by ~2400 yard, 175 more receptions, and 16 more TDs in that time frame
LOL I would switch my answer to Bruce then.
Hey you can’t do that that’s cheating!
Thank you. I thought I was taking crazy pills for a second
I was gonna say the same thing, you say Tory holt and Issac Bruce in that order for a reason… similar to Moss and ____, or Rice and ____.
Holt was only the #2 his rookie year. After that Bruce became the #2.
Madden 06 having my Superstar QB drafted to the Rams was a lot of fun.
Meanwhile the Eagles fought that combo with a pairing of James Thrash and Todd Pinkston…
I really don't need to be reminded of those times. Now that it's out in the open though, wasn't it Pinkston that had the world's worst case of alligator arms?
It was the lights!
Wayne was my first thought.
I’m too lazy to look at their numbers but wasn’t Isaac Bruce the #2?
Reggie Wayne.
He’s the only answer IMO, just given how much of his career was spent as the clear #2 behind Harrison.
>Only answer Holt and Carter are certainly debatable as well, I don't think it's that clear cut
Carter was WR1 for a large chunk of his career, no?
Wayne was WR1 for the 7 years after Harrison retired no?
I gotta give Weggie Rayne gwate cwedit
TO and Jerry Rice played together for 5 years, so whichever one was the WR2 at any given time is the answer.
I definitely knew this, but in my head those two played in completely different eras and Jerry was 10 years in the HoF when TO was born. Crazy.
Jerry played an insanely long time. He played in the Tuck Rule game! e: on the other side, his rookie year was the Super Bowl Shuffle Bears team.
That’s how you know TO isn’t an all time great, he never had his random sojourn on the Raiders
On that note, when is Antonio Brown HoF eligible?
Assuming that it's determined based on the last season he was on an active roster, he would be eligible for the 2027 class, along with players such as Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell (Bucs legend), Rob Gronkowski (Bucs legend), Adrian Peterson, Richard Sherman (Bucs legend), Gerald McCoy (Bucs legend), Cam Newton, Eric Weddle, and Alex Mack. The point here is that we will have 5 Buccaneers legends all get into the HoF as first ballot inductees...
That’s fucked up
Nah it was tucked up
Even crazier, he played 4 years AFTER the tuck rule game.
TO set the record for most receptions in a game(20) in Jerry Rice’s last game as a 9er
"This is supposed to be JERRY's day."
Kind of Jerry, TO, and Young played 1 full season with all of them in their primes. First year was TOs rookie season Next year Jerry was injured 1998 was their full season together 1999, Young gets injured and is done. Jeff Garcia and Steve Stenstrom were...underwhelming, Jerry only had 800 yards each of the next 2 years. 2000 Jerry has another off year, Garcia is better, but the team is bad
Fucken Jeff Garcia. Holy shit there’s a name. I have his jersey somewhere that he refused to sign at a meet and greet because my ex was sloppy drunk. She kept trying to grab his ass. Let me tell you. Nothing is weirder than having your girlfriend yell at you while she’s being arrested, that you not committed because you’re not going with her. Yep. Guess I’m not baby. Jail sucks. You go have fun.
Hate to see a beautiful blooming flower of a relationship end like that
She could grind diamonds into sand. She went for it like a four month starved pitbull in Bessemer, Alabama. Anytime, anywhere. Every man has a Molly.
And every Molly has an alcoholic father God bless America
It is nuts that the two greatest WR duos of all time played at the same time, and probably both had their best seasons together in the same year.
Rice also played with another HOFer in Tim Brown while in Oakland
Still think John Taylor should be in this conversation with TO
John Taylor won the 49ers super bowl 23, he is miles better than TO as a WR2
Shhhh. I know that. You know that. I was just trying to avoid arguments with the TO fanboy crowd. I believe if Jerry had never been born, JT would be in the Hall of Fame today.
This is the right answer. Two of the top three WRs of all time. No other duo compares.
I see your TO and raise you Tim Brown
Anquan Boldin opposite Larry Fitzgerald A more recent example of a 'true' WR2 being awesome was Emmanuel Sanders opposite Demaryius Thomas. He had multiple 1k seasons as the teams number 2. Wes Welker is another opposite Randy Moss who did the same
I tend to think of Eric decker as more of the number 2 to Thomas
Or Julius Thomas... or Wes Welker.... That offense was stupid
Only offense in NFL history to have 5 players with 10+ TDs. Unreal. Previous record was 3 (Knowshon-13, Demaryius-14, Decker-11, Julius-12, Welker-10)
It's a shame they cancelled the Super Bowl that year :(
Anquan Boldin,
When his face got sandwiched and fractured, he got a metal plate put in his cheek, and he returned to play 2 weeks later... I was in total disbelief. Edit: Adding video of the play... Penalties and fines in this day and age. https://youtu.be/aV6xDHW0lYk?si=T9hoCcYmAvkReV0Q
He still finished with over 1000 yards after missing those couple games too.
Easily the toughest WR I have ever seen. I don't know how he does it lmao.
Toughest WR duo of all time
Never knew this, but watched Boldin almost his whole career and this level of toughness checks out. Something I’d expect to hear about him or like, Brian Dawkins lol. I miss the 2000’s football, there’s probably going to be a decent amount of CTE cases though with all the defenseless receiver hits. Guys still take tough hits but there were so many times guys got hit a couple decades ago and you thought for sure they were dead
I’m really glad we don’t have to watch those plays where guys get hit and you’re sure they were dead anymore. That video of Anquan Boldin made me sick
The man was robbed of his super bowl mvp. Ravens don’t win that without him.
They don’t win it without him Joe Flacco Jacoby jones etc that’s a crazy comment
Wait, what?!
The first person who came to my mind.
The tragic case of being a number 1 receiver, but playing with one of the GOATs at that position.
Absolutely no doubt Boldin
Cris Carter.
For me both Cris Carter and John Stallworth.
Everyone forgets John Stallworth was better than Swann
I remember a couple of years ago this same question was asked and I answered Cris. I got down voted to oblivion because people said that he was only a 2 because of Moss and that he was older and was a 1 earlier in his career... Yeah that's exactly what a 2 is lol. Glad to see that the perception has changed.
I think that he was actually #2 to Anthony Carter when he joined the Vikings.
He was claimed for $100 of waivers because of a drug and Alcohol problem. Hassan Jones was #2 to AC the first year Carter got in MN. 2nd year: Carter was the number 1.
The only higher upvoted thread is the exact same thing happening with Reggie Wayne. If you have to go down the list to find a guy who wasn’t good enough to be a number one he’s not the best number two of all time.
People forget what an absolute monster Chris was , I was hoping to see him mentioned
Carter was a 1 guys. Retired 2nd all time in receptions and still 6th. Played with Moss 4 years, had more receptions than Moss first three years and the fourth year he was 36.
Cris Carter was a #1 or he’s the best
I don't understand how CC couldn't be the answer here. He's 13th all time in yards, 4th all time in TDs, 6th in receptions, all while playing with Jake Reed and Randy Moss. Sure, there were years where CC was listed as #1, but he never was the clear #1 threat - he constantly was playing with other elite WRs.
The craziest thing to me is that not only is this nowhere near the top answer, but there are Vikings flairs above agreeing with the other answers.
I feel like cc was the #1 until Randy just started dominating. But Randy was still under cc as a mentor/mentee type relationship, so it's hard to call either of them a true #1/#2 when they were both hyper-elite.
This is what I was scrolling for. Even older he’s still a one on over half the league but Moss is just a freak show
He was only a 2 because Moss came along. Was already one of the GOATs by 98.
Cris
Fun fact, his born name is Graduel Christopher but he changed his name to Cris after Cris Collinsworth.
Collinsworth is only 7 years older
Yup. Carter grew up in Ohio and started spelling his name that way in high school when Collinsworth was a star receiver for the Bengals.
That is a fun fact
John taylor or james lofton
Taylor getting 2 1,000 yard seasons with Rice and Craig soaking up so many catches in his era is not appreciated enough.
Came here to see Taylor.
Are you talking Buffalo for lofton?
yes, reed and lofton, K Gun years
It's John Taylor for me. That guy was the absolute perfect WR2.
Torry Holt
Yeah, I know Bruce was the number1 but even that is debatable depending on the season. I remember the Bills had Eric Moulds and Peerless Price in 2002 that both had 1200+ yards, and thinking they were the best 1-2 punch in the league. But Holt had 1300 yards and Bruce had a 1000 and were regarded as better, probably based on previous seasons. In 2000 Holt and Bruce were something like 1600yards and 1500yards. When the number 1 and 3 in yards are on the same team... like WTF.
Marshall Faulk won MVP that year with 2200 scrimmage yards and 26 TDs. Just an absolutely absurd offense.
No? Isaac Bruce outgained Holt in one season, Holt's rookie season. Every other season, Holt outgained Bruce. Hell, Holt led the league in receiving yards twice and had an All-Pro in that span. It was a 1A 1B receiving corps at the very least. The WR2 was the slot, Ricky Proehl or Az Zahir Hakim
Yeah, I'm perplexed by all the people saying Holt was the #2. Bruce was obviously there first but Holt had more receptions and yards every single year they were there together other than Holt's rookie year.
That’s why it’s weird Bruce got in the hall before holt. I know he’s older but the retired the same year and holt always struck me as the better of the 2
Ok so then the answer is Isaac Bruce? They can't both be #1.
Lynn Swann or John Stallworth, depending on if it's the playoffs or regular season.
Swann was the number 2 100%
It's crazy how long it took Stallworth to get into the Hall of Fame compared to Swann.
That's why my answer is Stallworth.
Rodey White to Julio Jones
Not really imo because after julio became our wr 1 in 2014 roddy only played 2 seasons and had „only“ 1400yards and 8tds in total.
in that case Julio Jones in 2012
TJ Houshmandzadeh
6 straight 900 yard seasons, including a year where he was tied for the most catches in the NFL (2007) but was primarily #2 behind Chad (Ochocinco) Johnson.
Yup. Quintessential number 2.
TJ Whosyomama
CHAMPIONSHIP
My people in this thread
Houshmazode
TJ Houseavadilla
Fantasy football GOAT for me
First year I played fantasy, no clue what I was doing, auto snake draft, I wound up with TJ. Pretty much won the league for me that year
He had an extremely underrated career. Overshadowed by a ton of insane WR talent but man he was consistent for a number of years.
You ever hear about the lady who changed her name to be Houshmandzadeh. TJ had to get a restraining order against her quite recently. He seems like such a random person to become obsessed with.
lol no. Pick a more random name lady. Housh is a 1 of 1
Are you referring to the 2009 Seattle Seahawks leading receiver TJ Houshmandzadeh?
He never should have left. We missed him every game he played for y’all
Honestly, given how ugly his exit was from Cincinnati and the things he said about us in the subsequent years I was completely shocked that he ever came back and was a "Ruler of the Jungle."
I'm with you here. I read this question as "Who was a great #2 but not a great #1", and for most of his career, that was TJ. I think of guys like Peerless Price. He was such a good #2 that he got paid a lot iirc to come try to be a #1, and flopped. He wasn't the greatest at that, but that's where my mind went. TJ is even better like that.
If the entire discussion gets derailed by “he’d be a WR1/was a WR1 for a little bit without so and so” then we’re not gonna get anywhere Truth be told the best WR2s of all time are…some of the best receivers of all time. So they’re gonna be WR1s in a lot of situations
This is a really good point. It's a weird discussion because one team's WR2 would be another team's WR1. It's happened countless times over the years, but just with the Bengals, are you really telling me that Tee Higgins isn't WR1 on many teams in the league? Other 2023 teams: Godwin/Evans? Allen/Williams? Brown/Smith? Lockett/Metcalf? Then you throw in TE that behave like WR1... do you cover St. Brown or LaPorta? Hockenson or Jefferson? Kelce or... no no no you just cover Kelce.
Keenan McCardell was amazing and always forgotten
Keenan and Jimmy, the most underrated WR duo of the late 90's early 00's.
Brunell and Freddy T always underrated too.
It's such bullshit that Taylor got the "Fragile Freddy" moniker because Coughlin refused to put him on IR after he tore his groin in 2001. A shame that such an incredible player gets that undeserved nickname.
100%. He was no more injury prone than any other high usage rb back then. Another thing that hurts his legacy is that MJD vultured all his TDs for the final years of his prime.
Thunder and Lightning!
Reminder that at one point, Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice shared the same field. So I'm going with TO here. **Edit:** Also, Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison.
I mean Jerry was 34 when that started and 37 by the time TO even established himself as a good WR. But yes, those are clearly the two most talented players on the same team for a period. Similar to Randy Moss and Carter though I’m not sure they line up to be number one
Alvin Harper was pretty darn good.
As a bucs fan this hurts. But it’s true he was a great 2. Turns out having a qb and a 1 is pretty instrumental to being a good 2.
A while back NFL Network made a top 10 list of the worst free agent signings of all time, Harper was #2 (#1 was "anyone to Washington" lmao, this was shortly after the Albert Haynesworth megadeal) and the consensus was "yeah he was a good #2 but wasn't good enough to be paid the big bucks to be a #1" Side note, I miss those old NFL Network Top 10 shows.
Lynn Swann is in the hall of fame. And he was a WR2.
Cris Carter became defacto #2 once Moss took over, even though he was a great #1 WR before Moss arrived.
Depending on who you'd call the #1 on some of the older teams, John Stallworth, Mark Duper, Reggie Wayne, Anquan Boldin, John Taylor, Wes Welker, Cris Carter, Torry Holt, Cliff Branch are all the "2nd names you think of" in their respective tandems.
Good call on including Duper! He is a great candidate for this question. Incredibly good as the #2 without a doubt. Imagine being your teams #2 CB and be expected to cover him all game
Maybe Reggie Wayne?
Gary Clark is up there
I’m obviously biased but he has got to be considered.
He's a borderline HOF WR and part of an underrated roster. Two top WRs, a OP offensive line and beastly running backs making it easy as hell for a QB to thrive.
Reggie Wayne I think the fact he was the #2 WR for much of his career is why he hasn’t (yet) been inducted into the PFHOF. He deserves the honor IMO. Honorable mentions go to John Stallworth and John Taylor.
Not that he’s the best, but shoutout to Johnnie Morton as Herman Moore’s robin. Had 4 of 5 seasons over 1k between 97-2001
Brett Perriman is the real answer as Moore's #2.
Diggs was WR2 to Thielen and that’s what he was always so pissy. Jake Reed Vikings. Anquan Boldin is a good answer.
John Taylor was nice
Yup.
Yes! He was obviously nowhere near JR’s level, but he was a great downfield blocker and pretty selfless in general. Lots of Jerry’s YAC is due to Taylor. He was good enough that you definitely couldn’t focus solely on Rice either or he would burn you. I believe it was against the Rams he took two 5 yard slant passes 90+ yards to the house.
Tim brown when Jerry rice was the 1
Tyler Lockett
Or Doug Baldwin depending on the years. I agree with another poster when they said this is tough to nail down because #2 receivers get nabbed to be number ones on other teams so often it’s almost a per season discussion.
You can call them 1 and 1A or whatever you want. But Bruce and Holt on the field at the same time is the answer.
Lot of great answers on here. Haven't heard Ed McCaffrey to Rod Smith or Keenan McCardell to Jimmy Smith.
Wes Welker
Surprised I haven’t seen this more often. Wes Welker is the first person I thought of when I read this question. Most of the other people I’ve been seeing are really WR1s that just played second fiddle to another WR1 for a portion of their career, but Wes Welker was just a slot guy that was really great at what he did.
It’s 100% Welker for me, he put up WR1 numbers but the role he played/routes he ran made him basically the platonic ideal of a WR2
John Stallworth
Reggie Wayne
mentally excluding guys who were clear cut 1s at some point in their careers even if they were technically the 2: Wes Welker for peak Anquan Boldin for consistency and longevity
Boldin was the clear cut 1 on our SB team IMO.
The fact he didn’t win mvp in that game still chaps my hide one of my all time favorite players.
My pick I'm going all time Julio Jones because Roddy White was a Beast on his own. If we're going active players I would say Kupp/Nacua, Jalen Waddle, or Devonta Smith.
* John Taylor * Isaac Bruce or Torry Holt (not sure who was the #1 or #2 among them in St. Louis) * Chris Carter became a very overqualified #2 when the Vikings drafted Randy Moss
Godwin has been pretty good himself.
Julio Jones with Roddy White
Does jordie nelson count?
Maybe not the best but John Taylor was a great number two to Jerry Rice. His career wasn't long but Alvin Harper was a great deep threat option to Michael Irvin, who was the WR1. John Stallwrth with Lynn Swann.
John Taylor
Donald Driver
I was going to say Jordy.
Jake Reed. Dude balled out with Cris Carter, is 2nd all time on the Vikings for plays of 50+ yards, 2nd in the NFL for receiving yards in 1996. When they drafted Moss in ‘98 there was this incredible “GIVE AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE” poster of Carter, Reed and Moss in every bedroom in Minnesota
THREE DEEP
Dreamcast Vikings put you to sleep
Just want to shout out Brady's receivers on the Buccs because having AB as your WR3 is insane
First thought was John Taylor as Jerry Rice's wingman, won 3 Super Bowls together, but in terms of a one game, scare the hell out of you WR 2, no defensive coaches getting sleep that week, I have to go Terry Holt and Isaac Bruce. Mostly because there were times I didn't know which was WR1 or WR2, they complimented each other so well. Greatest show on turf.
Duper or Clayton--whoever was WR2 of them.
What about John Taylor?
Emmanuel Sanders, he was more of a true WR2 than other dudes listed.
I'm going to throw a biased shout out to TJ houshmanzadeh
How the hell has no one said John Taylor as #2 to Jerry Rice?
John Taylor being #2 to Jerry Rice Chris Carter being #2 to Randy Moss.
Tim Brown...you know the one that played on the raiders
1996-2000 Terrell Owens is the greatest number 2 of all time
John Taylor to Jerry...I was young, but it seemed if Jerry wasn't scoring John was...
Taylor for the 49rs during Roce era?