Antonio Brown made history with JuJu Smith-Schuster in 2018 The duo became just the NFL’s sixth to reach 100 receptions and 1,000 receiving yards each in the same season. Brown had 104 catches for 1,297 yards, while Smith-Schuster had 111 for 1,426.
Now, though, Brown seems to want out of Pittsburgh after he was benched for the season finale against Cincinnati for skipping practices and meetings last week.
With that discord in mind, here’s a look at the previous duos that achieved the feat and how they fared in subsequent seasons, with and without each other as teammates:
1995 Detroit Lions - Herman Moore (123 receptions for 1,686 yards) and Brett Perriman (108 receptions for 1,488 yards)
It was a career year for both men. The 30-year-old Perriman dramatically outperformed his previous highs of 69 catches for 810 yards, while the 26-year-old Moore himself improved by more than 500 yards from ’94. Their success was short-lived though. After one more season together in which they both topped 1,000 yards, Perriman was out of the league by 1998, the same year Moore’s production dipped below 1,000 yards, never to recover. It’s for that reason that we’re as surprised to see them on this list as you might be.
2000 Denver Broncos - Rod Smith (100 receptions for 1,602 yards) and Ed McCaffrey (101 receptions for 1,317 yards)
These two were relatively late bloomers, both posting these career numbers at age 30 or older. They weren’t just a one-hit wonder, though, as 2000 was the third year in which they both reached 1,000 yards. Their age likely contributed to their quick downfall, though. McCaffrey played just one game the following year and never topped 1,000 again, while Smith remained productive for several years but never put up another eye-popping yardage total.
2005 Arizona Cardinals - Anquan Boldin (102 receptions for 1,402 yards) and Larry Fitzgerald (103 receptions for 1,409 yards)
By contrast, these two turned the trick as young men — Boldin was 25 and Fitzgerald was 22. This allowed them to remain productive together for a long time. While they never reached the 100/1,000 territory at the same time again, they piled up at least 850 yards apiece in the four subsequent seasons that they played together before Boldin left for Baltimore. They also put up big numbers once they went their separate ways and appear poised to join each other in Canton someday.
2009 Indianapolis Colts - Reggie Wayne (100 receptions for 1,264 yards) and Dallas Clark (100 receptions for 1,106)
You’re reading that right. No, Wayne never put up 100/1,000 with Marvin Harrison, the running mate with whom he’s most often considered to have formed a great receiving duo. Instead, he did it with Clark, a good tight end who was really only that good once; 2009 was his only season of more than 77 receptions and 848 yards. Go figure. The combination broke up unceremoniously, as Clark departed for Tampa Bay in 2012 after two injury-plagued seasons. Wayne put up two more big seasons in 2010 and 2012 before retiring from the Colts after 2014.
2014 Broncos - Emmanuel Sanders (101 receptions for 1,404 yards) and Demaryius Thomas (111 receptions for 1,619)
The chemistry was immediate for these two once Sanders decamped to Denver from Pittsburgh in the preceding offseason. They were both in their primes at age 27 and working with one of the game’s all-time great quarterbacks in Peyton Manning. His retirement the following year may have prevented the receivers from keeping their success going. Both topped 1,000 yards in 2016, but they haven’t been close since and were broken up this year when Thomas was shipped to Houston amid quarterback Case Keenum’s struggles.
Adam Bittner: abittner@post-gazette.com and Twitter @fugimaster24.
First Published: January 3, 2019, 7:42 p.m.
