Steve Smith
Posted by Chase Stuart on June 23, 2009
Everyone knows Steve Smith is the man, but I'm not sure if people know exactly how awesome he really is. His best season was in 2005, and it was one of the greatest seasons any WR has ever had. Not only did he lead the NFL in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, he capped off that monster season with 335 receiving yards, 38 rushing yards and five total touchdowns (including a punt return) in three playoff games.
Since then, he's averaged 1196 receiving yards and 7 receiving TDs each of the past three seasons. Good numbers, to be sure, but numbers that would indicate that Smith has not been as dominant as he was back in '05. And that's the point of this post. Because upon further review, Smith hasn't declined at all.
His numbers are misleading because both Smith and Jake Delhomme have been in and out of the lineup, something that didn't happen in '05. In 2006, Smith missed two games with injury and Delhomme missed three himself. In 2007, Delhomme missed all but the first three games of the year. And last season, Smith was suspended for the first two games of the season.
But in the 28 games that Delhomme and Smith have played in since 2005, Smith has averaged 98 receiving yards per game, the same number he averaged in that magical '05 season. Despite the great performances by Andre Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson and Anquan Boldin last year, it was Smith who led the league in receiving yards per game, and only Andre Johnson was within 10 yards of Smith's 101.5 per game average. (Even with the two missed games, because of his huge numbers on a run-first team, I ranked him as the best wide receiver last year.) A look at Smith's raw numbers from '06 to '08 would make you think his '05 performance was a fluke; but once you factor out the games where either Smith or Delhomme weren't in the lineup, you see how Smith has been absolutely dominant for a four year stretch.
How dominant, you ask? Only three duos have ever averaged more receiving yards per game over a four year stretch than Steve Smith and Jake Delhomme. Five of the six players in those pairs are in Canton or will be there five years after they hang up their cleats.
The table below shows the top 50 WR-QB pairs over every four year stretch from 1960-1963 to 2005-2008. (Note: I'm working with partial data for '08, so it's conceivable that I missed a '05-'08 stretch.) Only WRs and QBs who played at least one game together in four consecutive years and at least 20 games total were considered. The list is sorted by the receiver's yards per game average with the particular QB, but also listed is the WR's yards per game average when that QB was out of the lineup, along with the number of games in which that situation occurred.
WR QB years #gm w/YPG w/oYPG #g Lance Alworth John Hadl 1964-1967 46 103.7 114.8 4 Don Maynard Joe Namath 1967-1970 38 102.3 44.0 7 Lance Alworth John Hadl 1965-1968 51 101.1 149.0 1 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 1999-2002 64 98.8 n/a 0 Steve Smith Jake Delhomme 2005-2008 44 97.9 56.3 15 Charley Hennigan George Blanda 1961-1964 47 96.3 139.0 5 Jerry Rice Steve Young 1993-1996 55 95.1 96.9 9 Steve Smith Jake Delhomme 2004-2007 31 95.1 56.3 15 Jerry Rice Joe Montana 1987-1990 50 94.7 63.5 10 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 2000-2003 63 94.1 n/a 0 Torry Holt Kurt Warner 2000-2003 34 93.9 93.4 30 Jerry Rice Joe Montana 1986-1989 43 93.6 83.1 17 Don Maynard Joe Namath 1965-1968 49 93.5 41.4 5 Jerry Rice Steve Young 1992-1995 59 93.2 110.0 5 Torry Holt Marc Bulger 2002-2005 44 92.9 89.7 18 Jerry Rice Steve Young 1994-1997 41 92.9 96.9 9 Don Maynard Joe Namath 1968-1971 28 92.6 35.9 16 Herman Moore Scott Mitchell 1995-1998 48 90.8 60.1 15 Michael Irvin Troy Aikman 1993-1996 54 90.4 51.2 5 Don Maynard Joe Namath 1966-1969 50 90.2 n/a 0 Terrell Owens Jeff Garcia 2000-2003 56 90.1 73.7 3 Lance Alworth John Hadl 1966-1969 47 90.0 95.2 5 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 1998-2001 60 89.6 n/a 0 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 2001-2004 63 89.4 n/a 0 Herman Moore Scott Mitchell 1994-1997 55 89.2 60.4 9 Torry Holt Marc Bulger 2003-2006 53 88.9 97.3 9 Larry Fitzgerald Kurt Warner 2005-2008 41 88.7 82.0 19 Michael Irvin Troy Aikman 1992-1995 60 88.7 62.3 4 Randy Moss Daunte Culpepper 2000-2003 57 88.4 86.9 7 Chad Johnson Carson Palmer 2004-2007 61 88.4 41.0 3 Stanley Morgan Tony Eason 1986-1989 21 87.8 48.4 27 Jimmy Smith Mark Brunell 1998-2001 57 87.5 83.6 5 Carlos Carson Bill Kenney 1984-1987 27 87.4 50.0 22 Terrell Owens Jeff Garcia 1999-2002 52 87.2 63.5 6 Henry Ellard Jim Everett 1987-1990 56 86.9 24.0 1 Steve Smith Jake Delhomme 2003-2006 43 86.8 41.8 4 Jerry Rice Steve Young 1991-1994 58 86.1 69.2 6 Charley Hennigan George Blanda 1960-1963 42 85.8 132.7 6 Michael Irvin Troy Aikman 1994-1997 56 85.7 62.7 3 Anquan Boldin Kurt Warner 2005-2008 34 85.4 79.6 20 Jimmy Smith Mark Brunell 1997-2000 56 85.4 95.5 6 Michael Irvin Troy Aikman 1995-1998 52 84.9 64.2 6 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 2002-2005 62 84.7 n/a 0 Jerry Rice Steve Young 1995-1998 40 84.5 95.9 10 Jimmy Smith Mark Brunell 1999-2002 59 84.4 89.3 3 Mark Duper Dan Marino 1983-1986 48 84.4 55.8 4 Michael Irvin Troy Aikman 1991-1994 56 84.3 96.0 8 James Lofton Lynn Dickey 1982-1985 49 84.3 54.1 7 Henry Ellard Jim Everett 1988-1991 61 84.3 n/a 0 James Lofton Lynn Dickey 1981-1984 52 84.2 68.3 4 Chad Johnson Carson Palmer 2005-2008 52 84.1 45.4 9
We can also look at the top QB-WR combo for each four year period, under the same rules. No AFL modifier was used, and the AFL and NFL teams were combined for the purpose of this study. Players in the HOF have an asterisk next to their names.
4yr period #gp YPG WR QB 2005-2008 44 97.9 Steve Smith Jake Delhomme 2004-2007 31 95.1 Steve Smith Jake Delhomme 2003-2006 53 88.9 Torry Holt Marc Bulger 2002-2005 44 92.9 Torry Holt Marc Bulger 2001-2004 63 89.4 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 2000-2003 63 94.1 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 1999-2002 64 98.8 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 1998-2001 60 89.6 Marvin Harrison Peyton Manning 1997-2000 56 85.4 Jimmy Smith Mark Brunell 1996-1999 56 83.5 Antonio Freeman Brett Favre 1995-1998 48 90.8 Herman Moore Scott Mitchell 1994-1997 41 92.9 Jerry Rice Steve Young* 1993-1996 55 95.1 Jerry Rice Steve Young* 1992-1995 59 93.2 Jerry Rice Steve Young* 1991-1994 58 86.1 Jerry Rice Steve Young* 1990-1993 43 82.3 Jerry Rice Steve Young* 1989-1992 35 80.9 Sterling Sharpe Don Majkowski 1988-1991 61 84.3 Henry Ellard Jim Everett 1987-1990 50 94.7 Jerry Rice Joe Montana* 1986-1989 43 93.6 Jerry Rice Joe Montana* 1985-1988 27 81.3 Stanley Morgan Tony Eason 1984-1987 27 87.4 Carlos Carson Bill Kenney 1983-1986 48 84.4 Mark Duper Dan Marino* 1982-1985 49 84.3 James Lofton* Lynn Dickey 1981-1984 52 84.2 James Lofton* Lynn Dickey 1980-1983 54 79.1 James Lofton* Lynn Dickey 1979-1982 41 77.2 James Lofton* Lynn Dickey 1978-1981 60 72.9 Steve Largent* Jim Zorn 1977-1980 56 70.9 Steve Largent* Jim Zorn 1976-1979 23 70.3 Roger Carr Bert Jones 1975-1978 30 65.9 Roger Carr Bert Jones 1974-1977 47 74.7 Cliff Branch Ken Stabler 1973-1976 45 71.8 Cliff Branch Ken Stabler 1972-1975 35 62.6 Cliff Branch Ken Stabler 1971-1974 36 61.8 Otis Taylor Len Dawson* 1970-1973 38 68.0 Gene A. Washington John Brodie 1969-1972 42 68.1 Gene A. Washington John Brodie 1968-1971 28 92.6 Don Maynard* Joe Namath* 1967-1970 38 102.3 Don Maynard* Joe Namath* 1966-1969 50 90.2 Don Maynard* Joe Namath* 1965-1968 51 101.1 Lance Alworth* John Hadl 1964-1967 46 103.7 Lance Alworth* John Hadl 1963-1966 36 80.7 Art Powell Tom Flores 1962-1965 46 81.9 Charley Hennigan George Blanda* 1961-1964 47 96.3 Charley Hennigan George Blanda* 1960-1963 42 85.8 Charley Hennigan George Blanda*
I'll leave the comments on that list up to you guys. One last note: if you want to change the cut-off from 20 games to 30 games, you'd get the following leaders: Gary Garrison-John Hadl in '68-'71 (45 games, 75.9 yards per game), Steve Largent-Jim Zorn in '76-'79 (54, 66.9), Mark Duper-Dan Marino in '84-'87 (49, 78.9) and Jerry Rice-Joe Montana in '85-'88 (44, 81.1).
And finally, Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson have only started 16 games together, as either Schaub or Johnson has been out of the lineup in half of the Texans' games since the trade with the Falcons. In those 16 games, Johnson has 1667 yards.
June 23rd, 2009 at 8:07 am
What do the asterisks represent in that last table of data?
June 23rd, 2009 at 8:47 am
Jacob,
Usually an asterisk means the player is active or in the HOF. I didn't say what it was, but in this case I meant the player was in the HOF. I've since updated the post.
June 23rd, 2009 at 10:00 am
I think that Steve Smith is going to be even better with Plaxico Burress no longer on the team. (sorry)
June 23rd, 2009 at 10:38 am
I'm unclear - what is the second list?
Also why would changing the cutoff from 20 games to 30 games ADD combos to the list?
June 23rd, 2009 at 11:21 am
Richie,
Sorry for being unclear. The second year is the (four) year-by-year leaders. It provides a nice look at the top QB/WR combos over every period in the last 50 years.
(Changing the cut-off from 20 games to 30 games would remove Maynard/Namath in '68-'71, since they didn't have enough games; arguably 30 games is a better cut-off than 20, which is why I chose to also show the leaders if we required a minimum of 30 games by the QB-WR pair.)
June 23rd, 2009 at 12:03 pm
OK, now I get it. So that 30 game criteria pertains to the yearly leaders list. Cool.
June 23rd, 2009 at 12:16 pm
Ahhh, the glory that is Namath to Maynard...always appreciate anything that gives even a glimpse into how great the duo really was.
Scott Mitchell-Herman Moore! Wow, didn't see that coming. I knew Moore was great in his prime, but who knew Detroit had a multi-year run where a QB wasn't terrible. Not to mention Bill Kenney and Carlos Carson...not exactly household NFL names.
Why don't I ever hear Art Powell's name mentioned for the Hall of Fame? Are his numbers THAT much better than what he actually was?
And since you brought up receivers, I've been meaning to ask: what happened to the Rush/Rec TDs in the playoff gamelogs? They've all been gone for what seems like months.
June 23rd, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Rock,
As a biased Jets fan, I've always thought Namath and Maynard were under-appreciated.
As far as Powell goes -- another Jet -- I wrote about him here.
Those numbers were pulled out of you know where, so I'll wait until JKL gets done with his series and can give me a much more precise weighting system. That said, if you ignore the fact that he was in the AFL (which I think is inappropriate), I would say he absolutely should be in the HOF.
With the AFL adjustment, he drops from top ten to #39 on my all time WR list. He also played on some incredibly pass happy teams, which inflates his raw numbers (since WRs on pass happy teams are downgraded in my system, that's why he comes in at #39).
June 23rd, 2009 at 2:07 pm
Is it fair to say that if you continue to stretch the number of games it leaves only two names on the list for years to come. Dan Marino and Mark Duper? They were together for ten straight years and very productive. Who else can say that?
June 23rd, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Nick,
Harrison/Manning and Reed/Kelly come to mind. Aikman/Irvin also played together for a long time, as did Brunell/Smith.
June 24th, 2009 at 5:47 am
Anyone come to mind in comparison when you add a 3rd guy like Mark Clayton. Is there a threesome that spent 6-10 years together and were as productive as Marino/Duper/Clayton?
June 24th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
Nick, I originally thought your post said a trio of receivers rather than a QB/WR/WR trio. I already had the rest typed out and was about to submit before I noticed Marino's name. But just bear with me. It's still somewhat on topic.
This sort of reminds me of something I started working on a year ago and never finished. I was trying to find which team has come closest to having four 1000 yard receivers in the same season. My methods were simple. Get the 4 leading receivers in yards for each team in a season. Find out what percentage each of them had of 1000 yards and weigh each equally by .25.
The closest team I found was the 1990 Oilers (.941%). They had Haywood Jeffires (1048), Drew Hill (1019), Ernest Givins (979), and Curtis Duncan (785). 21 more yards for Givins and 215 for Duncan and they would have had it. The 91 Oilers (same 4 guys) were my 2nd highest team, with a .896%.
For a successful trio, I'd imagine Wes Chandler, Kellen Winslow and Charlie Joiner would rank pretty high for their performance on the 80's Chargers.
June 24th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
Interesting info you found on the Oilers. Thats the stuff I like to find.
NFL Network did a top 10 list of receiving corps... (someone posted this elsewhere)
10. 2000's Colts
9. Late 90's Vikings
8. 80's/early 90's Redskins
7. Dolphins' Mark Brothers and Nat Moore
6. 70's Raiders
5. 60's Redskins
4. 80's 49ers
3. 50's Rams
2. Greatest Show on Turf (Rams 1999-2001)
1. San Diego Chargers "Air Coryell"
June 25th, 2009 at 4:15 am
The 2002 raiders were pretty spectacular. I guess they didn't have a long successful stretch, but...
Rice (1211 yd), Brown (930), Jerry Porter (688), and Garner (941). For your foursome, thats 0.89
One of the Warner era Rams had 4670 total yards among four players-- as far as I know, that's the most ever.
I loved watching the Oilers back then. I remember thinking Jeffires was going to be a big star, but alas, he faded away.
June 25th, 2009 at 5:20 am
A bit off subject here: I have no idea who comes up with the NFL Network's Top 10 lists but leaving out the '90/'91 Oilers for receiving corps isn't a surprise for me. There seems to be NO rhyme, reason, or rationale for the NFLN Top 10 selections. Last week they put the Purple People Eaters as the #10 rated defense of all-time and the '77 Falcons came in at #5! Doomsday was #9 and Miami's no-name defense didn't even make the list! I was shocked, but then I don't expect much from this shlocky production with radio DJs providing "expert?" commentary. Sorry to vent here but the NFLN should consult with this site rather than the cigar smoking crowd.
June 25th, 2009 at 7:14 am
Mattie, 02 Raiders are my 5th highest team and the 2000 Rams are 4th. Their 4670 yards are a record. Very surprising are the 81 Vikings coming in 3rd at 0.895 with Joe Senser, Sammy White, Ahmad Rashad and Ted Brown. Rounding out my top 10 are the 04 Colts, 99 Rams, 89 Redskins, 08 Cardinals and 85 Chargers.
(Note: 92 Oilers come in 15th)
June 25th, 2009 at 7:31 am
How about TE/QB pairing? Winslow v1.0/Fouts, Sharpe/Elway, Gonzalez/Green spring to mind, but that's just my AFC West bias. Mackey/Unitas from my youth. Any other HoF TE/his QB.
July 8th, 2009 at 10:40 am
Marino/Duper/Clayton played as starters for I believe 10 straight years together. That has to be a record. Is there a close second?
July 12th, 2009 at 12:15 pm
Nick, I looked into that.
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Since 1960, which I'd consider to be roughly the beginning of the era in which "wide receivers" have existed, I looked at all teams' starting WRs and QB. "Starting" is a little bit of a slippery term to define, but I am calling a guy a starter if he is listed as the team's main starter at this site. Those determinations should match those in the ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia.
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Given that, Marino/Duper/Clayton had 9 years together as a trio, which is the most.
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Manning/Harrison/Wayne had 7 or even 8 if you count Harrison's injury-shortened 2007, but it looks like that's over now.
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The following trios had 6:
Kosar/Langhorne/Slaughter
Brunell/Smith/McCardell
Fouts/Chandler/Joiner
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I count 14 more trios --- from Starr/McGee/Dowler to Bulger/Bruce/Holt with 5 years together.
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Assuming Harrison is indeed finished as a Colt, the record is safe for at least 8 more years, as I don't see an active trio with more than two years together. Eli/Burress/Toomer had four, but that's over now.
July 17th, 2009 at 6:29 am
Doug thanks for that info. It really sheds light on the fact that Marino,Duper and Clayton were special togther. I double checked and it is ten seasons together (82-93). For ten years they were the Dolphins offense. Manning, Harrison and Wayne were a pretty good second.