Error code: %{errorCode}

Football

Who are the greatest NFL wide receivers of all time?

Philip Marsh
Who are the greatest NFL wide receivers of all time?Getty

There are few greater sights in the NFL than a wide receiver plucking a seemingly uncatchable pass out of the air.

Today's wide receivers are some of the most athletic individuals in any sport, the likes of Justin Jefferson, Ja'Marr Chase and Garrett Wilson could one day find themselves on this sort of list.

Like our list of the greatest quarterbacks and greatest running backs of all time, there are plenty of names which could have been included.

Honourable mentions must go to Larry Fitzgerald, Lance Alworth, Calvin Johnson and Marvin Harrison.

The list is long, but DAZN looks at five of the greatest wide receivers to ever play the sport.

Jerry Rice (1985-2004)

A number of names on this list can be debated, but much like Tom Brady's inclusion in the greatest quarterbacks, there is no-one who can argue that Jerry Rice belongs here.

Rice holds almost every NFL record a wide receiver can hope to hold.

In Rice's 284 games - mainly for the San Francisco 49ers but latterly for the Oakland Raiders and Seattle Seahawks - he totalled 1,549 receptions for 22,895 yards and scored 197 touchdowns.

As well as personal success, Rice is also a three-time Super Bowl winner with the 49ers and was Super Bowl XXIII MVP after his 11 catches for 215 yards and a touchdown in San Francisco's 20-16 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

In 2010, NFL Network voted Rice the greatest player of all time. Brady would give Rice a run for his money now, but in the wide receiver category he is in a tier of his own.

Don Hutson (1935-1945)

When Dot Huson was a professional the sport was very different, not only in the rules but the way the game was played.

Back then it was all about the rushing game, and receivers could only dream of the numbers that today's players put up.

That was true for everyone except Hutson, whose 99 career receiving touchdowns was not surpassed for 40 years after he retired.

The 'Alabama Antelope', and he was nicknamed, was named NFL MVP in 1941 and 1942 and won three NFL Championships with the Green Bay Packers.

When he retired in 1945 he was the only player to have topped 3,500 receiving yards - and he had more than doubled that figure with 7,991.

Terrell Owens (1996-2010)

Terrell Owens was a controversial player, but no one could deny the talent he possessed.

Owens had spells with five different NFL franchises, the San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals.

He remains the only wide receiver to top 800 yards in a season for five different teams, and is the only player to score a touchdown against all 32 NFL franchises.

Throughout his career Owens notched up 15,934 yards and 153 touchdowns, both of which put him in the top three in NFL history.

Antics aside, the six time Pro Bowler is one of the very best to play the position, but unlike the others in this list he had real competition from another player active at the same time.

Randy Moss (1998-2012)

That player was Randy Moss. He may not have totalled as many yards as Owens in his career but at his peak was arguably better.

Other than Rice, Moss is the only wide receiver to top 1,000 receiving yards in 10 different seasons.

It did not take Moss any time to settle into the NFL after being drafted by the Minnesota Vikings, as he scored 17 touchdowns in his rookie season - still an NFL record.

Moss' 23 receiving touchdowns in 2007 also remains an NFL record to this day, and at one stage he looked on course to break some of Rice's records having reached 5,000 career receiving yards in the fewest number of games (59).

The biggest disappointment in Moss' career will be his two Super Bowl defeats, though he did score in Super Bowl XLII which will always be remembered for David Tyree's dramatic helmet catch in one of the best Super Bowls of all time.

Steve Largent (1976-1989)

Steve Largent was drafted by the Houston Oilers in 1976 before being traded to the Seattle Seahawks before the season start - hindsight is wonderful but that may not have been the best bit of business ever.

Largent topped 1,000 receiving yards in eight of his first 11 seasons with the Seahawks, twice leading the league for single season tallies (1979 and 1985).

During his career, Largent was given the nickname 'Yoda' for his ability to seemingly use 'the force' to catch balls which looked impossible to reach.

At the time of his retirement, Largent's 819 catches, 13,089 yards and 100 touchdowns all stood as NFL records.

Largent's numbers are even more impressive when you consider he, unlike Moss and Owens, was playing at a time when the NFL was still better suited to the run game.

DAZN will deliver the NFL Game Pass International service from the 2023 season across the world (except the U.S. and China), find out more here.