Source – Pro Football Reference (Stathead queries) [Pro Football Stats, History, Scores, Standings, Playoffs, Schedule & Records | Pro-Football-Reference.com](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/)
Notable takeaways:
– 50% of the leaders in 1930 were named either “Bill” or “Eggs”
– Jerry Rice was the leader in two decades!
– Don Hutson also lead all pass catchers for two consecutive decades. And the gap between him and everyone also was wide. He was the original GOAT.
– Currently Justin Jefferson has the highest per game average for any decade, which is a reflection of 1) how fking good he is 2) passing friendly era, 3) only four years into the decade so TBD how that changes over time.
How is Steve Smith not in the 2000s for receiving yards per game.
Lance alworth killing it in the 60s
I don’t even watch the NFL but this is such a beautiful chart to look at, and you made this with Excel?
I loved watching Anquan Boldin when he was playing, but I would’ve assumed he had fewer yards per game than Larry Fitzgerald – turns out he was even better than I thought! I wonder if that’s just because Fitzgerald stuck around for much longer, so we got to watch him slow down a bit.
What caused the decline of yards in the 70ies?
Occasionally, the debate of who the greatest wide receiver of all time is. The conversation generally starts with, “besides Jerry Rice” because there is basically no argument that he’s not the greatest. You can also easily make the case that he is the greatest football player of all time, because he is.
A few fun stats:
– He led the league in receptions 6 times, including in 1986 and 1995. Touchdowns, too.
– Record holder in all-purpose yards despite playing only WR. The next sole WR on the list is Larry Fitzgerald, at #15.
– Top 50 in points scored. All other players in the top 50 are kickers.
– Scored 22 touchdowns in a shortened 12 game season in 1987. NFL record until Moss broke it in 2007 in a full season.
– Take the combined career stats of Randy Moss and Terrell Owens. Their combined numbers are comparable to Jerry Rice’s in yards, TDs, Pro Bowls, etc.
And he did all of this in the 80s-90s when teams really weren’t throwing the ball all that much and defenses could basically annihilate QBs and receivers.
TY Hilton being a leader is the biggest recent surprise takeaway to me. Must be he just had a injury free 10-year stretch that covered the Spectrum well.
Other than that, seems like I should know who Jimmy Smith is but don’t recall that name at all. Is it just too generic?
Incredible how far ahead of his time Jerry Rice was.
Despite losing a yard of his performance in the 80ies, he still lead the 90ies.
![[OC] NFL top ten in receiving yards per game in each decade (American football)](https://www.europesays.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/k8ke968ks4fe1-853x1024.jpeg)
9 comments
Chart – Excel
Source – Pro Football Reference (Stathead queries) [Pro Football Stats, History, Scores, Standings, Playoffs, Schedule & Records | Pro-Football-Reference.com](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/)
Notable takeaways:
– 50% of the leaders in 1930 were named either “Bill” or “Eggs”
– Jerry Rice was the leader in two decades!
– Don Hutson also lead all pass catchers for two consecutive decades. And the gap between him and everyone also was wide. He was the original GOAT.
– Currently Justin Jefferson has the highest per game average for any decade, which is a reflection of 1) how fking good he is 2) passing friendly era, 3) only four years into the decade so TBD how that changes over time.
How is Steve Smith not in the 2000s for receiving yards per game.
Lance alworth killing it in the 60s
I don’t even watch the NFL but this is such a beautiful chart to look at, and you made this with Excel?
I loved watching Anquan Boldin when he was playing, but I would’ve assumed he had fewer yards per game than Larry Fitzgerald – turns out he was even better than I thought! I wonder if that’s just because Fitzgerald stuck around for much longer, so we got to watch him slow down a bit.
What caused the decline of yards in the 70ies?
Occasionally, the debate of who the greatest wide receiver of all time is. The conversation generally starts with, “besides Jerry Rice” because there is basically no argument that he’s not the greatest. You can also easily make the case that he is the greatest football player of all time, because he is.
A few fun stats:
– He led the league in receptions 6 times, including in 1986 and 1995. Touchdowns, too.
– Record holder in all-purpose yards despite playing only WR. The next sole WR on the list is Larry Fitzgerald, at #15.
– Top 50 in points scored. All other players in the top 50 are kickers.
– Scored 22 touchdowns in a shortened 12 game season in 1987. NFL record until Moss broke it in 2007 in a full season.
– Take the combined career stats of Randy Moss and Terrell Owens. Their combined numbers are comparable to Jerry Rice’s in yards, TDs, Pro Bowls, etc.
And he did all of this in the 80s-90s when teams really weren’t throwing the ball all that much and defenses could basically annihilate QBs and receivers.
TY Hilton being a leader is the biggest recent surprise takeaway to me. Must be he just had a injury free 10-year stretch that covered the Spectrum well.
Other than that, seems like I should know who Jimmy Smith is but don’t recall that name at all. Is it just too generic?
Incredible how far ahead of his time Jerry Rice was.
Despite losing a yard of his performance in the 80ies, he still lead the 90ies.
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