Top Ten NFL Receiving Corps in History, Are You Kidding Me?

Memorial Day morning I awoke to put my television on NFL Network. The current program was "The Top Ten Receiving Corps in NFL History". Having seen several other such countdown or ranking shows, I thought here is one I haven't seen and since I cannot stomach the "sugarcoated we will teach you everything about life" morning shows on the major networks, I will view this and of course develop my own opinion.

I picked the show up at number 2, better late than never. Before advancing to their number 1 receiving corp of all time, the others were reviewed from number 10 down to number 2. As I watched, I tried to determine who would be their number 1 and who was my number 1. Groups such as the Chargers of Joiner, Jefferson, and Winslow; the Steelers with Swann and Stallworth; the 49ers with Rice and Taylor; and even the current Patriots with Moss and Welker came to my mind as possible candidates for the list. Back to the show, #10 was the Colts with Harrison and Wayne; between #9 and #3, but not in order, were groups that include the 70's Raiders of Biletnikoff, Branch, and Casper; the Marks brothers of the Dolphins with Marino - Duper and Clayton; and the Vikings of the 90's with Moss, Carter, and Reed. #3 was the 49ers of the 80's with Rice, Taylor, Jones, and Craig. #2 was the Rams "Greatest Show on Turf" with Bruce, Holt, and Faulk. #1 was the Chargers of the 80's with Jefferson, Joiner, and Winslow.

Amazingly at first I didn't have any problems with the list. All of those mentioned are reasonable, I may have them order slightly different, but they are reasonable. Then all of a sudden it hit me like a John Elway bullet pass in the side of the head. WHERE ARE SWANN AND STALLWORTH? I HATED THE STEELERS OF THE 70'S AND PRETTY MUCH STILL HATE THEM TODAY, BUT, WHERE ARE SWANN AND STALLWORTH? I TELL YOU WHERE THEY ARE, A LITTLE TOWN CALLED CANTON AT A BUILDING YOU MAY HAVE HEARD OF KNOWN AS THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME - BOTH OF THEM ARE THERE!

Swann and Stallworth were not on the list. How? They helped there teams win 4 Super Bowls. They were key components in those Super Bowl teams making big plays when games were on the line. And they aren't good enough to be in the Top 10? Whichever of the so called "experts" left them off this list should have their so called "expert" card revoked and shredded and be forced to write about food for a year.

Sure, some of the groups listed are in the conversation and can be argued to be better than Swann and Stallworth but some aren't even close. I don't even want to hear that other groups had better tight ends or running backs as receivers. Swann and Stallworth were good enough on their own to out play some of these groups with their tight ends and running backs. Especially Duper and Clayton of the Dolphins. If Marino had Swann and Stallworth he would have thrown for 6,000 yards in '84 instead of the still standing NFL record of 5,024 (+ or - a few). The Rams with the "Greatest Show on Turf" were great but for a short period. Swann and Stallworth were more successful, had several more productive years together, were more durable, and in my opinion based on the "eye ball test" of watching were flat out just better. The Vikings of Moss, Carter, and Reed, again great but for a short period and not nearly as successful as Swann and Stallworth. Even as great as the Chargers with Jefferson, Joiner, and Winslow were, the argument can be made that they were not nearly as successful as Swann and Stallworth. Swann and Stallworth got 4 rings. The last two groups mentioned got 0 rings in their entire careers combined.

You can make an argument for a lot of receiving corps as to which was the best in NFL history. The criteria for such ranking can vary with each person. However, please don't embarrass yourself by leaving out a group that includes two primary receivers who are both Hall of Famers with 4 Super Bowl rings each. In fact, show that you have at least a little knowledge about the NFL by making sure they are in your Top 5 of all time.

You have to be kidding me, Swann and Stallworth did not make the NFL Network's Top 10 receiving corps in NFL history? What's next? Elvis couldn't really sing, he was just a flash in the pan driven by media hype?