Moss says he, fellow HOF WR, could unretire and break records

Randy Moss Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Randy Moss says he, Calvin Johnson could unretire and break NFL records

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated Sep 14, 2023 2:16 PM ET

There’s no question that Randy Moss and Calvin Johnson are two of the best receivers to ever lace them up.

Although Moss hasn’t played since 2012 and Johnson since 2015, Moss believes with the way the game is structured today, both could come out of retirement and break the NFL record for single-season receiving yards.

"I really do think that I could probably have 2,000 yards," Moss recently told Bleacher Report. "I really do. I'm not just saying this. I really believe that Megatron (Johnson) could also probably come back and have 2,000. I think any wide receiver that's a deep threat that was productive, with just the way the rules are and 'don't touch me,' I think 2,000 would be very doable."

Moss's comments were inspired a recent commercial he shot for Pepsi in which he and fellow legends Dan Marino, Emmitt Smith and Jerry Rice reflected on how they would fare in today's NFL.

#ad I still got a few plays left in me..... pic.twitter.com/tdjYPGxPTi
— Randy Moss (@RandyMoss) August 31, 2023

Coincidentally, Johnson’s 1,964 yards in 2012 still stand as the single-season best for any receiver. Moss’s best season (1,632 yards) ranks 21st all time.

Of Johnson’s nine seasons, he reached the 1,000-yard plateau in seven of them, including three with 1,450 yards or more. Johnson led the NFL in receiving yards twice, and he averaged nearly 16 yards per reception, which ranks 10th-highest since 2000.

Conversely, Moss reached 1,000 yards 10 times in 16 seasons with four years of at least 1,400 yards or more. The six-time Pro Bowler averaged 17 or more yards per reception in four seasons as well.

Johnson (2012), Cooper Kupp (1,947 yards in 2012), Julio Jones (1,871 yards in 2015), Rice (1,848 yards in 1995), Antonio Brown (1,834 yards in 2015) and Justin Jefferson (1,809 yards in 2022) are the only receivers in NFL history to come within spitting distance of 2,000 yards.

Michael Gallagher

Michael Gallagher is a longtime sports journalist based out of Nashville with a decade of experience covering college football, mixed martial arts and prep sports plus the NFL and NHL — specifically the Tennessee Titans and Nashville Predators. He’s covered several notable sporting events including an AFC Championship game, a Stanley Cup Final, an NHL All-Star Game and an NHL Stadium Series. Some of his past bylines can be found at the Nashville Scene, SB Nation, The Hockey News and Fox Sports Knoxville

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