The greatest single-game receiving performances in NFL playoff history

Finishing his fourth NFL season, Berry became a central figure in "The Greatest Game Ever Played." Helping Johnny Unitas to a historic performance, Berry tallied 178 yards. These came on 12 receptions and included a second-quarter touchdown, pushing the Colts' lead to 14-3 at halftime. After two Giants TDs put the Colts in two-minute mode late in the fourth quarter, Berry came through with three chunk plays on Baltimore's final drive. This included a sideline pattern to move the Colts inside the Giants' 20-yard line with 7 seconds left. Berry also caught two passes on Baltimore's game-winning overtime march in a 23-17 win.

The Chiefs-Raiders rivalry peaked in the 1960s, and the Raiders struck first in the sides' two AFL playoff encounters. Biletnikoff was a large part of this; he ripped up Kansas City's Hall of Famer-laden defense for 190 yards on seven receptions. The Canton-bound receiver turned three of those into touchdowns in a 41-6 Raider mauling in Oakland. Biletnikoff broke loose for 24-, 44- and 54-yard TD grabs from Daryle Lamonica -- all of which occurred before halftime, giving the Raiders a 28-6 lead by that point. The defending AFL champs lost this matchup a year later, giving the Chiefs Super Bowl IV access.

Davis' signature game also included 180 yards and two touchdowns. The former first-round tight end reached those numbers on just seven catches, completing perhaps the greatest TE duel in NFL history with emerging Saints phenom Jimmy Graham. The Saints' unearthed basketball convert countered Graham with 103 yards and two scores, the second of which a 66-yarder to give the Saints a three-point lead inside of two minutes. A Davis 47-yard catch-and-run steered the 49ers to the red zone, and his 14-yard game-winner came with 10 seconds left. This game proved the 49ers right for their 2005 first-round move, one that had skidded off track previously.

Highlighting the most prolific six-year stretch in wide receiver history, Jones scorched the Packers for 180 yards and two touchdowns to power the Falcons to Super Bowl LI. Back after a turf toe bout, Jones caught nine passes in the Falcons' 44-21 rout. A 73-yard catch-and-run, shedding two Packer tacklers, despite a defensive holding infraction on the route, is Jones' most memorable sequence from this game. That score, which came after a first-half TD, increased Atlanta's lead to 31-0. Jones, though, made a stupendous catch in double coverage after that second touchdown. The 23-yard gain set up the Falcons' final TD. 

Hours after Jones' performance, Hogan matched it -- right down to the reception and TD count. Hogan's 9/180/2 showing against the Steelers was obviously out of character, as his resume certainly did not approach Jones'. But the Patriots counted on the ex-lacrosse player, who scored two first-half touchdowns that night in Foxborough. Hogan created considerable separation on both TDs, the second on a 34-yard flea-flicker to push the Pats' lead to 17-6 in the 36-17 blowout. This was a borderline out-of-body experience for Hogan, who surpassed 100 receiving yards just twice in 105 regular-season games.

Nacua punctuated one of the great rookie wide receiver seasons in NFL history by shredding the Lions for 181 yards (on nine catches) in a one-point Rams loss. Viewed as a Rams reset after years of all-in moves, the 2023 season involved a heavy dose of Nacua, whose 1.486 yards set the NFL rookie record. Nacua caught nine passes in Matthew Stafford's Detroit return, scoring on a 50-yarder in the second quarter. Proving a handful to bring down, Nacua showcased another Rams late-round hit, as the fifth-rounder was a force to close his debut year. Excessive contact preventing a 10th Nacua catch may have prevented a Rams game-winning field goal.

While Jones had ascended to WR1 status by 2016, he was still a Roddy White/Tony Gonzalez pupil in 2012 -- his second season. Jones still burned the 49ers for 182 yards on 13 receptions. Two of those went for first-half touchdowns. Jones broke wide open on a 46-yard first-quarter score and snagged a 20-yard TD despite tight Tarell Brown coverage. Jones' second score gave the Falcons a 17-0 halftime lead, but a Colin Kaepernick-led comeback sent the NFC's No. 1 seed home. Jones still made an impact, setting up what became one of the great primes for any skill-position player in NFL history.

Creating more distance between himself and whoever you consider the second-best wide receiver in NFL history, Rice outmaneuvered the Jets for 183 yards to open the Raiders' 2001 playoff docket. This game came weeks before Rice's 40th birthday, and it marked his second-most receiving yards in a playoff game. Coming 13 years after his top postseason showing, this game featured (as Stuart Scott narrates ) a Rice double-move touchdown past cornerback-turned-head coach Aaron Glenn. Rice also took a Rich Gannon slant 47 yards to set up a Zack Crockett third-quarter TD, punctuating a 1,139-yard comeback year to help Oakland to a 38-24 win.

Probably a top-five wide receiver season in NFL history included a 183-yard outing in Tampa. En route to the second-most receiving yards in a single playoffs (behind Larry Fitzgerald's 2008), Kupp helped the Rams both build a 24-point lead and later, after some spooky developments in this 2-3 matchup, stave off a Buccaneers comeback. Kupp moved the Rams' lead to 17-3 with a 70-yard second-quarter touchdown; the lead ballooned to 27-3. Twenty-four Bucs points later, the Rams were pointed at a historic collapse. But two Matthew Stafford-to-Kupp finds, including a precise 44-yard lob to motor the team into field goal range, kept their Super Bowl LVI-winning season alive.

Possessing elite speed in any era, Branch's afterburners played well for a deep ball-obsessed Raiders team. The Raiders could not derail the Steelers in the sides' first AFC championship matchup, but Branch lit up the Steel Curtain for 186 yards and a touchdown on nine receptions. Branch scored on a 38-yard Ken Stabler pass; the speedster created considerable separation even in tighter quarters. That third-quarter score gave Oakland a 10-3 lead, but Pittsburgh rallied back for a 24-13 win. Branch posted nearly 100 more receiving yards than Terry Bradshaw had (95) through the air, as the Steelers run game paved the way to Super Bowl IX.

A year after setting the NFL's single-season points record, the Vikings saw their 1999 offense outdone by the Rams' "Greatest Show on Turf" attack. Moss did produce 188 yards in this loss, but nearly half came after St. Louis had turned the game into a rout. Jeff George did hit Moss on 44- and 2-yard touchdown plays, but the TDs each came in the fourth quarter -- after the Rams opened up a 42-17 lead. This Moss outing is better remembered for the superstar wideout squirting water at a referee after being miffed at a pass interference no-call. 

The only 1,000-yard season of Biletnikoff's Hall of Fame career came in 1968, and he tacked on 370 more in a two-game postseason. He sliced up the Jets for 190 in a 27-23 loss. This came on a windswept Shea Stadium afternoon. The Raider great bested Jets cornerback Johnny Sample, shaking off a tackle attempt from the cornerback on a 29-yard second-quarter touchdown and then beating him deep on a 57-yard gain. The Jets' ability to stifle the Raiders in the red zone, holding them to one score on five appearances, held off the Biletnikoff-powered charge. Biletnikoff played in six more AFL or AFC title games.

The 49ers had loaded up in free agency's second offseason to stack their roster in an attempt to topple the Cowboys. That effort paid off, as San Francisco denied Dallas' three-peat bid in a 34-24 win. The 49ers went up 21-0 in the first quarter, but the Cowboys battled back under first-year HC Barry Switzer. Irvin's 44-yard grab (pictured) put the Cowboys on the board, and he later tacked on a 10-yard touchdown on a toe-tap catch in the end zone. An Irvin clash with future teammate Deion Sanders, however, is better remembered. A Sanders red zone INT, one Irvin (192 yards) claimed came because of uncalled pass interference, denied Dallas a key second-half scoring chance.

One of the most memorable performances on this list, Sanders parlayed his 193-yard showing into a reception on the White House lawn following Washington's 42-10 romp. Denver's secondary looked overmatched when dealing with Sanders, a 1986 trade addition after a USFL stint. Sanders broke loose on 80- and 50-yard touchdowns in Washington's otherworldly second quarter. The two long-range scores came during a 35-point quarter for the underdogs that night, burying the Broncos after they had started the game with a first-play touchdown en route to a 10-0 lead. 

The 2024 Chargers only relied on one pass catcher, and he did his part in an otherwise dreadful first-round outing for Jim Harbaugh's team. McConkey blitzed the Texans for 197 yards on nine catches. While the slot receiver mostly did his work underneath, a second-half scoring strike elevated this game into this statistical realm. Justin Herbert found a leaping McConkey on an 86-yard touchdown; the second-round rookie outjumped Texans defenders and sprinted the 60-plus yards for a fourth-quarter TD. That score, though, came with the Chargers already down 17 points.

The soft launch for a dominant Rams period decided the National Division at that time. The Bob Waterfield- and Norm Van Brocklin-quarterbacked machine averaged a still-standing record of 38.8 points per game in 1950. Fears did the most to guide the Rams to the NFL title game, catching seven passes for 198 yards and three TDs to edge the Bears. Although Waterfield and Van Brocklin split time that year, the older of the two QBs (Waterfield) found Fears for all three scores -- from 43, 68 and 27 yards out -- in a 24-14 win. This preceded a Rams-Browns classic -- a narrow Cleveland win -- the next week. Fears joined Waterfield and Van Brocklin in Canton. His playoff receiving record stood for 37 years.

Part of the reason for Davis' three-year, $39 million Jaguars deal came more than two years before. Davis scorched the Chiefs for eight receptions, 201 yards, and four touchdowns. Were it not for a historic tactical error by Sean McDermott, Davis' fourth TD grab would have sent the Bills to a home AFC championship game. Stefon Diggs' sidekick scored twice in regulation's final two minutes, the first a 27-yarder on a fourth-and-13. He added a wide-open 19-yarder to give the Bills a three-point lead with 13 seconds left. It remains one of the great clutch displays in wide receiver history, even though Buffalo lost 42-36 in a duel for the ages.

Denver limped into the playoffs after three straight losses, including an embarrassing 7-3 defeat to a Chiefs team that started a since-cut Broncos starter Kyle Orton. The Broncos still managed an AFC West title at 8-8 , but Tebowmania had cooled to the point Brady Quinn replacement rumors surfaced. Thomas bailed out the popular but inaccurate QB, toasting the Steelers for 204 yards on just four catches; this included two 50-plus-yarders before his signature NFL play. Thomas bedeviled a No. 1-ranked Pittsburgh defense, famously breaking in the NFL's new overtime rule by completing a one-play walk-off on an 80-yard sprint against man coverage. 

Playing their first playoff game since 1999, the Lions could not stop the Saints -- still the NFL's single-season yardage kingpins -- in a 45-28 loss. This is the 2011 Saints' second time on this list defensively, however. Johnson did more statistical damage than Vernon Davis, catching 12 passes for 211 yards and two TDs. Megatron had been on the Lions' 0-16 team; to close his fifth season, double-teams were an ineffective deterrent. Johnson's second-quarter score gave the Lions a 14-7 halftime lead. He snagged a 42-yarder in double coverage to set up a Lions third-quarter score, but Detroit ultimately could not make this a true shootout.

If Rice's 23-touchdown performance during the 12-game strike-shortened 1987 season did not signal he had taken the receiver belt, his first of four Super Bowl outings did. The fourth-year 49ers wideout caught 11 passes for 215 yards and a touchdown. Rice did not score the game-winner -- longtime wingman John Taylor did -- and Joe Montana orchestrated the drive of his career. But Rice's dominance earned him MVP honors. An extension just inside the pylon early in the fourth quarter tied the game at 13; that came before his leap into double coverage dazzled the Miami crowd. (John Candy surely enjoyed it.) Rice was responsible for 51 yards on the 49ers' 92-yard game-winning march.

These Panthers relied heavily on their 5-foot-9 receiver cornerstone, who won the receiving triple crown that season. Smith did not let his team down in Chicago, going off during a 12-catch, 218-yard, two-touchdown night. Both Smith's TDs -- from 58 and 39 yards out, respectively -- featured the fifth-year wideout breaking loose from Bears corners. He also set up a Panthers field goal with a 46-yard grab in which he outwrestled Charles Tillman for the ball. A Smith 22-yard reverse also set up Carolina's fourth-quarter touchdown in a 29-21 upset win over the NFL's No. 1 defense. 

After Peyton Manning carved up the Broncos' defense in the 2003 wild-card round, Denver completed a trade heist that secured them 10 seasons of Champ Bailey. That led to years of QBs targeting the other Broncos' corners. No one did this quite like Manning. The future Bronco found Wayne 10 times for 221 yards and two TDs. Denver naturally had Bailey primarily covering Marvin Harrison. This left overmatched rookie Roc Alexander, an undrafted free agent, on Wayne. The future Hall of Fame finalist feasted, scoring on 35- and 43-yard strikes. The Colts, who sat Manning in Denver in Week 17 to allow the team into the playoffs, led 35-3 at halftime.

The Chiefs blew a 28-point lead in this game; the Andrew Luck-to-Hilton combination represented the main reason why. (Well, that and some untimely injuries.) The visitors led 38-10 but could not contain the Colts' second-year receiver, who erupted for 13 receptions, 224 yards, and two TDs. This game signaled a changing of the guard in the Colts' receiving corps, which still featured Reggie Wayne. The second of Hilton's TDs went for 64 yards, with the former second-round pick gliding past two Chiefs defenders. The connection gave the Colts a 45-44 lead in an underrated first-round classic. 

Even for the era, Carter was considered a small wideout. The 168-pound threat was a star everywhere he went -- from Michigan to the USFL to Minnesota. This is a tour de force offering. Carter did not score a touchdown, but he ripped up a No. 1-ranked 49ers defense -- a unit that helped the dynastic squad to 13-2 -- for 227 yards on 10 receptions. The Vikings entered at just 8-7, but they buried the 49ers to the point that Bill Walsh benched Joe Montana. This 63-yard tip drill set up a second-quarter field goal; Carter's 40-yard leaping grab over Tim McKyer: even better. In between, Carter gained 30 yards on a reverse in a 36-24 stunner.

Carter's feat stood as the record for 11 years; a true hidden gem topped it. As Doug Flutie's first Bills QB1 year wrapped, the Bills executed a baton pass of sorts at receiver. Moulds usurped Andre Reed atop their pecking order, with a 240-yard outing in Miami cementing that change. A 1996 first-rounder who did not clear 300 receiving yards until 1998, Moulds caught nine passes. No garbage time is included here, as the Bills lost 24-17 on a Flutie late-game fumble. Moulds scored a 32-yard touchdown, and a strange sequence featuring a strip from behind came after a 65-yard gain. Moulds added five more 20-plus-yard grabs, including a 30-yarder on Buffalo's last-ditch drive.