Mid-Season NFL Best: Receivers & Tight Ends

The Best Receivers Of The Year So Far:

1. Steve Smith, 2. Santanna Moss, 3. Chad Johnson, 4. Torry Holt

1. Once again stats rule. Steve Smith has 903 yards, 55 catches, and 9 TDs (all tops in the league). This little guy has burned some serious cornerback trash this year and anytime you have people talking about you as an MVP at the receiver position; you know your season is going well. Plus he's a former Utah Ute, which is nice.

2. It's like revenge of the speedy little people. Moss, another short receiver has 856 yards on 49 grabs, with 5 TDs. He is also one of only 4 receivers (Smith, Owens, & Holt are the others) who average over 100 yards a game.

3. With the stats T.O. has (47 catches, 763 yards, 109 yards per game, & 6 TDs) , he should be in this spot. But anytime you sabotage your own season, career, and quarterback in less than half a season; you can't call that a good year. Instead I'll replace one loudmouth with another one. Chad Johnson has 53 catches and 808 yards with 5 TDs. He won't shut up but at least he trash talks about the other team.

4. Torry Holt. I know this is a biased call but I if you look at his stats, he is having a great year. He has 44 catches for 638 yards, and a 106 yard per game average. And he's missed 2 games! Burress, Glen, Galloway, and Fitzgerald all have a few more yards (Galloway leads by only 93 yards) but Mr. "Big Game" has had a stellar first half. Kevin Curtis has picked up the slack rather nicely while he and Bruce have been out but the Rams need Holt (the best route runner in the league) back.




I still think Marvin Harrison and Randy Moss should be in any discussion of top receivers but statistically they are having down years.



Now since I'm a fan of the air game, my Tight End list is skewed toward those with excellent receiving numbers.

The Best Tight Ends Of The Year So Far:

1. Antonio Gates, 2. Jeremy Shockey, 3. Alge Crumpler, 4. Erron Kinney

1. Gates has 707 yards receiving. That's 7th best in the entire league! He's got 51 catches (4th best) and 6 Touchdowns. He's not a bad blocker either. Hands down the best Tight End in the NFL. You can go ahead and cry now Tony Gonzalez.

2. I'm not a fan, but Shockey has saved Eli's bacon more than a few times. He's got 32 grabs, 530 yards, and 5 TDs.

3. Crumpler might rival Gates if he was on a team that passed the ball well. He's a good blocker and somehow manages to pull Vick's bullet passes down with fingers still attached.

4. Erron Kinney. Amazingly, Tennessee's Kinney has more yards (459) and catches (44) than K.C.'s Gonzalez, Dallas' Whitten, and Baltimore's Heap. I don't know who the hell this guy is or why he spells his name with an E but I'm not surprised he's had a good year. Ever since Norm Chow was at BYU he has tried hard to get the tight end involved in the offense.