Jerry Rice – NFL Past Players

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The G.O.A.T

Of all the players and positions in the NFL, there are countless debates about who’s the best from every era at nearly every position — except perhaps wide receiver. That distinction rarely goes beyond San Francisco pass-catching legend Jerry Rice of Mississippi Valley State.

After setting numerous NCAA receiving records, Rice was selected in the 1st round of the 1985 NFL Draft after the 49ers traded up with the New England Patriots to take him. He finished third on the 49ers in receptions as a rookie — 49 catches for 927 yards, 3 touchdowns, and an impressive 18.9 yards per catch while catching passes from fellow Hall of Famer Joe Montana.

His second year is where expectations became reality. His 86 catches ranked second in the league, while his 1,570 receiving yards and 15 touchdown receptions led the NFL, forming one of the league’s most productive quarterback-receiver combinations with Montana.

In 1987, he set an NFL record with 22 touchdown catches — a mark that stood for two decades. Super Bowl XXIII saw him set a Super Bowl record with 11 catches for 215 yards, earning MVP honors from Montana in one of the defining championship performances of the era.

By 1992, he had surpassed Steve Largent for the most career touchdown receptions. That same season marked the beginning of a seamless transition at quarterback from Montana to fellow Hall of Famer Steve Young — and Rice’s production never declined.

In 1995, he passed James Lofton for the most all-time receiving yards and set a new single-season NFL record with 1,848 receiving yards, a season that came with Young at quarterback and showcased the longevity of his dominance.

Throughout San Francisco’s championship years, Rice was also part of a balanced offensive attack that included Hall of Fame running back Roger Craig, giving the 49ers one of the most complete offensive cores in league history.

In total, Rice set 36 NFL records during his 20-year career.

In 2001, at age 39, Rice was released by the 49ers and signed with the Oakland Raiders. In the three seasons he spent in Oakland, he continued playing at a high level, leading the Raiders in receptions two of those three years.

After six games with Oakland in 2004, he was traded to Seattle, where he started every game for the remainder of the season. He officially retired after the start of the 2005 season following a brief tryout with Denver.

Viewed by many as the greatest professional football player ever, it’s difficult to make a case against him.

Rice played 20 seasons at an elite level, earning 11 All-Pro selections and 13 Pro Bowl selections. He led the league in receptions twice and topped the NFL in receiving yards and touchdown catches six times.

While he benefited from playing alongside Montana, Young, and Craig, his consistency across multiple eras, quarterbacks, and systems ultimately defined his career.

He remains the NFL’s all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, total touchdowns, and all-purpose yards. He is also the league’s highest-scoring non-kicker and holds the record for most consecutive games with a reception (274).

Jerry Rice was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010 — his first year of eligibility — a fitting conclusion to the most decorated career ever by a wide receiver.

Image Gallery of Jerry Rice, Wide Receiver 1985-2004

Jerry Rice gets accolades from fellow 49er Dwight Clark after a touchdown. Rice had 176 Touchdown catches during his career, Clark had 48.

Jerry Rice had played a superb game against the Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII - 11 catches, 215 yards and a touchdown in a 20-16 win.

After winning 2 Super Bowls in the 1980s with Joe Montana, Jerry Rice continued to excel when Steve Young stepped up and together they won a Super Bowl after the 1994 NFL season against the San Diego Chargers.

5 foot 9 inch Darrell Green lines up on 49ers great Jerry Rice.

Jerry Rice Football Cards and Covers

Jerry Rice on his 1991 Upper Deck Card - The 49ers top receiver with 80 catches, 1206 yards and a league-high 14 touchdown catches. Named to his 6th Pro Bowl.

Jerry Rice All-Time Career Statistics

All-Time Career Regular Season Totals
						Receiving					Rushing					Total Scrimmage Yards
Season	Age	Team	#	Games	Starts	Catches	Yards	Y/R	Long	TD	Carries	Yards	Y/A	Long	TD	Touches	Y/Tch	YScm	Total TDS	Fmb
1985	23	SFO	80	16	4	49	927	18.9	66	3	6	26	4.3	15	1	55	17.3	953	4	1
1986*+	24	SFO	80	16	15	86	1570♦	18.3	66	15♦	10	72	7.2	18	1	96	17.1	1642	16	2
1987*+	25	SFO	80	12	12	65	1078	16.6	57	22♦	8	51	6.4	17	1	73	15.5	1129	23♦	2
1988*+	26	SFO♚	80	16	16	64	1306	20.4	96♦	9	13	107	8.2	29	1	77	18.4	1413	10	2
1989*+	27	SFO♚	80	16	16	82	1483♦	18.1	68	17♦	5	33	6.6	17	0	87	17.4	1516	17	0
1990*+	28	SFO	80	16	16	100♦	1502♦	15.0	64	13♦	2	0	0.0	0	0	102	14.7♦	1502	13	1
1991*	29	SFO	80	16	16	80	1206	15.1	73	14♦	1	2	2.0	2	0	81	14.9	1208	14	1
1992*+	30	SFO	80	16	16	84	1201	14.3	80	10	9	58	6.4	26	1	93	13.5	1259	11	2
1993*+	31	SFO	80	16	16	98	1503♦	15.3	80	15♦	3	69	23.0	43	1	101	15.6♦	1572	16♦	3
1994*+	32	SFO♚	80	16	16	112	1499♦	13.4	69	13	7	93	13.3	28	2	119	13.4	1592	15	1
1995*+	33	SFO	80	16	16	122	1848♦	15.1	81	15	5	36	7.2	20	1	127	14.8♦	1884	16	3
1996*+	34	SFO	80	16	16	108♦	1254	11.6	39	8	11	77	7.0	38	1	119	11.2	1331	9	0
1997	35	SFO	80	2	1	7	78	11.1	16	1	1	-10	-10.0	-10	0	8	8.5	68	1	0
1998*	36	SFO	80	16	16	82	1157	14.1	75	9	0	0			0	82	14.1	1157	9	2
1999	37	SFO	80	16	16	67	830	12.4	62	5	2	13	6.5	11	0	69	12.2	843	5	0
2000	38	SFO	80	16	16	75	805	10.7	68	7	1	-2	-2.0	-2	0	76	10.6	803	7	3
2001	39	OAK	80	16	15	83	1139	13.7	40	9	0	0			0	83	13.7	1139	9	1
2002*	40	OAK	80	16	16	92	1211	13.2	75	7	3	20	6.7	12	0	95	13.0	1231	7	1
2003	41	OAK	80	16	15	63	869	13.8	47	2	0	0			0	63	13.8	869	2	2
2004	42	2 Teams		17	14	30	429	14.3	56	3	0	0			0	30	14.3	429	3	0
2004	6 Games	Raiders		6	5	5	67	13.4	18	0	0	0			0	5	13.4	67	0	0
2004	11 Games	Seahawks		11	9	25	362	14.5	56	3	0	0			0	25	14.5	362	3	0
16 Years		49ers		238	224	1281	19247	15.0	96	176	84	625	7.4	43	10	1365	14.6	19872	186	23
3½ Years		Raiders		54	51	243	3286	13.5	75	18	3	20	6.7	12	0	246	13.4	3306	18	4
11 Games		Seahwaks		11	9	25	362	14.5	56	3	0	0			0	25	14.5	362	3	0
20 Years		NFL		303	284	1549♠	22895♠	14.8	96	197♠	87	645	7.4	43	10	1636	14.4	23540♠	207♠	27

All-Time Career Post Season Totals
Season	Age	Team	Games	Catches	Yards	Y/R	Long	TD
1985	23	SFO	1	4	45	11.3	20	0
1986*	24	SFO	1	3	48	16.0	24	0
1987*	25	SFO	1	3	28	9.3	13	0
1988*	26	SFO♚	3	21♦	409♦	19.5	61	6♦
1989*	27	SFO♚	3	19♦	317♦	16.7	72♦	5♦
1990*	28	SFO	2	11	122	11.1	19	1

1992*	30	SFO	2	14	211	15.1	36	1
1993*	31	SFO	2	9	126	14.0	23	0
1994*	32	SFO♚	3	16	233	14.6	44	4♦
1995*	33	SFO	1	11	117	10.6	32	0
1996*	34	SFO	2	9	86	9.6	36	1

1998*	36	SFO	2	4	69	17.3	38	1

2001	39	OAK	2	13	231	17.8	47	1
2002*	40	OAK	3	14	203	14.5	48	2

2004	42	SEA	1	0	0			0
Total		49ers	23	124	1811	14.6	72	19
Total		Raiders	5	27	434	16.1	48	3
Total		Seahawks	0	0	0	0	0	0
Total		NFL	29	151	2245♠	14.9	22♠	72