Andre Johnson Moves into 15th Place on All-Time Receiving Yardage List

Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson used a six-catch, 74-yard performance against the Oakland Raiders to move past Irving Fryar for 15th place on the NFL's all-time receiving yardage list, per CSN Houston's James Palmer.

Johnson had an efficient afternoon in the Texans' 30-14 blowout victory, hauling in six of his seven targets from quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. The longest gain came on Johnson's final reception of the day, a 20-yard run-and-catch on a screen pass in the third quarter.

Though he's yet to reach the end zone this season, Johnson is off to a promising start under new head coach Bill O'Brien, having accounted for 12 of the team's 28 receptions through two games. The lack of team-wide volume is due to the fact that Fitzpatrick has attempted just 41 passes, the fewest for any NFL quarterback that has started and played through both of his team's games.

Now 15th on the all-time receiving yardage list with 12,828, Johnson figures to climb much higher by the end of the season. Things are bunched pretty close, with the exception of all-time leader Jerry Rice, whose 22,895 career receiving yards are far beyond the 15,934 of second-place Terrell Owens.

Johnson will likely pass Steve Largent (13,089) and Andre Reed (13,189) by midseason, and the 33-year-old Texan also figures to eclipse 12th-place Torry Holt (13,382) by the end of the year.

Heading into Monday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Reggie Wayne of the Indianapolis Colts sits in 11th place with 13,664 yards.

While Johnson is unlikely to pass Wayne this year, 10th-place Henry Ellard (13,777) and ninth-place Cris Carter (13,899) are well within reach. If Johnson really has a big season, he could even pass eighth-place James Lofton (14,004).

With both Wayne and Johnson appearing to have a few good years of football left, the two could eventually settle into second and third places on the all-time list. The 35-year-old Wayne needs just 2,271 more receiving yards to pass second-place Owens, while Johnson needs 3,107.


(bleacherreport.com)