I'll admit, I shook my head when I heard that Mike Wallace predict this offseason that he would have a 2,000 yard receiving season in 2011. I don't need to explain why. Really I was just a bit surprised that Wallace of all people would make that type of bold prediction. I'm sure the young man is not lacking in self-confidence. But that's one helluva bold prediction for anybody to make, even the great Jerry Rice in his absolute prime. Rice's career year remarkably came in 1995 when he was 33 years old. He had 1,848 receiving yards that year. His second best season in terms of receiving yards was in his second professional season in 1986 when he tallied 1,570 yards.
So, needless to say, Wallace's prediction of 2,000 was hard to take seriously. Yet, here we are nearly at the quarter pole and the dude is actually on pace to do it. Of course, with the gobs of passing yardage being accumulated by Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Cam Newton, it's not surprising that Wallace is not alone in his outstanding start to the year. Wes Welker actually has a leg up through three games (457 yards), while Steve Smith of Carolina trails Wallace by fewer than 30 yards (349).
Game |
Receptions |
Yards |
Yards/Catch |
TDs |
Week 1 @ BAL | 8 | 107 | 13.38 | 0 |
Week 2 vs SEA | 8 | 126 | 15.75 | 1 |
Week 3 @ IND | 5 | 144 | 28.8 | 1 |
SEASON TOTALS |
21 | 377 | 17.95 | 2 |
ON PACE FOR: |
112 | 2011 | 17.95 | 10 |