As the Texans pile up the losses, receiver Andre Johnson piles up the numbers.
The man who several weeks ago seemed to be lukewarm about remaining in Houston continues to give Houstonians a glimpse at one of the all-time greats. With 13 catches and and 154 yards on Thursday night in Jacksonvile, he’s now three receptions behind Torry Holt (920) for No. 14 on the all-time catch list, and 46 yards behind Art Monk (12,731) for No. 16 on the all-time yardage list.
He’s even higher on the list as to a couple of specific in-game achievements.
Johnson now has 50 career 100-yard receiving games, which ties him for fifth in NFL history with Don Maynard. And with 10 career games featuring double-digit receptions and 150 or more yards receiving, Johnson is now tied with Jerry Rice for the most such performances in league history.
And Johnson has done it not with Young and Montana but with Carr and Schaub (and Yates and Keenum).
Given what Johnson has accomplished while catching passes from ordinary quarterbacks, it’s hard not to wonder what he would have done if he had spent the last 11 years catching passes from Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, or Philip Rivers.
There’s still time for that. Johnson is 32. While an assault on Jerry Rice’s records is unlikely, Johnson could finish near the top of the various career lists -- especially if he plays with a quarterback who has had a better career than David Carr or Matt Schaub.