Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown’s status for Sunday’s game appears to be up in the air, officially listed as questionable after failing to go through practice during the week. The Pro Bowler underwent tests on a knee injury yesterday, and he may end up being a game-time decision.
If that decision, however, is for him to play, then he will have the opportunity to continue to make more history against the Cincinnati Bengals. Last week, he not only set a new franchise record for the most touchdowns scored in a season—and expanded his record for the most multi-touchdown games—he also set the record for the most receptions caught in any six- and seven-year span. Both of those marks were owned by Wes Welker.
Tomorrow, he could also set the record for the most receptions an any eight-year span. Picking up from his second year in the league in which he caught 69 passes for over 1000 yards, becoming the first player in NFL history to record 1000 receiving yards and 1000 return yards, he has to date caught 821 passes.
If he reels in six more, he will surpass Marvin Harrison of Indianapolis Colts game for the most receptions in any eight-year span. Harrison caught 826 passes with Peyton Manning from 1999 through the 2006 season.
Not only that, Brown also enters this game with 837 receptions for his career. Harrison caught 845 passes during the first nine seasons of his career. If Brown can manage to haul in nine receptions—a tough but far from impossible task—then he will pass Harrison for the most receptions ever in a player’s first nine seasons.
For those wondering, the record for the most receptions in a nine-year span will have to wait. Harrison caught 885 passes between the 1998 and 2006 seasons, and frankly I’m not going to count on Brown catching 39 passes tomorrow.
However, there’s another franchise record that he can tie. Brown enters this game with 15 touchdowns on the season. The Steelers’ record for the most touchdowns in a single season is 16, owned by Willie Parker, who recorded 13 rushing touchdowns and three receiving touchdowns in the mid-2000s.
He can tie the record with one more score or claim it outright if he can manage back-to-back multi-touchdown games. He has 17 in his career, and he has done it in consecutive weeks twice, most recently last season.
After narrowly escaping the Colts following the bye, the Steelers’ offense exploded on Thursday Night Football against the Tennessee Titans in their Color Rush jerseys. Brown caught three touchdowns in that game, and then added two more the following week against the Green Bay Packers.
