Last updated September 8th, 2006

The record for most receiving touchdowns in a season is an astounding 22. That’s 1.375 touchdowns per game. The record will never be broken, but that’s not stopping Chad Johnson from making predictions about mission impossible.

Johnson is taking aim…on the touchdown receptions record of 22 established by the incomparable Jerry Rice in 1987. The way Johnson views things, the only way he is ever going to separate himself from the likes of contemporaries such as Randy Moss, Marvin Harrison, Torry Holt, Terrell Owens and Steve Smith, is to do something undeniably special.

“I’ve got to do something,” Johnson insisted, “that is really extraordinary, that burns up the record books.”

“I can’t be stopped,” said Johnson, laughing and flashing his trademark gold grillwork. “That’s what I’m always telling people, right? It’s kind of become my [mantra]. And this year, it’s going to be doubly true, believe me. They can’t keep me out of the end zone…”

Johnson plans to bypass the new restrictions on touchdown celebrations with some creative planning.

“…the competition committee isn’t going to be able to totally [ban] all of the stuff that I’ve got planned.”

“Look, they said you can’t use props, right?” Johnson said. “You can’t bring anything onto the field, or hide it in the end zone, or whatever. I mean, to me, it’s silly, because on one hand they really want us to be entertainers, and then they take away a way to entertain people. But here’s the thing: Every week, I will get in front of the cameras and kind of announce, in a secret way, what I want the fans to do for that game. I mean, it’ll be kind of like a code, but there will be enough hints that people should be able to get it. And every week, the fans will be my props. They can’t fine me for that. It’s going to drive the competition committee crazy trying to figure it out.”

“It’s going to be like a soap opera, a continuing thing every week, with new episodes. People won’t be able to miss it because, just like with a soap opera, you’ll lose track. So everyone is going to have to watch to get that week’s secret message. Plus, with the year I’m going to have, they’re not going to want to miss any of it anyway.”

Blitz View: Johnson has never scored 11 TDs in a season so don’t plan on him doubling that. Nevertheless, he’s still one of the best receivers in the game and the most fun player to quote.

Tony Richardson, the bruising fullback who spent five seasons plowing holes for Priest Holmes in Kansas City, is itching to do the same for Chester Taylor.

If Taylor gets the opportunity, Richardson said he’s confident Taylor can put up Holmes-like numbers…

The Holmes comparisions are seconded by wide receiver Travis Taylor, who’s been reunited with Chester Taylor after their short stint in Baltimore from 2002-2004.

“There’s definitely a lot of Priest Holmes in Chester,” he said. “He’s a guy who can catch balls out of the backfield, make guys miss, run guys over, make big plays. When we were in Baltimore, he always converted a lot of third downs for us out of the backfield. It could be third and 15 and he’d get 17 yards. That’s what kind of a back he is.”

Blitz View: The comparisions to Priest are premature, but with Tony Richardson at fullback and an upgraded offensive line in Minnesota, don’t let Taylor slip your mind.

Rookie underdog Mike Bell has earned the #1 spot on the Broncos depth chart after being completely ignored in the NFL draft.

Today, Bell is the story of the city, the state and the NFL, after making the rare jump from undrafted rookie to No. 1 on the Broncos’ depth chart. In a stunning move, coach Mike Shanahan announced in a team meeting Sunday night Bell had bypassed Ron Dayne and Tatum Bell and would be running with the starters. Shanahan said Monday Mike Bell will start the Broncos’ preseason opener Friday night in Detroit. Bell is the only rookie tailback in the NFL atop his team’s depth chart.

“I’ve got to stay hungry,” he said. “I came here with a chip on my shoulder and I’ve got to continue having a chip on my shoulder.”

“Mike’s been out here killing in practices,” said Dayne, who had been running with the first team. “If I was the coach and watched, I’d have probably taken Mike, too.”

Dayne is taking his demotion in stride, but the other Bell in town is ticked.

“They don’t think I can be the man, period,” he said flatly. “They don’t think I can do 25 carries.”

“They don’t trust me,” he said, adding he is unsure whether that person is coach Mike Shanahan, running backs coach Bobby Turner or someone else making decisions in the front office.

“I’m going to keep fighting for it, and I’ve got it in the back of my mind that I’m going to be the man, but in reality, it ain’t worked like that in three years,” Bell said. “It’s a long season. Anything can happen and Mike’s looking good, I’m not taking nothing from him. But I feel like I should be the No. 1 - to be named the starter and then lose it. I don’t know, man. I’m still (ticked) off about it.”

As always with Shanahan’s teams, it’s difficult to tell how this will shake out before week 1.

Shanahan said Mike Bell’s promotion doesn’t mean the race for the starting tailback job is over. The coach made it clear Tatum Bell and Dayne still have a chance, but the rookie has been too impressive to keep down. What has most impressed the coaching staff about Mike Bell - who went undrafted after he posted slow 40-yard dash times during offseason workouts - is he runs extremely hard, and he’s a downhill runner. That fits the Broncos’ system. Many thought Cedric Cobbs, on the practice squad last year, might emerge. But he is fourth on the depth chart while the kid who has been in the Denver organization for just more than three months has stolen the show.

Blitz View: This has running back by committee written all over it. If you draft one, get two handcuffs.

The two young gun receivers out in Arizona are hungry to surpass Marvin Harrision and Reggie Wayne as the best receiving tandem in the NFL, if they haven’t done so already.

…[Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin] talk about being the best. They talk about becoming the best duo in the NFL, about putting their name in the record books as the Dolphins’ Mark Duper and Mark Clayton once did.

Said Boldin, “Hopefully, we will get there one day. We’re starting to get recognized in that department, but the only way to get recognized as the best duo in the league is to put up numbers consistently. We are still working on that.”

That’s up for interpretation. The numbers the two put up last season were stunning. Fitzgerald had 103 catches for 1,409 yards and 10 touchdowns. Boldin had 102 receptions for 1,402 yards and seven TDs.

It’s hard to find a comparable tandem throughout the rest of the league.

The Rams’ Torry Holt is an elite receiver, but Isaac Bruce is on the downside of his career. Steve Smith is a star in Carolina, but new teammate Keyshawn Johnson doesn’t do enough to elevate the two. Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh are comparable in Cincinnati, but Houshmandzadeh’s resume is limited.

The two that most resemble the Cards’ wideouts are Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne in Indianapolis. It is not a coincidence that when running back Edgerrin James left the Colts to come to the Cardinals, the fact he would still have double the star power at receiver played a large role in luring him.

Blitz View: Lets hope Arizona can live up to all the hype, considering they haven’t made the playoffs since 1988. The franchise has one of the worst attendance records in the league, which blunts their home field advantage immensely.