Last updated September 15th, 2006

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.

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.