(Jan. 26, 2007) -- The value of wide receivers has increased in fantasy
football in recent seasons, so it's no shock that the past two Super
Bowl MVPs (Deion Branch and Hines Ward ) have come at the position. A total of six wide receivers
have won a Super Bowl MVP award and 30 players have recorded 100-plus
yards in the 40 championships.
In the third and final part of our series that combines Super Bowl
success and fantasy football, we've researched and found the top 10 wide
receiver/tight end performances in the big game. Again, players have
been rewarded six points for all touchdowns and one point for each 10
rushing and receiving yards.
1. Jerry Rice, San Francisco (Super Bowl XXIX): Considered the
greatest wide receiver to ever put on the helmet and pads, Rice was a
virtual touchdown machine in the Super Bowl. He posted 10 receptions for
149 yards with three touchdowns (the second time he scored three times
in a Super Bowl) and scored a total of 33 fantasy points in the 49ers'
49-26 win over the San Diego Chargers. Rice wasted little time, scoring
on a 44-yard pass from Steve Young three plays into the contest. His
other scores came on catches of 15 and seven yards.
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Jerry Rice's dominance was showcased in his Super Bowl appearances.
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2. Jerry Rice, San Francisco (Super Bowl XXIV): Rice and the
49ers blasted John Elway and the Denver Broncos 55-10 to capture the
franchise's fourth Super Bowl championship. While it was Joe Montana who
took home MVP honors with his 297-yard, five-touchdown performance, Rice
also made his claim for the award with seven receptions, 148 yards and
three trips to the end zone. The future Hall of Fame wide receiver
scored on catches of 20, 38 and 28 yards and finished the contest with a
total of 32 fantasy points.
3. Ricky Sanders, Washington (Super Bowl XXII): Rice would have
owned the top three performances in a Super Bowl among all receivers if
it weren't for Sanders' impressive point total in a 42-10 win over the
Denver Broncos. The second-year wideout posted a solid nine receptions
for what was a record 193 yards, scored two touchdowns and finished with
a total of 31 fantasy points. Sanders averaged 21.4 yards per reception
and found the end zone on long downfield strikes of 80 and 50 yards from
MVP Doug Williams.
4. Jerry Rice, San Francisco (Super Bowl XXIII): Does anyone see
a trend here? Even with a sore ankle, the immortal Rice was still able
to make mincemeat of Cincinnati's defensive backfield in an
excitement-filled 20-16 win over Boomer Esiason and the Bengals. He tied
a record with 11 receptions, established a record with 215 yards, found
the end zone once on a 14-yard pass from Montana and finished with 27
fantasy points. All told, Rice has scored more touchdowns (eight) than
all non-quarterbacks in Super Bowl history.
5. Max McGee, Green Bay (Super Bowl I): In what is the oldest
performance to make our top 10 at all the positions we've covered, McGee
caught seven passes for 138 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 35-10
win over the Kansas City Chiefs in the first Super Bowl ever. McGee, who
caught a mere four passes in the regular season but was called into
action to replace an injured Boyd Dowler, found the end zone on strikes
of 37 and 13 yards from MVP Bart Starr and finished the contest with an
impressive 25 fantasy points.
6. Antonio Freeman, Green Bay (Super Bowl XXXII): In a contest
dominated by Terrell Davis, Freeman and the Packers fell short of a
second consecutive Super Bowl title in a 31-24 loss to the Denver
Broncos. The veteran wideout did his best to help his team to a win,
however, as he recorded nine receptions for 126 yards with two
touchdowns and a total of 24 fantasy points. Freeman's touchdown
receptions came on passes of 22 and 13 yards from Brett Favre, who outperformed John Elway but couldn't take home
a win.
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7. Michael Irvin, Dallas (Super Bowl XXVII): Irvin had the best
statistical performance of his three Super Bowl appearances with six
receptions, 114 yards and two touchdowns in the Cowboys' 52-17 blowout
win over the Buffalo Bills. The Playmaker scored on catches of 19 and 18
yards from Troy Aikman, who would earn MVP honors with 273 yards and
four touchdowns. Irvin would finish with 23 fantasy points as Dallas
earned its third title in six Super Bowl appearances, while the Bills
lost their third Super Bowl in a row.
8. John Stallworth, Pittsburgh (Super Bowl XIII): Stallworth
recorded just three receptions in the Steelers' 35-31 win over the
Dallas Cowboys, but he sure did make them count on his final stat line.
The talented wide receiver had 115 yards and two touchdowns, one of
which came on a 75-yard strike from Terry Bradshaw in the second quarter
that tied the score 14-14. Stallworth, who scored his first touchdown of
the contest in the first quarter on a 28-yard pass from Bradshaw, would
finish with 23 fantasy points overall.
9. Dan Ross, Cincinnati (Super Bowl (XVI): Ross, the lone tight
end on our list of the 10 top receiver performances, set a record with
11 receptions for 104 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 26-21 loss to
the San Francisco 49ers. He found the end zone on throws of 4 and 3
yards from Ken Anderson and scored a solid 22 fantasy points overall. A
productive tight end from 1980-1982, Ross led the Bengals in receptions
in the regular season and was second behind Cris Collinsworth with 910
yards and five scores.
10. Lynn Swann, Pittsburgh (Super Bowl X): In a forgettable Super
Bowl for Cowboys cornerback Mark Washington, Swann made some of the most
acrobatic catches ever seen on a football field in the Steelers' 21-17
win over Dallas. He would record four receptions for what was at the
time a record 161 yards, one touchdown and 22 fantasy points. Swann, who
earned MVP honors for his statistical success, found the end zone on a
64-yard strike from Terry Bradshaw. The win was the Steelers' second
championship in a row.
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