Oh, 1995. CBSSports.com was a 1-year-old, yours truly was 9, and you were 20 years younger than you are today. It was the year of Toy Story and Apollo 13, of Coolio's Gangsta's Paradise and TLC's Waterfalls.
And in the NFL, it was the Year of the Receiver.
When the '95 season wrapped up on Christmas weekend, Jerry Rice, Isaac Bruce, Herman Moore and Michael Irvin all had more than 1,600 receiving yards -- something not a single receiver had accomplished in the Super Bowl era, and only two had ever accomplished in NFL history.
Rice, Bruce, Moore, Irvin and Cris Carter all had more than 110 catches -- a mark no receiver had ever hit prior to 1993.
Throw in that all five of those wideouts had 10-plus touchdowns and it's safe to conclude that we've never had a season like that in terms of receiving prolificness.
| Top receivers, 1995 | ||||
| Receiver | Team | Catches | Yards | Touchdowns |
| Herman Moore | Lions | 123 | 1,686 | 14 |
| Cris Carter | Vikings | 122 | 1,371 | 17 |
| Jerry Rice | 49ers | 122 | 1,848 | 15 |
| Isaac Bruce | Rams | 119 | 1,781 | 13 |
| Michael Irvin | Catches | 111 | 1,603 | 10 |
It's amazing. Even as we've swum into the most pass-heavy era in NFL history, the 1995 season remains epic when it comes to dominance from receivers.
Four of the top 10 all-time single-season reception totals came in '95.
| Most receptions, NFL history (prior to Week 16, 2015) | ||||
| Rank | Player | Team | Season | Receptions |
| 1 | Marvin Harrison | Colts | 2002 | 143 |
| 2 | Antonio Brown | Steelers | 2014 | 129 |
| 3 | Herman Moore | Lions | 1995 | 123 |
| 3 | Wes Welker | Patriots | 2009 | 123 |
| 5 | Cris Carter | Vikings | 1995 | 122 |
| 5 | Jerry Rice | 49ers | 1995 | 122 |
| 5 | Calvin Johnson | Lions | 2012 | 122 |
| 5 | Wes Welker | Patriots | 2011 | 122 |
| 5 | Cris Carter | Vikings | 1994 | 122 |
| 10 | Isaac Bruce | Rams | 1995 | 119 |
Meanwhile, Rice, Bruce and Moore continue to rank among the top eight in terms of all-time single-season receiving yardage.
| Most receiving yards, NFL history (prior to Week 16, 2015) | ||||
| Rank | Player | Team | Season | Receiving Yards |
| 1 | Calvin Johnson | Lions | 2012 | 1,964 |
| 2 | Jerry Rice | 49ers | 1995 | 1,848 |
| 3 | Isaac Bruce | Rams | 1995 | 1,781 |
| 4 | Charley Hennigan | Oilers | 1961 | 1,746 |
| 5 | Marvin Harrison | Colts | 2002 | 1,722 |
| 6 | Antonio Brown | Steelers | 2014 | 1,698 |
| 7 | Torry Holt | Rams | 2003 | 1,698 |
| 8 | Herman Moore | Lions | 1995 | 1,686 |
Aside from 1995, there are no other duplicate years on either of the above two lists. And among the 13 receivers who have caught 17 or more touchdown passes, only two accomplished that feat in the same season.
That season? You guessed it, 1995. Carter and Carl Pickens both had 17 touchdown grabs that year, while Rice, Moore, Bruce, Anthony Miller and Robert Brooks all reached the teens.
| Seasons with the most receivers with 13+ touchdowns | |
| Season | Receivers with 13+ TDs |
| 1995 | 7 |
| 2004 | 5 |
| 2013 | 4 |
There were clues this explosion was coming. Rice had eclipsed the 1,500-yard mark in 1993, and in 1994 he and Carter were the first two wide receivers in NFL history to catch 110 or more passes. The 33-year-old Rice was immune to age, Carter (30), Irvin (29) and Moore (26) were in their prime, and the 23-year-old Bruce was emerging as the only offensive weapon in St. Louis.
That year, everything came together and they all remained healthy and hot from start to finish.
For another perspective, consider that in '95, Rice, Bruce and Moore put up three of the 10 highest Fantasy football point totals in NFL history.
It was just a weird year, because it's not as though offense was out of control across the board. It only stands as the 29th-highest-scoring season in NFL history (in terms of points per game), and each of the last six seasons have featured more passing yards. There were only seven more passing yards per game in '95 than there were in '94, with both seasons ranking in the top 10 all time.
But in terms of yards and attempts, 2015 has been the most pass-happy season in NFL history. And so it shouldn't surprise anybody that this year might wind up giving '95 a run for its money in terms of statistics from top-flight receivers.
Antonio Brown and Julio Jones are both on pace to catch more than 130 passes, which would move them into second and third all time. Five receivers -- Brown, Jones, Larry Fitzgerald, DeAndre Hopkins and Jarvis Landry -- are on pace to make 110 grabs, which would match that '95 record. Brown and Jones should each hit 1,600 yards in Week 16, and Hopkins and Odell Beckham Jr. also have outside shots at reaching that mark. Three receivers -- Beckham, Allen Robinson and Doug Baldwin -- have already hit the 13-touchdown mark, and six more have at least 10.
But we're still looking at a larger mix of receivers and tight ends, some of whom excel in specific areas but not others, which is why none are on pace to finish in the top 10 when it comes to all-time single-season fantasy points.
That, and the lack of Coolio and TLC, is what prevents 2015 from feeling like 1995.
Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL since 2007. You can also read his work at Bleacher Report, Awful Announcing and This Given Sunday. Follow him on Twitter. Or don't. It's entirely your choice.
