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Analyze This: What's the combination?
(Sept. 16, 2004) -- When they sing the National Anthem in Philadelphia before the Vikings-Eagles game, they won't be kidding when they sing about rockets and bombs. That's because two of the league's top quarterbacks -- Daunte Culpepper and Donovan McNabb -- will be throwing to two of the league's top wide receivers -- Randy Moss and Terrell Owens.
So that got our wheels turning. Of all the great quarterback-wide receiver combos in the NFL, which one is the most dominating? Which one keeps defensive coordinators up all night? Which one is the most fun to watch? Our All-Pro crew goes deep for this pass-happy predicament.
GIL BRANDT
"For nostalgia's sake, I'd like to say the 1942 Green Bay combination of Cecil Isbell to Don Hutson. Back then, they played 11 games, and in those games, Hutson caught 17 touchdown passes from Isbell for 1,211 yards. No one before then had ever had a 1,000-yard receiving year. Hutson also made seven interceptions and scored a total of 138 points (he kicked 34 extra points and a field goal). This is one player who could come in today and be as dominant as he was then. As for today's players, Daunte Culpepper to Randy Moss is my answer for today's combo. In addition to being a tandem, each of them brings something to the table as far as being able to run, pass, offer size and speed, and of course make plays."
ADAM SCHEFTER
"Peyton Manning to Marvin Harrison. There are some great QB-WR combos around the league, but there's no combination as in tune with each other as this one. These two have worked together for so many years, so many offseason workouts, so many games, that they are clearly the game's best Batman and Robin, one-two team. Though they didn't show it in the regular-season opener, Manning and Harrison are like a husband and wife. They know what the other is thinking, what the other is doing and they make each other better."
PHIL SIMMS
"It took me one second to come up with the answer: Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss. I've said it on TV and will continue to say it: Culpepper is one of the great hidden gems in the NFL. I don't know why people can't recognize it. His talent is just so overwhelming. One of the reasons Moss has such great success is because he's got one of the best arms throwing it to him and one of the few quarterbacks in the NFL who can just launch it out there farther than most defensive backs are used to seeing the football go, and have Moss just run under it. I really believe that's one of their greatest assets. Moss is faster than most people realize and Culpepper can throw it higher and farther than just about anybody in the league."
SHANNON SHARPE
"To me this is a no-brainer. Randy Moss is the best wide receiver in the league and it doesn't matter who is throwing him the ball, so I vote for Culpepper and Moss. I'd put Peyton Manning-Marvin Harrison second and Terrell Owens-Donovan McNabb third. If you look at Moss' numbers, they are just phenomenal. He is also constantly double teamed. If you don't double team him, he'll go off on you for three or four touchdowns. When I look at the Colts, I'm not sure that Harrison would have the same numbers if Manning wasn't in there. And the same with Terrell Owens. When Garcia wasn't in the starting lineup last year, Owens' numbers fell off considerably. But in Minnesota, if you have Gus Frerotte back there at quarterback, Moss is still going to get his numbers. And if you don't double team him, it doesn't matter who you have at quarterback, he will rack up the numbers on you before you know what hit you. That said, Culpepper is a good quarterback, so the combination of the two makes them the best in the league."
PAT KIRWAN
"There are a number of good QB-WR tandems in the NFL right now. Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison cost the most money, and for good reason, so they may be the most popular choice. Terrell Owens finally gives Donovan McNabb a big-time partner to rival the best of them. A year from now Carson Palmer to Chad Johnson will be a hot choice, but for now I like Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss. I don't think there is another pitch-and-catch battery that strikes fear in a defense. Any formation, any place on the field, any down and distance, and Moss could be on the receiving end of a Culpepper bomb. His 77 touchdowns and 16.0 average per catch from a 6-foot-4, 270-pound quarterback is impressive."
VIC CARUCCI
"As impressive as Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens were on opening day, and as great as they figure to be over time, they have a long way to go before supplanting Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss as the league's current best quarterback-receiver combo. One of the biggest reasons is that Culpepper has developed his game to the highest level it has ever been. He is far better at reading defenses, following progressions and targeting the right time and place to throw to Moss. Besides being gifted with the rare size/speed combination and excellent hands, Moss is such an incredibly smooth athlete that defensive backs often are caught off guard by his ability to streak past them before they are ready to turn and run. No receiver matches his ability to track the deep ball, leap for high throws, time his jumps without giving away the ball's location, or maneuver his body in midair."
BOOMER ESIASON
"Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison. They are the most consistent duo in the league, which makes them the most dangerous. They also have the best potential to maintain success over the long haul."
GREGG EASTERBROOK
"Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison need 36 connections and 1,164 yards to pass Jim Kelly and Andre Reed as the most productive QB-WR tandem ever, and these seem reachable goals for 2004. (Kelly and Reed connected 663 times for 9,583 yards.) But Harrison tends to disappear in playoff games, so there's a question mark over this tandem. Daunte Culpepper to Randy Moss is the current combination defensive coordinators fear most, but Moss completely vanished in the NFC championship a few years back, so there's a question mark here too. Tom Brady and Deion Branch had the single-most important tandem game last year at the Super Bowl. McNabb to Owens? Too soon to tell. For the moment, I'd say the hottest quarterback and receiver combo is whoever is quarterbacking against the Ravens throwing to whomever Deion Sanders is covering."
(Sept. 16, 2004) -- When they sing the National Anthem in Philadelphia before the Vikings-Eagles game, they won't be kidding when they sing about rockets and bombs. That's because two of the league's top quarterbacks -- Daunte Culpepper and Donovan McNabb -- will be throwing to two of the league's top wide receivers -- Randy Moss and Terrell Owens.
So that got our wheels turning. Of all the great quarterback-wide receiver combos in the NFL, which one is the most dominating? Which one keeps defensive coordinators up all night? Which one is the most fun to watch? Our All-Pro crew goes deep for this pass-happy predicament.
GIL BRANDT
"For nostalgia's sake, I'd like to say the 1942 Green Bay combination of Cecil Isbell to Don Hutson. Back then, they played 11 games, and in those games, Hutson caught 17 touchdown passes from Isbell for 1,211 yards. No one before then had ever had a 1,000-yard receiving year. Hutson also made seven interceptions and scored a total of 138 points (he kicked 34 extra points and a field goal). This is one player who could come in today and be as dominant as he was then. As for today's players, Daunte Culpepper to Randy Moss is my answer for today's combo. In addition to being a tandem, each of them brings something to the table as far as being able to run, pass, offer size and speed, and of course make plays."
ADAM SCHEFTER
"Peyton Manning to Marvin Harrison. There are some great QB-WR combos around the league, but there's no combination as in tune with each other as this one. These two have worked together for so many years, so many offseason workouts, so many games, that they are clearly the game's best Batman and Robin, one-two team. Though they didn't show it in the regular-season opener, Manning and Harrison are like a husband and wife. They know what the other is thinking, what the other is doing and they make each other better."
PHIL SIMMS
"It took me one second to come up with the answer: Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss. I've said it on TV and will continue to say it: Culpepper is one of the great hidden gems in the NFL. I don't know why people can't recognize it. His talent is just so overwhelming. One of the reasons Moss has such great success is because he's got one of the best arms throwing it to him and one of the few quarterbacks in the NFL who can just launch it out there farther than most defensive backs are used to seeing the football go, and have Moss just run under it. I really believe that's one of their greatest assets. Moss is faster than most people realize and Culpepper can throw it higher and farther than just about anybody in the league."
SHANNON SHARPE
"To me this is a no-brainer. Randy Moss is the best wide receiver in the league and it doesn't matter who is throwing him the ball, so I vote for Culpepper and Moss. I'd put Peyton Manning-Marvin Harrison second and Terrell Owens-Donovan McNabb third. If you look at Moss' numbers, they are just phenomenal. He is also constantly double teamed. If you don't double team him, he'll go off on you for three or four touchdowns. When I look at the Colts, I'm not sure that Harrison would have the same numbers if Manning wasn't in there. And the same with Terrell Owens. When Garcia wasn't in the starting lineup last year, Owens' numbers fell off considerably. But in Minnesota, if you have Gus Frerotte back there at quarterback, Moss is still going to get his numbers. And if you don't double team him, it doesn't matter who you have at quarterback, he will rack up the numbers on you before you know what hit you. That said, Culpepper is a good quarterback, so the combination of the two makes them the best in the league."
PAT KIRWAN
"There are a number of good QB-WR tandems in the NFL right now. Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison cost the most money, and for good reason, so they may be the most popular choice. Terrell Owens finally gives Donovan McNabb a big-time partner to rival the best of them. A year from now Carson Palmer to Chad Johnson will be a hot choice, but for now I like Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss. I don't think there is another pitch-and-catch battery that strikes fear in a defense. Any formation, any place on the field, any down and distance, and Moss could be on the receiving end of a Culpepper bomb. His 77 touchdowns and 16.0 average per catch from a 6-foot-4, 270-pound quarterback is impressive."
VIC CARUCCI
"As impressive as Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens were on opening day, and as great as they figure to be over time, they have a long way to go before supplanting Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss as the league's current best quarterback-receiver combo. One of the biggest reasons is that Culpepper has developed his game to the highest level it has ever been. He is far better at reading defenses, following progressions and targeting the right time and place to throw to Moss. Besides being gifted with the rare size/speed combination and excellent hands, Moss is such an incredibly smooth athlete that defensive backs often are caught off guard by his ability to streak past them before they are ready to turn and run. No receiver matches his ability to track the deep ball, leap for high throws, time his jumps without giving away the ball's location, or maneuver his body in midair."
BOOMER ESIASON
"Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison. They are the most consistent duo in the league, which makes them the most dangerous. They also have the best potential to maintain success over the long haul."
GREGG EASTERBROOK
"Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison need 36 connections and 1,164 yards to pass Jim Kelly and Andre Reed as the most productive QB-WR tandem ever, and these seem reachable goals for 2004. (Kelly and Reed connected 663 times for 9,583 yards.) But Harrison tends to disappear in playoff games, so there's a question mark over this tandem. Daunte Culpepper to Randy Moss is the current combination defensive coordinators fear most, but Moss completely vanished in the NFC championship a few years back, so there's a question mark here too. Tom Brady and Deion Branch had the single-most important tandem game last year at the Super Bowl. McNabb to Owens? Too soon to tell. For the moment, I'd say the hottest quarterback and receiver combo is whoever is quarterbacking against the Ravens throwing to whomever Deion Sanders is covering."