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Spirit of St. Louis

Who's the best wide receiver in football? I like 'Ike'

By PAT FITZMAURICE, associate editor Pro Football Weekly

This might sound like blasphemy, but I no longer believe that Jerry Rice is the best wide receiver in the NFL. Don't get me wrong: Even at the age of 35 (he'll turn 36 next month) and playing on a
knee that's being held together with putty and duct tape, Rice remains a marvelous player capable of shredding a defense all by
himself. But I believe there's a player who has surpassed Rice to become the best wide receiver in football.

Herman Moore? Tall, athletic and sure-handed, but he's not the
guy. Tim Brown? A master craftsman, but no. Cris Carter? An
acrobat who excels in the red zone, but, like Rice, Carter is in the
autumn of his career. Joey Galloway? He may be the fastest and
the most exciting, but not the best. Antonio Freeman? A dynamic
home-run hitter, but he probably wouldn't be as productive
without Brett Favre throwing him the ball. Michael Irvin?
Remarkably dependable, but no.

For my money, the best wide receiver in football is the Rams'
Isaac Bruce.

Bruce turned in a spectacular performance against the Vikings in
Week Two, keeping the Rams in the game almost
single-handedly. He had 11 receptions for 192 yards, caught an
80-yard TD pass and even picked up 30 yards on a reverse. A
career game for Bruce? Hardly. Bruce rolled up 233 yards on the
Falcons last season, dropped 229 yards on the Ravens in 1996 and
had 210 yards against the Dolphins in '95.

Despite a rookie season in which he had only 21 receptions for
272 yards, Bruce caught more passes in his first three seasons
(224) than any player in NFL history, and only Rice and former
Charger John Jefferson had more receiving yards in their first
three seasons than Bruce's 3,391. In '95, only his second NFL
season, Bruce hauled in 119 passes for 1,781 yards and 13
touchdowns.

But mere numbers can't reflect how much Bruce means to the St.
Louis offense, although they offer a pretty good hint. Bruce is
the only blue-chip player on the Ram offense. OLT Orlando Pace
has the potential to be a great one, but he's not there yet. Beyond
Bruce, the Rams' skill-position talent is unimpressive. Young QB
Tony Banks is talented but has struggled early in his career, and
it's not unreasonable to wonder whether Banks would still be a
starter if the Rams didn't have Bruce, who has made the young
quarterback look better than he's played.

You could make the argument that none of the wide receivers
mentioned earlier is the top player on his own offense. Steve
Young is at least as valuable as Rice, Barry Sanders is more
valuable than Moore, Jeff George is probably as valuable to the
Raiders as Brown, Robert Smith may be as valuable as Carter,
Ricky Watters will prove as valuable to the Seahawks as
Galloway, Favre is more valuable than Freeman, and Irvin is no
more valuable than Troy Aikman, Larry Allen or Emmitt Smith.

It's a shame that the Rams don't get much national-TV exposure,
because it's a joy to watch Bruce at work. He runs crisp, precise
patterns; he moves fluidly both before and after the catch; he has
outstanding hands; and his arsenal of moves prevents him from
absorbing many hard shots from defenders.

If you won't take my word on Bruce, take the word of Falcon
defensive coordinator and former Ram head coach Rich Brooks, a
man who knows a little bit about Bruce's ability.

"Isaac Bruce could be the next Jerry Rice," Brooks told me during
the offseason. Brooks was referring to the pre-injury Rice, and the
coach didn't seem to care that Bruce was coming off an
injury-marred '97 campaign himself.

Only two games into the '98 season, Bruce has already caught 21
passes for 323 yards. At this rate, he'll reach 1,000 yards in the
first quarter of Game Seven.

Stay tuned, because this special player could be on the verge of a
special season.

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