Another year, another chance for Brady to break the record. Brady has an opportunity to break two records on Sunday.
The single-season completions record is the first. Brady needs to complete just 16 passes to break the record. Brady has completed at least 18 times this season. It is hard to imagine a scenario where Brady won't complete at least 16 passes.
Brady could break the single-season passing-yards record this weekend. It will be difficult to achieve that record. Brady needs 488 yards through the air to break Manning's all-time record. Brady has only surpassed 488 passing yards once in his career. He has had 411 passing yards in a game in the last three years. That is a long way away from what Brady needs.
It is possible, but, as I said before, given that the only thing the Bolts are playing for this weekend is positioning for the playoffs, it is unlikely that they will go all out in order to keep some of their plays under wraps. There is a small chance that the game script will call for Brady to throw for 500 yards. The completions record is doable, but the yards record is not.
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The first regular season of the National Football League took place in 2021. Many people were quick to state their displeasure with the expansion, claiming that adding a 17th game hurts the sport and is just a cash grab only meant to benefit the owners and put the players at greater risk. I offer a counter argument that it means more football.
There is an argument that could be made about whether or not there needs to be an asterisk next to any records broken in the 18th week of a season. Most of the records today were set by players. The first Super Bowl was played a decade after the NFL expanded to 16 games. If it is such a problem, why don't we complain about the players who set records while playing only 14 games?
That is beside the point. There are a lot of records that could be broken this Sunday. How many do you want? I don't count them out for you.
The Atlanta Falcons tight end has been a disappointment. The fourth-overall pick was believed to be one of the best prospects of all time, with virtually no downsides as a pass-catching tight end. With only one week left to play, Pitts has only caught 66 passes and reached the end zone once.
It may come as a surprise to you that Pitts is only 67 receiving yards away from breaking Mike Ditka's record for most receiving yards by a rookies tight end. In only 14 games in 1961, Ditka recorded 1,076 receiving yards on just 56 catches. That was the most receiving yards Ditka had in a single season. After his first year, Ditka would never reach .
It will be difficult for Pitts to reach that marker. He had three catches for 62 yards in a game against New Orleans. If he wants his name in the record books, he will need a better showing this weekend.
Baltimore Ravens big man Mark Andrews is just 140 yards away from matching the record for most receiving yards by a tight end in a single season. When Kelce set this record a year ago, he probably thought he was going to hold it for a long time, but he might be wrong. The Oklahoma alum has only had one game this season with more than 140 receiving yards, but has recorded at least 100 receiving yards in three of the last four weeks.
The Ravens will face the Pittsburgh Steelers this weekend, a team that has been hard for Andrews to rack up statistics on. In five career games against the Steelers, Andrews has not recorded more than 50 receiving yards or more than five reception. It would take a miracle for Andrews to reach 141 yards.
Bill Groman set a rookies receiving record in 1960, but Cincinnati's Ja'Marr Chase needs just 45 receiving yards to break it. That doesn't sound bad. This season, Chase has reached that mark twelve times. The thing is here. Chase will have to do it on his own.
In order to rest his knee, which he injured in the closing minutes of the Cincinnati's Week 17 win over Kansas City, Burrow announced earlier this week that he would take the final week of the regular season off. Chase hasn't had to play a game without his quarterback passing to him. Since Chase opted out of the 2020 college football season due to COVID concerns, he hasn't had to play a single game without Burrow throwing him the ball. If Chase wants to break the record, Brandon Allen will have to feed him.
That might not be as bad as it sounds. Allen has never failed to have at least one 50-yard receiver in his career. He has one wide receiver who has hit the half-century mark more often than not. Chase is very close to breaking the record and the Bengals will try to feed him the ball as early as possible.
Cooper Kupp needs 136 receiving yards to break Calvin Johnson's single-season record. This year has been good for Kupp and it sounds easy. Kupp has only reached 136 receiving yards three times this season.
There is some good news. The Rams are going to play the 49ers this weekend. The 49ers will likely be without starting slot corner K'Waun Williams, who was placed on the 49ers' COVID list earlier this week, due to an injury. Williams was placed on the COVID list four days ago and hasn't emerged yet, so it's unlikely that he'll play this weekend if he tests negative for the virus two days in a row.
If the Rams get out to an early lead, it might be more worrisome. While the 49ers got the better of the Rams when they played earlier in the year, they are unlikely to fall flat against the L.A. team again this weekend. The 49ers are fighting for a playoff spot, so maybe they will have a little extra pep in their step. If Kupp wants the record, he will have to hope that his team doesn't get out to an early lead in the first half. I am sure Kupp would win a division title over the receiving-yards record.
Another year, another chance for Brady to break the record. Brady has an opportunity to break two records on Sunday.
The single-season completions record is the first. Brady needs to complete just 16 passes to break the record. Brady has completed at least 18 times this season. It is hard to imagine a scenario where Brady won't complete at least 16 passes.
Brady could break the single-season passing-yards record this weekend. It will be difficult to achieve that record. Brady needs 488 yards through the air to break Manning's all-time record. Brady has only surpassed 488 passing yards once in his career. He has had 411 passing yards in a game in the last three years. That is a long way away from what Brady needs.
It is possible, but, as I said before, given that the only thing the Bolts are playing for this weekend is positioning for the playoffs, it is unlikely that they will go all out in order to keep some of their plays under wraps. There is a small chance that the game script will call for Brady to throw for 500 yards. The completions record is doable, but the yards record is not.
T.J. Watt is one sack away from breaking Michael Strahan's single-season sack record. Watt recorded 3.5 sacks against the Ravens in Week 13 and now gets them, as he is fresh off a four-sack performance against Cleveland.
Watt has missed time this season, unlike Kupp, Pitts, Chase, or Brady, which makes his record all the more impressive. In fact, Watt will have played fewer games this season than the others did, including Mark Gastineau in 1984. Watt has been on a tear this season, and the only person standing in his way is the Ravens left tackle, who has surrendered nine sacks throughout 2021, tied for the second-most in the NFL. There is a small hiccup. It is unlikely that the defensive coach will be on the sideline for the game. Mike Tomlin has been involved in gameplanning for his defense throughout his career. If he can't coach this weekend, Tomlin will call the defensive plays. I like Watt's chances.
