RANGA+ 1,210 Posted October 9, 2011 (edited) Calvin Johnson is on pace to shatter Randy Moss' record for most receiving touchdowns in a season. Johnson, the second player in NFL history with multiple receiving touchdowns in four straight games, has eight touchdowns entering Monday night's game against the Bears and is on track for 32 this season. Moss caught 23 touchdowns in his first season with the Patriots in 2007. Lions offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, who coached Moss for three seasons in Minnesota, said the two players challenge defenses in similar ways. "Where the comparison is ... is that they were both just very physically gifted players that have imposing size, and they also have the ability to attack every part of the field," Linehan said. "And you can use those guys in certain situations as a go-to weapon, and we certainly did in Minnesota, and we're doing our best to do it here. It's fun to watch him grow and develop." At 6-feet-5 and almost 240 pounds, Johnson is an inch taller and about 25 pounds heavier than Moss, though Linehan said Moss "had freakish things about him" beyond his physical gifts. "(His) ability to adjust to balls and catch anything and his understanding of defenses," Linehan said. "By the time I coached Randy, he was in his fourth year, which is about where Calvin is now. So he had a jump. When I came in, Calvin was going in his third year and Calvin's making those kind of strides (in his fifth season now), too. They're totally different players, but they had a very similar impact." Linehan said he has seen defenses scheme to try to stop Johnson much the same way they did Moss during his days with the Vikings. Moss had career highs of 111 receptions and 1,632 yards and caught 17 touchdowns in his second season with Linehan in 2003. "I'm sure he's going to gain more and more attention," Linehan said of Johnson. "There's no question we've got to plan for it, and we do. But he gets a lot of attention anyway. People know his skill level and the ability he has to make plays that maybe other guys can't because of his unique physical stature, plus his ability to catch the ball. "He's definitely one of the rare type of difference-makers that we have in this game." http://www.freep.com...Randy-Moss-mark Obviously early days still...but I'd love to see him break the record. Dude is just a flat out machine. Edited October 9, 2011 by RANGA Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
