Most Yards Per Catch in Pro Football History

Presented here are the all time most receiving yards per catch in pro football history. There are currently 12 pro football players who averaged 20 yards per catch or better in their careers. Do you have any idea who these wide receivers are?

One thing that should be rather obvious is that all of these high yards per catch wide receivers had great speed. One of these players was considered the fastest human being on the planet when he won the 100 meter Olympic Gold Medal in 1964 before he started playing pro football. Do you know who he is?

Another of these most yards per catch in pro football history players invented spiking the ball in the end zone after scoring a touchdown. You really know your football if you know who he is.

1) Warren Wells - 23.1Yards per Catch. Warren Wells is the all-time leader in yards per catch at 23.1. Think about that for a second - 23.1 yards per catch. Wells played 5 years of pro football. He played sparingly in 1964 for the Detroit Lions but then served 2 years in the military. He returned and played 4 years for the Oakland Raiders from 1967-1970. In his career Warren Wells caught 158 passes for 3,655 yards with 42 TD's in 65 games and 39 games started.

2) Ken Kavanaugh - 22.1 Kavanaugh played for the Chicago Bears from 1940-1941 then missed the next 3 years of football while a fighter pilot in the Air Force. Ha came back with Bears and played from 1945-1950. In his career Ken Kavanaugh caught 162 passes for 3,626 yards and 50 TD's.

3) Homer Jones - 22.3 Homer Jones played mainly for the New York Giants in the 1960's and was the first player to spike the ball after scoring. The inventor of the spike caught 224 passes for 4,986 yards and 36 TD's in his career. In 1966 Jones had a 98 yard TD reception.

4) Mal Kutner - 21.1 Mal Kutner played 5 seasons with the Chicago Cardinals in the late 1940's and was NFL MVP in 1948 when he scored 14 TD's in 12 games while averaging 23 yards per catch.

5) Buddy Dial - 20.8 Dial played 5 years for the Steelers and 3 for the Dallas Cowboys in the 1960's.

6) Cloyce Box - 20.7 Box played 5 years for the Lions in the 1950's. He only started 5 games in his career but had 32 TD's in 57 games including a 97 yard TD reception in 1953.

7) Bob Boyd - 20.5 Boyd played for 7 years with the Rams in the 1950's and even though he never started one game ended up with 176 receptions and 28 TD's in 79 games.

8) Harlon Hill - 20.2 Hill played mainly for the Bears in 50's and early 60's.

9) Flipper Anderson - 20.1 The first and only really modern player on the list Flipper Anderson once torched the New Orleans Saints for 339 yards on 15 catches in a 1989 game.

9) Paul Warfield - 20.1 Warfield is the first Hall of Fame player on the list.

10) Bill Groman - 20.0 In 1961 with the Oilers Bill Groman had 17 TD's in just 50 total receptions.

10) Bob Hayes - 20.0 Bullet Bob Hayes won two Olympic Gold Medals in the 1964 Olympics winning the 100 meter dash in world record time and the 4 x 100 relay and then played WR for the Dallas Cowboys for the next 10 years winning two Super Bowls and catching 71 TD's in 128 games. Bob Hayes died in 2002 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009. He was the fastest human being on the planet in the mid 1960's.

For more see Most Rushing Yards Per Carry in Pro Football History

Most All Purpose Yards in NFL History

Top 10 QB's With Most Passing Yards in NFL History

Source: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/