Johnson's "Mega" day

The Detroit Lions staged an incredible comeback yesterday against the Dallas Cowboys when quarterback Matthew Stafford faked a spike and hopped over the offensive line for the game-winning touchdown with only 12 seconds remaining. The last-second effort was assisted by wide receiver Calvin Johnson who had two catches for 39 yards on that drive including a 22-yard grab that placed the ball near the goal line to set up Stafford's winning score. 

Johnson finished the day with 14 catches for a staggering 329 yards. His yardage total ranks the second most ever in a NFL game and the most ever in regulation. Only Willie “Flipper” Anderson, who caught 15 passes for 336 yards and one touchdown in an overtime win over the New Orleans Saints in 1989, has had a better receiving day.

Johnson’s historic performance also proved to be his fifth career game with 200 yards or better, tying him with Hall of Famer Lance Alworth for most all-time.

Lance Alworth
Date	Opponent	Result	No.	Yds.	Avg.	TDs
Oct. 20, 1963	at Kansas City Chiefs	W, 38-17	9	232	25.8	2
Nov. 10, 1963	at Boston Patriots	W, 7-6	13	210	16.2	1
Nov. 1, 1964	Oakland Raiders	W, 31-17	8	203	25.4	2
Sept. 11, 1965	Denver Broncos	W, 34-31	7	211	30.1	1
Oct. 29, 1967	at Oakland Raiders	L, 10-51	10	213	21.3	1
Calvin Johnson
Date	Opponent	Result	No.	Yds.	Avg.	TDs
Dec. 18, 2011	at Oakland Raiders	W, 28-27	9	214	23.8	2
Jan. 1, 2012	at Green Bay Packers	L, 41-45	11	244	22.2	1
Nov. 11, 2012	at Minnesota Vikings	L, 24-34	12	207	17.3	1
Dec. 22, 2012	Atlanta Falcons	L, 18-41	11	225	20.5	0
Oct. 27, 2013	Dallas Cowboys	W, 31-30	14	329	23.5	1

The NFL’s 300-yard games

336 – Willie "Flipper" Anderson, Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints, Nov. 26, 1989 (OT)

Second-year wide receiver Willie "Flipper" Anderson recorded one of the greatest offensive displays in NFL history during the Los Angeles Rams' 20-17 overtime win against the New Orleans Saints. During the afternoon, Anderson caught 15 passes for 336 yards and one touchdown. Not surprisingly, it was Anderson who put the exclamation point on his amazing afternoon when he hauled in quarterback Jim Everett's pass for a 26-yard gain in overtime. His catch set up the game-winning field goal by kicker Mike Lansford at 6:38 of the sudden death period to give the Rams the victory.

329 – Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions vs. Dallas Cowboys, Oct. 27, 2013

Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson recorded 14 catches for 329 receiving yards with one touchdown in the Lions’ 31-30 win over the Dallas Cowboys. Johnson’s receiving yardage was the second-most in a single-game in NFL history falling just seven yards short of Anderson’s mark set in 1989. Johnson recorded an 87- and a 54-yard reception during the game but his final catch of 22 yards with 33 seconds remaining to set up the game-winning touchdown was the most memorable.

309 – Stephone Paige, Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Diego Chargers, Dec. 22, 1985

Forty years after Benton set the NFL record for most receiving yards in a game, Stephone Paige of the Kansas City Chiefs finally eclipsed the mark when he recorded 309 yards receiving on eight catches. Paige helped lead the Chiefs to a 38-34 win over their division rival San Diego Chargers with two long touchdown receptions of 56 and 84 yards respectively. Maybe even more impressive about Paige’s day was that Kansas City produced a combined 34 receiving yards by the rest of the team.

303 – Jim Benton, Cleveland Rams vs. Detroit Lions, Nov. 22, 1945

The first player ever to eclipse the 300-yard mark was Jim Benton of the Cleveland Rams who accomplished the feat on Thanksgiving Day 1945. Benton teamed up with Hall of Fame quarterback Bob Waterfield to haul in 10 passes for 303 yards which included a 70-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter to put the Rams up for good. The Rams went on to win the game 28-21 over the Detroit Lions.

302 – Cloyce Box, Detroit Lions vs. Baltimore Colts, Dec. 3, 1950

Detroit Lions second-year end Cloyce Box began the scoring in style with an 82-yard touchdown reception from Hall of Fame quarterback Bobby Layne. Box then broke a 14-14 tie with a 67-yard touchdown catch from Layne and added two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter to help seal the victory 45-21 over the Baltimore Colts. In all, Box recorded 12 receptions for 302 yards and four scores, just barely missing the record by one yard.