NFL: Selecting the best player in each franchise’s history
By Brad Rowland
Minnesota Vikings – Cris Carter
Picking Minnesota’s best all-time player was a big-time challenge because the candidates all bring something interesting to the table.
Alan Page is one of only two players in NFL history to win the MVP award on the defensive side of the ball, and he was an absolute monster on the defensive line for 12 seasons in Minnesota. Adrian Peterson has posted some of the best seasons ever for a running back, with the capability of running away with every major record if he can remain healthy and out of trouble. The peak of Randy Moss is unlike anything we’ve seen from the wide receiver position outside of Jerry Rice. I could keep going, but give me the safety and longevity of Cris Carter.
Carter did begin his career with the Philadelphia Eagles and ended it with the Miami Dolphins, but in between, he produced franchise-record numbers with the Vikings. He tops the team list in receptions (1,004), receiving yards (12,383) and touchdown catches (110), and his career-long numbers place Carter among the top five in NFL history in both catches and touchdowns.
He was never as flashy as Moss or as physically dominant as Peterson, but Carter’s consistency and precise nature were the envy of any receiver, and even if “all he did” was catch touchdowns, that is a valuable trait.
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