Don Hutson won four triple crowns in a row and five in total, both records.

In the National Football League (NFL) a receiver is said to have won the triple crown if they lead the league in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns within a particular season. Finishing joint first in any or all of those three categories is also considered sufficient.[1] The term triple crown has been used to describe the feat at least as far back as 1990, when it was achieved by Jerry Rice.[2]

Since the NFL began keeping statistics in 1932, the triple crown has been won sixteen times by twelve different players. This includes one player (Lance Alworth) who did so in the American Football League (AFL), the NFL having adopted AFL records when the two leagues merged in 1970.[3] Don Hutson of the Green Bay Packers is the only man to win more than one triple crown, having done so five times (1936, 1941–45). The most recent triple crown winner was Cooper Kupp of the Los Angeles Rams, in 2021.

NFL and AFL receivers who have won the triple crown

Table key
† Indicates the player has been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
* Active player
^ NFL champions (before 1967) or Super Bowl champions (since 1967)
Receiving triple crown winners
Year Name Position Team Receptions Yards Touch­downs Notes Ref
1932 Ray Flaherty† End New York Giants 21 350 5 [4][5]
1936 Don Hutson† End Green Bay Packers^ 34 536 8 [6][7]
1941 Don Hutson† End Green Bay Packers 58 738 10 Won the Joe F. Carr Trophy as the NFL MVP. [8][7][9]
1942 Don Hutson† End Green Bay Packers 74 1,211 17 Won the Joe F. Carr Trophy as the NFL MVP. Hutson achieved more than double the numbers of his nearest competitors in all three categories. [10][7][11]
1943 Don Hutson† End Green Bay Packers 47 776 11 [12][7]
1944 Don Hutson† End Green Bay Packers^ 58 866 9 [13][7]
1951 Elroy Hirsch† End Los Angeles Rams^ 66 1,495 17 [14][15]
1953 Pete Pihos† End Philadelphia Eagles 63 1,049 10 Tied with Billy Wilson for touchdowns. [16][17]
1959 Raymond Berry† End Baltimore Colts^ 66 959 14 [18][19]
1964 Johnny Morris Flanker Chicago Bears 93 1,200 10 Tied with Bobby Mitchell for touchdowns. Surpassed by AFL receivers in all three categories. [20][21]
1965 Dave Parks† End San Francisco 49ers 80 1,344 12 Tied with Bob Hayes for touchdowns. Surpassed by AFL receivers in all three categories. [22][23]
1966 Lance Alworth† Flanker San Diego Chargers 73 1,383 13 AFL triple crown winner. Alworth would also win the triple crown if NFL players were included, being top in receptions and yards, while tying Bob Hayes for touchdowns. [24][25][26]
1990 Jerry Rice† Wide Receiver San Francisco 49ers 100 1,502 13 Voted NFL Player of the Year by the Sporting News. [27][28][29]
1992 Sterling Sharpe† Wide Receiver Green Bay Packers 108 1,461 13 Two-time Pro Football Hall of Fame semi-finalist [30]
2005 Steve Smith Sr. Wide Receiver Carolina Panthers 103 1,563 12 Tied with Larry Fitzgerald for receptions; tied with Marvin Harrison for touchdowns. [31]
2021 Cooper Kupp* Wide Receiver Los Angeles Rams^ 145 1,947 16 Voted the Associated Press NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award and the Super Bowl MVP. [32][33]

References

  1. ^ Gordon, Grant. "Rams WR Cooper Kupp captures receiving triple crown". nfl.com. Archived from the original on 1 February 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  2. ^ Silver, Michael (31 December 1990). "Little fanfare after Rice makes 100th reception". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. pp. C1, C2. Archived from the original on 9 July 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  3. ^ Pavlik, Ed. "Opinion: pro football records should include the AAFC" (PDF). Pro Football Researchers. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  4. ^ "1932 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Ray Flaherty - Class of 1976". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  6. ^ "1936 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e "Don Hutson - Class of 1963". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 13 June 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  8. ^ "1941 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Don Hutson voted league's Most Valuable Player". No. 13. Green Bay Press-Gazette. 11 February 1942. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  10. ^ "1942 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 10 March 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  11. ^ "Hutson repeats 'Most Valuable' for Carr Trophy". No. 12. Kenosha News. U.P. 28 January 1943. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  12. ^ "1943 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  13. ^ "1944 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  14. ^ "1951 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  15. ^ "Elroy Hirsch - Class of 1968". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  16. ^ "1953 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  17. ^ "Pete Pihos - Class of 1970". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  18. ^ "1959 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  19. ^ "Raymond Berry - Class of 1973". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  20. ^ "1964 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  21. ^ "1965 AFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 27 June 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  22. ^ "1965 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  23. ^ "1966 AFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  24. ^ "1966 AFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  25. ^ "1966 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 9 July 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  26. ^ "Lance Alworth - Class of 1978". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  27. ^ "1990 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  28. ^ "Jerry Rice - Class of 2010". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  29. ^ "Rice grabs Sporting News MVP honors". No. 10. Chapel Hill Daily Tar Heel. 8 February 1991. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  30. ^ "1992 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 7 October 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  31. ^ "2005 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  32. ^ "2021 NFL receiving". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  33. ^ DeArdo, Bryan (17 February 2022). "Rams' Cooper Kupp is first receiver to capture Super Bowl MVP despite not accomplishing this statistic". cbssports.com. Archived from the original on 18 February 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
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