Calvin Johnson supports Julio Jones

ByMichael Rothstein ESPN logo
Wednesday, December 10, 2014

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Julio Jones is still hundreds of yards away from Calvin Johnson's single-season receiving record, but there's a chance the Falcons receiver could catch him.

And Johnson, the Lions receiver who holds the mark of 1,964 yards, won't root against Jones to break it.

"You never want to pull against a guy, especially as hard as things are in this league," Johnson said Wednesday. "Especially knowing myself how hard things are. So wherever he's at, oh man, that's pretty awesome.

"It would be an awesome feat for him."

It is also one that is attainable if Jones keeps up his pace of the last two games. Jones has 1,428 receiving yards and needs to average 178.7 over the Falcons' final three contests to reach Johnson's mark.

Jones put up 189 yards in Week 13 and 259 yards Monday night against Green Bay to put himself within distance of Johnson's record.

"He's had big games," Johnson said. "So he can definitely do that."

Johnson set the mark in 2012, breaking Jerry Rice's record of 1,848 yards set with San Francisco in 1995.

When Jones is healthy, Johnson said he believes he is one of the best receivers in the NFL.

"He's a big, fast, physical receiver," Johnson said. "... He's an explosive guy. I would say when he's healthy, he's one of the top guys in the league."

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