Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson is 132 receiving yards away from reaching 10,000 in his career. He would become the 37th player to reach the milestone in NFL history.
Only five active players currently have more than 10,000 receiving yards: Randy Moss (14,946), Tony Gonzalez (13,552), Reggie Wayne (12,002), Steve Smith (10,574) and Donald Driver (10,086). Johnson, who has played in 125 games in 10 seasons, is on pace to become the sixth-fastest player in NFL history to 10,000.
"It's a long road, man," Johnson said on Wednesday. "A lot of work put in. A lot of hard work just put into the game that I love. It'll be a big accomplishment."
Johnson could reach the milestone this Sunday. He has 39 career 100-yard receiving games. He has four 100-yard games against the Tennessee Titans, including a career-best 207 yards at Reliant Stadium in 2008. The Titans rank 30th in the NFL in passing defense this season with 312.7 yards allowed per game.
In eight games against the Titans since 2007, when Matt Schaub became the Texans' quarterback, Johnson has averaged 89.3 receiving yards. That includes the 2011 season finale in which Johnson played sparingly and had two catches for 21 yards. Subtract that outing, and Johnson's average against Tennessee since 2007 is 99.0 yards.
Johnson's career average of 78.9 yards per game is the highest in league history among players with at least 100 games. He has been averaged 88.3 yards per game under head coach Gary Kubiak since 2006, more than eight yards better than the next-best player in the league (Larry Fitzgerald, 80.1).
With Schaub as his quarterback since 2007, Johnson has averaged 92.4 yards a game, more than 11 yards ahead of Fitzgerald (81.2).
"It's the ultimate to have a receiver like Andre, who not only has all of the physical tools to be one of the best receivers to ever play, but the work ethic to go with it," Schaub said. "The mentality that he brings every day to the stadium and to practice and in the meeting rooms, it's hard to find at that position. As a quarterback, to be able to distribute the ball to him, it's a great relief to have him on my side. (10,000 yards) is an incredible accomplishment for a guy that's really been the face of this team since day one."
Johnson ranks 38th in NFL history with 9,868 yards and 33rd with 719 receptions.
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