Bengals WR Tee Higgins Owns League's Longest Active TD Streak and is 1 Shy of Franchise Record

CINCINNATI – When Tee Higgins hauled in a 29-yard touchdown pass from Joe Flacco in Thursday night’s 33-31 victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver inched closer to a franchise record.

The score marked the seventh consecutive home game in which Higgins has scored a touchdown.

It’s the longest active streak in the league for touchdown receptions.

And it’s the second longest active streak in terms of any type of touchdown.

Higgins also is one shy of the Bengals franchise record shared by two players.

Running back Pete Johnson was the first player in team history to score touchdown in eight consecutive home games, a stretch that spanned the 1982 and 1983 seasons.

Johnson scored an amazing 44 touchdowns in 46 career home games for the Bengals.

Wide receiver Carl Pickens also had eight in a row, doing so from 1994 to 1995.

Running back Boobie Clark had seven in a row from 1973 to 1975 (he only played four home games in 1974 due to injury).

And running back Joe Mixon had a streak of seven in a row that also was interrupted by injury, running from early in 2020 to late in 2021.

The longest active streak belongs to Miami Dolphins running back De’Von Achane with eight.

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs is tied with Higgins with a streak of seven, including the two he scored in Week 6 against the Bengals.

The NFL record is an incredible 22 in a row by former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith from 1993 to 1996.

Former Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson is a distant second at 17.

There are six other players whose streaks reached double digits, including Johnson, who had eight with the Bengals and two more with the Chargers after being traded.

Curtis Martin, Patriots, 13 (1995-96)

Stephen Davis, Commanders, 12 (1999-2000)

Marcus Allen, Raiders, 11 (1983-84)

Cris Carter, Vikings, 10 (2000-01)

Dalvin Cook, Vikings, 10 (2019-20)

Pete Johnson, Bengals and Chargers, 10 (1982-84)

If you take the home qualifier out of the equation, the longest streak in NFL history belongs to Tomlinson with 18 from 2004-05.

The longest in Bengals history belongs to Pickens with 10 from 1994-95.

Joe Mixon (2021) and A.J. Green (2012) each had nine-game streaks.

The longest active Cincinnati streak belongs to Ja’Marr Chase with three. Chase had a four-game streak last year, and he had another three-game run in 2021.

Saints legend Drew Brees advanced to the next round of Pro Football Hall of Fame voting

Saints legend Drew Brees is one step closer to being enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026 in his first year of eligibility.

Brees was one of 52 modern-era players to advance to the next round of the Hall of Fame’s voting process. He is one of eight players to advance this far in their first year of eligibility, joining Larry Fitzgerald, Philip Rivers, Jason Witten, Frank Gore, LeSean McCoy, Greg Olsen and Maurkice Pouncey.

Of the group, Brees almost certainly has the best shot at earning a gold jacket in his first opportunity.

Only Tom Brady threw for more yards or touchdowns than Brees in NFL history, who finished his career with 80,358 yards and 571 touchdowns. Brees has four of the top eight individual seasons by passing yards in NFL history, was the MVP of Super Bowl XLIV and led the Saints to a 142-86 record in his 15 years as the franchise quarterback.

 

 

Brees is not the only player with Saints or New Orleans connections on the list. Former All-Pro guard and current member of the Saints coaching staff Jahri Evans also made the cut, as did former Saints Lorenzo Neal and Olin Kreutz and New Orleans native Reggie Wayne.

There were 128 players nominated for Hall of Fame consideration this year. This group of 52 players was decided by a voting committee who cast a ballot for the 50 players they believed should be considered for enshrinement. 

Under Hall of Fame bylaws, ties for the 50th position also remain eligible for the Class of 2026.

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