Carolina Panthers star running back Christian McCaffrey had 72 receiving yards in Sunday’s 42-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints to become the third player in NFL history to accumulate 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in the same season.
McCaffrey exited in the fourth quarter with 1,387 rushing yards and 1,005 receiving yards. He joins Roger Craig (1985) and Marshall Faulk (1999) as members of the club.
“Every year I write down little goals and that was one of them,” McCaffrey said during the postgame press conference of joining the 1,000/1,000 club. “It is cool when you accomplish one of your goals. I can’t reiterate enough that the most important statistic is winning.”
McCaffrey gained 17 yards on a reception late in the third quarter to push his total to an even 1,000. Mindful of a possibility of a stat miscount, McCaffrey returned for Carolina’s first offensive play of the fourth quarter.
“I didn’t know,” McCaffrey said afterward. “I wasn’t 100 percent sure how much I needed.”
Quarterback Kyle Allen quickly threw the ball to McCaffrey for a 5-yard gain. McCaffrey then left the game for good.
McCaffrey finished the season with 116 catches, most ever by a running back. He set the previous mark of 107 in 2018.
Craig became the first player to achieve the 1,000/1,000 feat when he rushed for 1,050 yards and had 1,016 receiving yards for the San Francisco 49ers.
Faulk joined the club 14 years later when he rushed for 1,381 yards and had 1,048 receiving yards for the St. Louis Rams.
McCaffrey understands the importance of joining an exclusive club but said being part of a 5-11 squad that lost its final eight games isn’t something he is happy with.
“We’ve learned that the most important stat is winning and we didn’t get that done this year,” McCaffrey said. “The individual stats, obviously, are great and they’re cool and stuff you can look back on later.”
