A heartwarming celebration in Canton, Ohio, for the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame ceremony also shone a spotlight on what comes next. With some legitimate all-time greats becoming eligible to be elected in 2027, it sparked conversations immediately.
However, among the group, perhaps the most polarizing name was Antonio Brown. While making a case for his induction, a former two-time Super Bowl champion claimed he was better than the legendary Jerry Rice, much to the chagrin of the NFL world as a whole.
Despite his dominance throughout the 2010s, it is unlikely that Brown will be selected into the Hall of Fame anytime soon due to his off-the-field controversies. However, the resume for the Pittsburgh Steelers legend is nothing to scoff at.
Making four consecutive first-team All-Pro selections, he also earned seven Pro Bowl nods and was the league leader in receptions twice, receiving yards twice, and receiving touchdowns once. As a result, LeSean McCoy was ready to put him over Rice.
According to PFN's WR Impact Metric , Brown finished as a top-8 wideout in the league in each season from 2013 to 2018. He was ranked as the best player at his position in 2014 (94.5 WRi) and 2017 (88.5 WRi).
During the latest episode of the "Speakeasy" podcast, McCoy made the case for Brown and said, "It might sound crazy. But Jerry Rice or AB? I'm taking AB." When the rest of the podcast reacted in shock, he repeated, "Jerry Rice or Antonio Brown? I'm taking Antonio Brown."
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Even as his co-hosts continued to ridicule him, the Philadelphia Eagles legend pushed on, "What am I saying wrong? What can Jerry Rice do that AB can't do?"
Unfortunately for McCoy, a majority of the NFL fan base disagreed with him.
As one fan claimed , "AB over Jerry Rice is the STUPIDEST (expletive) I ever heard of," the evidence for Rice was overwhelming. The resume of accomplishments alone was hard to fathom when it came to the San Francisco 49ers legend.
Rice still holds the NFL record for most career receptions, receiving yards, receiving yards in the playoffs, receiving touchdowns, receiving touchdowns in the playoffs, total touchdowns, total touchdowns in the playoffs, all-purpose yards, and all-purpose yards in the playoffs more than 20 years after retiring from the sport.
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But his list of accomplishments might be even longer. A three-time Super Bowl champion and two-time Offensive Player of the Year, he was named to 10 first-team All-Pro and 13 Pro Bowls, while leading the league in receptions twice, receiving yards six times, and receiving touchdowns six times as well.
As one fan claimed , "More proof that just because you played a sport don't mean you know ball," another believed it might be among the worst takes ever made. "Sometimes you don't think a more dumb take could exist. Fear not, here it is."
One fan even called him out for trying to generate buzz as he wrote, "So much clickbait statements. I love AB, but he's not on Jerry's level."
Another fan went ballistic at the idea, penning down a long note directly addressing McCoy's take: "AB over Rice is crazy. This and basically every NBA podcast proves you can play the game and still have stupid Takes. Peak AB was HIM. But his mental was off, and it cost him. Rice put up modern numbers in a run-first era where going over the middle was suicide and did it at a high level for almost 2 decades."
It remains to be seen if Brown does eventually make the Hall of Fame. But as far as his case against Rice, the nearly unanimous verdict from across the NFL landscape was a resounding no.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network .
