Jerry Rice was the greatest receiver in NFL history, and some football authorities believe he may have been the greatest player at any position. His utter dominance is hard to believe in a league where the competition is so intense and conducted at such a high level. (Especially from a player that wasn't exceptionally special coming out of college)
For example, the records he holds for total receptions, total touchdown receptions, and total receiving yards are greater than the second-place totals not by 5 percent or 10 percent, which would be impressive, but by about 50 percent.
What made Rice so good?
With regard to most players, that kind of question usually guarantees an argument among sports fans, but in Rice's case the answer is completely non-controversial.
Everyone in the football world seems to agree that Rice was the greatest because he worked harder in practice and in the off-season than anyone else.
In team workouts he was famous for his hustle; while many receivers will trot back to the quarterback after catching a pass, Rice would sprint to the end zone after each reception. He would typically continue practicing long after the rest of the team had gone home.
Most remarkable were his six-days-a-week off-season workouts, which he conducted entirely on his own. Mornings were devoted to cardiovascular work, running a hilly five-mile trail; he would reportedly run ten forty-meter wind sprints up the steepest part.
In the afternoons, he did equally strenuous weight training. These workouts became legendary as the most demanding in the league, and other players would sometimes join Rice just to see what it was like. Some of them got sick before the day was over.
The lesson that's easiest to draw from Jerry Rice's story is that hard work & dedication to improvement makes all the difference.
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