Update: History has been made as 4 with Alabama roots reach NFL receiving milestone…

During Week 16 games of the 2023 NFL season, four players from Alabama high schools and colleges achieved 1,000 receiving yards.

Wide receivers Amari Cooper of the Cleveland Browns, George Pickens of the Pittsburgh Steelers, DeVonta Smith of the Philadelphia Eagles, and Jaylen Waddle of the Miami Dolphins all reached the NFL milestone. Pickens is from Hoover.

Cooper reached 1,000 receiving yards for the seventh time in his NFL career with the most productive game in the league this season. During the Browns’ 36-22 victory over the Houston Texans on Sunday, Cooper had 11 receptions for 265 yards and two touchdowns

Cooper’s 2023 totals after the outburst were 72 receptions for 1,250 yards and five touchdowns. In 2019, he surpassed his prior single-season record of 1,189 yards while playing for the Dallas Cowboys.

For the first time in his career, Pickens reached 1,000 yards in a major game as well. On Saturday, Pickens had four receptions for 195 yards and two touchdowns as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 34-11. Pickens’ production featured an 86-yard touchdown reception, the longest scrimmage play in the NFL this year.

Pickens has 56 receptions for 1,009 yards and five touchdowns in 2023 after recording 52 receptions for 801 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie last season.

Nagging injuries continued to have Waddle shuttling on and off the field on Sunday. He caught only one pass in the Dolphins’ 22-20 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, but it went for a 50-yard gain.

Waddle has 72 receptions for 1,014 yards and four touchdowns this season. Sunday’s reception made him the ninth player in NFL history to reach 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first three seasons.

Smith reached the 1,000-yard milestone for the second straight season with four receptions for 79 yards and one touchdown in the Eagles’ 33-25 victory over the New York Giants on Monday. Smith has 78 receptions for 1,036 yards and seven touchdowns in 2023.

The players joined Miami wide receiver Tyreek Hill (West Alabama) and Houston wide receiver Nico Collins (Clay-Chalkville) as 1,000-yard receivers with Alabama football roots this season.

Hill has 106 receptions for 1,641 yards and 12 touchdowns as he leads the NFL in receiving yards this season.

Collins has 64 receptions for 1,022 yards and seven touchdowns even though he’s missed two games with injuries.