Toon Has Enough Moves to Be NFL’s Best Wide Receiver

If Dr. Frankenstein was still in business and had to create a wide receiver, he’d probably come up with Al Toon. And he’d have every team in the NFL bidding for his handiwork.

Toon, the speedy, strong, second-year receiver of the New York Jets, leads the NFL with 36 catches in five games. He runs every kind of pattern, from slant-ins to fly patterns to screens, going over the middle, down the sidelines, short and long. At 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, the 1985 first-round draft choice from Wisconsin is an inviting target.

“I guess I give Kenny (O’Brien, the Jets’ starting quarterback) more range to throw to, my being a little bit taller than the average receiver,” Toon said.

“It feels good to be No. 1 in the league, but it’s still early in the season. I think I’m fulfilling my job on the field, what is expected of me, and going along the right path.”

That path often leads to first downs. One of O’Brien’s favorite passes, particularly on third-down plays, is to Toon on a curl-in over the middle. The receiver is in front of the defender and O’Brien can throw a bit higher than usual. Toon has turned several such patterns into long gains by shaking off a tackler and heading downfield.

“It seems I’ve caught a lot of balls short to medium range this year,” said Toon, who has lined up everywhere from flanker to slotback to halfback to tight end. “In essence, that’s what you have to do to set up making the big play.

“We’ve got Wesley (Walker) to go deep and other guys who can get open. That gives me more room, it means I can’t be double-teamed as much.”

Leaving Toon one-on-one with a cornerback can be a mismatch in size. Few safeties in the NFL have the speed to stay with Toon. Linebackers are more suited in build to cover him, but they don’t have the quickness nor the jumping ability--Toon was a long jumper, triple jumper and hurdler at Wisconsin.

“I’m a little larger and maybe more physical than most wideouts,” said Toon, who most resembles former All-Pro Harold Carmichael in physique and style. “But that doesn’t make you better.”

“Al is a load to have to cover,” Walker said. “He can do everything and he’s just bigger and faster than a lot of the people who cover him.

“This is the most balanced offense we’ve had since I’ve been here (10 years). Everybody can catch the ball, everybody is a part of the passing game.”

But Toon is the biggest part. He showed signs of his unlimited talent as a rookie following a slow start caused by a contract holdout, winding up with 46 receptions for a 14.4-yard average.

“I didn’t come in until (after) the first game,” he said. “It took a while for me to get together. The holdout hurt me for a few weeks.

“This year, I’m more comfortable and have more confidence. I’m more involved in the offense, though I don’t think they’ve put any plays in for me.”

Toon is averaging 12.3 yards per catch and has been O’Brien’s main receiver on third down plays. It is a role to which he is accustomed.

“I was primarily that kind of receiver at Wisconsin, a possession receiver,” he said. “How many long passes does anyone catch in a game? You have to be able to pull in those third-down passes for first downs.

“And I like turning them into long ones.”

The Jets have envisioned a multi-pronged passing attack since 1980, when they traded two first-round picks for the No. 2 selection overall in the draft to take Johnny “Lam” Jones of Texas. The thinking was that Jones and Walker would be an uncoverable duo at the wideouts.