When Torry Holt ended his collegiate career, there was no doubt that he was the best wide receiver in the 1999 NFL Draft class. A consensus All-American, Holt was named ACC Player of the Year for the 1998 season, held multiple NC State school records upon graduation and he posted back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons to finish out his Wolfpack career, something that would become the norm through his pro career.
St. Louis selected Holt with the sixth overall pick and less than a year later after his selection, the Rams would win Super Bowl XXXIV. A pivotal part of the Greatest Show on Turf, Holt played Robin to Batman, Isaac Bruce, as the duo became the most prolific pass-catching tandem in the league.
In Super Bowl XXXIV, Holt caught a team-high seven passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. Holt and Bruce would both have over 100 receiving yards in the game and both men scored a touchdown.
By Holt’s second year in the NFL, it was clear that the Rams had two Batmans on the outside as Holt put up a league-leading 1,635 receiving yards and six touchdowns. The 2000 season would be the first of eight consecutive 1,000-yard seasons.
Holt would have a career year in 2003. He would lead the league in receptions and receiving yards with career highs in catches, yards, and touchdowns. Holt would receive a first-team All-Pro selection as a result. What made Holt’s 2003 season even more impressive is it was the first year Kurt Warner wasn’t on the roster. Marc Bulger became the full-time starter after a promising 2002 and Holt’s play helped send Bulger to the Pro Bowl.
Holt and the Rams would part ways after the 2008 season and he would sign with the Jaguars. After a year in Jacksonville and a brief offseason stint with the Patriots, Holt retired after an 11-year NFL career.
As of writing, Holt ranks 23rd on the all-time reception list. Holt also ranks 17th on the all-time touchdown list.
In Holt’s 10 years with the Rams, he had eight 1,000-yard seasons. He also helped the team qualify for the playoffs in five of those seasons including two trips to the Super Bowl and the team’s first-ever championship. Holt is also one of five players to record multiple 1,600-plus-yard seasons in NFL history.
Holt’s career is undoubtedly one of the most prolific of all time. Holt is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame and has his number retired by NC State.
However, despite his legendary career, two accolades elude him in retirement. The Rams’ ring of honor and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It’s abundantly clear that one could not tell the story of the Rams or the NFL without Torry Holt. Without Holt, there’s no Greatest Show on Turf and without the Greatest Show on Turf, NFL offenses may not be as pass-happy as they are today.
Holt is a seven-time Pro Bowler, a member of the NFL’s 2000s All-Decade team and his numbers speak for themselves. Whether the Rams were one of the league’s best as they were in the early 2000s or one of the worst teams in pro football as they were in the later half of the decade, Holt’s production never wavered.
He deserves his moment in the spotlight and it should be granted while he’s still able to enjoy it.
In retirement, Holt has teamed up with his brother and fellow NFL veteran Terrence Holt with their company Holt Brothers Construction. Based in their home state of North Carolina, Holt Brothers has been involved in some of the biggest projects within the Raleigh area.
The brothers remain active in football, helping out youth players in the North Carolina area. They also have a foundation built in memory of their late mother, Ojetta Holt-Shoffner. They help assist families whose parents are afflicted by cancer.
Torry Holt. A Hall of Famer both on and off the field. It’s time to give him his jacket.
