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Vikings legend Cris Carter responds to Asante Samuel's 'overrated' claim

Overrated? How about fourth in NFL history in receiving touchdowns...
Oct 29, 2000; Tampa, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Minnesota Vikings receiver (80) Cris Carter in action against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
Oct 29, 2000; Tampa, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Minnesota Vikings receiver (80) Cris Carter in action against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. | Paul Chapman-Imagn Images

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We've got another update in the beef between Vikings legend Cris Carter and former All-Pro cornerback Asante Samuel. This is peak NFL offseason stuff, folks.

It started when Carter criticized Chad Johnson over Johnson telling Jaguars rookie Travis Hunter he would beat him on ten consecutive routes right now, at 47 years old. Carter went off on Johnson a bit on his podcast, essentially saying he wasn't as good as he thinks he was. That led to a podcast response from Samuel, who called Carter "one of the most overrated" wide receivers in the Hall of Fame. (The whole backstory is covered well in this video).

Well, now Carter has responded to Samuel, who also called him a "possession receiver" to try to diminish his greatness and said "as a cornerback, what do I have to worry about, covering a guy like Cris Carter?"

"No. 1, you gotta point out the things that are correct," Carter said on his podcast, Fully Loaded. "Yes, I was a possession receiver, absolutely. But, the best possession receiver in the history of the game. That's what the numbers say. I don't take it as derogatory when people say 'Oh, you're a possession receiver.' That's fine. But alright, who did it better?

"And there's so many fast guys that can't score the football. So to me, he's talking about 'What are you worried about?' Well you're worried about me scoring. High school, I scored a lot of touchdowns. College, scored a lot of touchdowns, they're just now breaking my touchdown records from college. And after 23 years away from the NFL, I'm still fourth in touchdowns. The difference between me and other possession receivers is they didn't score a lot of touchdowns."

Carter isn't lying. He caught 26 touchdown passes in three years at Ohio State, then went on to catch 130 of them in his Hall of Fame NFL career. Only Jerry Rice, Randy Moss, and Terrell Owens have more. Carter also happens to be sixth all-time in receptions and 13th in receiving yards.

Then Carter brought up Johnson again to illustrate his point.

"Chad Johnson scored double-digit touchdowns one time," he said. "I think I (did that) six times. Scoring the football is the No. 1 play as a receiver. No, I was not a burner. I ran 4.6, 4.65. But can do it every single day, can do it for four quarters, and consistent at it."

"I don't know if it's a South Florida thing, he's trying to defend Chad," Carter said of Samuel. "Let Chad fight his own battles, man. ... I didn't say Chad was overrated, I said Chad wasn't a Hall of Famer."

"What if Asante Samuel was covering you?" asked Carter's co-host.

"I don't get into that," Carter replied. "What difference does it make?"

This has been your update on the recent beef between former NFL stars with microphones. We'll see if Johnson or Samuel decide to fire back at Carter in the near future.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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