49ers' Anquan Boldin Nearing 1,000 Career Receptions

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Anquan Boldin will enter Sunday's matchup with the Detroit Lions needing just one more catch to break into the 1,000 career receptions club, per Pro-Football-Reference.com.

Boldin will look to build on last week's strong performance, having collected eight passes for 74 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets, albeit in a 24-14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

It's been a bit of a down year for the 35-year-old wideout, with 59 receptions for 691 yards and only three scores in 12 appearances. Barring a miracle over the final two weeks, he'll fall short of 1,000 yards for the first time in his three years with the team.

However, much of the statistical decline can be attributed to the poor play of the quarterbacks for the 4-10 49ers, not to mention the fact that Boldin has missed two games.

His declining speed and elusiveness hasn't helped, with his average of 4.0 yards after the catch representing his lowest mark since his second season in the league.

Even so, one advantage that keeps Boldin around is his ability to catch the ball in traffic. Over the course of his career, the 6'1", 220-pound wideout has continually used his strength to outduel cornerbacks, and he has maintained a catch percentage above 60 this season despite the decline in his other stats.

With no obvious signs that he plans to retire, Boldin could eventually make a run at 1,100 receptions, which has only been achieved by four players.