Green Could Join Randy Moss in Record Books Sunday

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green entered Monday night with 896 receiving yards and three touchdowns through eight games this season.

Per ESPN Stats & Info, a 104-yard receiving effort Monday night would have put him in elite company. Green needed that output to join Randy Moss as one of just two wide receivers to total 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first six NFL seasons.

Green finished Monday's contest with 68 receiving yards and a touchdown. He now needs just 36 yards to reach the total, per ESPN Stats & Info.

The Bengals star should easily surpass that mark come Sunday considering he's topped 100 receiving yards four times this season. Green posted a season-high 180 receiving yards against the New York Jets in Week 1, totaled 173 receiving yards against the Miami Dolphins in Week 4 and had two consecutive 100-yard performances prior to Monday's game against the New York Giants.

Continued health has served as a large contributing factor to Green's repeated success. In his five previous NFL campaigns, he hasn't missed more than three games, and he's played in at least 15 games in four of five seasons prior to 2016.

Not only has he remained healthy, but Green has also enjoyed consistency under center with quarterback Andy Dalton. Cincinnati's signal-caller was selected a round later than the fourth-overall pick Green in the 2011 NFL draft, and the two have remained mainstays in the club's offense ever since.

Cincinnati has eagerly waited 25 years for a Bengals playoff win, the longest drought in the NFL. Per Pro Football Reference, the team has lost eight straight playoff games since its Wild Card victory over the Houston Oilers in 1991. They have had an opportunity to break the streak each of the past five seasons but have yet to get over the hump.

Green and Dalton have led the Bengals to just a 3-5-1 record through nine games this season, currently placing them third in the AFC North Division behind the Baltimore Ravens (5-4) and Pittsburgh Steelers (4-5). If Marvin Lewis can't turn his team around quickly, the city may have to wait at least another season.

Sunday's tilt against the Buffalo Bills provides an opportunity for Cincinnati to start its climb. It also represents a chance for Green to enter the record books on a high note.