Calvin Johnson doesn't do anything small.
The man they call Megatron broke Jerry Rice's NFL record of 1,848 receiving yards in a single season with a 26-yard catch and run with under four minutes remaining Saturday night in the Detroit Lions' 31-18 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
Johnson entered Week 16 needing 181 yards to break Rice's single-season record. He took care of that in one big game. Johnson caught 11 passes for 225 yards on 14 targets.
Johnson has 1,892 receiving yards heading into next week's season finale against the Chicago Bears.
It was a perfect showcase game for Johnson. He showed his wide-ranging skill set on a variety of routes over the middle and up the sideline. Johnson's underrated ability to gain yards after the catch especially was on display. The Falcons tried to double team Johnson, and it just didn't matter.
The yardage record wasn't the only one Johnson set Saturday. He also set the NFL record for most consecutive games over 100 receiving yards at eight and tied Michael Irvin's record of 11 games in a season with 100 or more yards.
Unfortunately, the record came late in yet another losing effort. That's been typical of this season in Detroit, but Johnson has given Lions fans a reason to cheer in a miserable season.
Johnson's monster game gives him a realistic chance to hit another milestone next week. Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson won't be the only NFL player going after 2,000 yards.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.
