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Professional loudmouth Freddie Mitchell of the Philadelphia Eagles had half as many receptions from Donovan McNabb as Rodney Harrison. Unfortunately for Mitchell, Harrison is a safety for the New England Patriots. (Mitchell famously called out the Patriots’ secondary two weeks ago, singling out Harrison as someone he “had something for.” Perhaps he meant “a football, twice.”)

Mitchell, who has coined several nicknames for himself (including “Fred Ex” and “The People’s Champ”) had an entourage of hangers-on follow him around after the NFC championship game, carrying a wrestling championship belt. His coach forbade him from talking to the media for 24 hours after an outburst in the week leading up to the Super Bowl. However, in a display of sporting karma that would make Gregg Easterbrook grin, Mitchell was shut out for most of the Super Bowl and had only one inconsequential reception.

The sports world tolerates big talkers, as long as they produce, and perhaps the “People’s Champ” was just letting off some well-deserved steam. (Never mind that it seems unlikely that he had a month worth of steam to let off leading up to the Super Bowl.) Whether or not his outbursts are justifiable, then, could depend to some degree on how well he compares to elite wide receivers (many of which have also tangled with the media).

In his first four seasons in the NFL, Randy Moss had 53 touchdown catches. Terrell Owens had 30, Cris Carter had 21, and Michael Irvin had 20. By comparison, Mitchell has 5. In the crowded field of media-whore, talent-free NFL buffoons, “Fred Ex” makes Jeremy Shockey look underrated.