Stephone Paige (born October 15, 1961) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). An

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after playing

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Fresno State Bulldogs The Fresno State Bulldogs are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent California State University, Fresno (commonly referred to as Fresno State). The university is a member of NCAA Division I's Mountain West Conference (MW). It was a ...

, Paige played in nine seasons for the Chiefs.

Early life

Paige attended and played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

Long Beach Polytechnic High School Long Beach Polytechnic High School, founded in 1895 as Long Beach High School, is a four-year public high school located at 1600 Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach, California, United States. The school serves portions of Long Beach, including Bixby ...

College career

Paige attended and played college football at

California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

. In the 1982 season, Paige had six receptions for 176 receiving yards and three touchdowns against

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

. In the 1982 California Bowl, Paige scored three touchdowns and 246 receiving yards, both school records, in the 29–28 victory over

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

. At the time of the bowl game, Paige's 246 receiving yards were an NCAA single-bowl game record that has since been passed numerous times.

Professional career

Paige went undrafted in the

1983 NFL draft The 1983 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1983, at the New York Sh ...

and later joined the Kansas City Chiefs.

1983 season

In Week 6, against the

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). The Raiders played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural ...

, Paige recorded his first NFL touchdown on a 36-yard reception in the first quarter of the 21–20 loss. He scored two receiving touchdowns in a 41–38 loss to the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

in Week 15. He finished his rookie season with 30 receptions for 528 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.

1984 season

Paige finished his second NFL season with 30 receptions for 541 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns. Paige tied Carlos Carson and Henry Marshall for the team lead in receiving touchdowns in 1984.

1985 season

In the 1985 season, Paige recorded 43 receptions for 943 receiving yards and ten receiving touchdowns. He had three games on the season with multiple receiving touchdowns. He led the team in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns in 1985.

Record-breaking game

On December 22, 1985, in Week 16, the regular season finale, Paige had 309 receiving yards on eight receptions against the

. Paige's record-setting performance was the first 300-yard game seen in the NFL since Cloyce Box accomplished the feat in 1950. He broke Jim Benton's mark of 303 yards that had lasted for over 40 years. Paige accomplished the feat with only eight receptions for a 38.63 yards-per-catch average. No other 300-yard game had been accomplished on less than 12 receptions. Paige's mark remained an

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

single-game record until it was broken in 1989 by

Flipper Anderson Willie Lee "Flipper" Anderson Jr. (born March 7, 1965) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Los Angeles Rams. He played college f ...

of the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

with a 336-yard performance in an overtime game. Paige's 309-yard performance remained the NFL record for a regulation game until Calvin Johnson broke the mark with a 329-yard day in the 2013 season. Paige was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his historic game. Paige ended up leading the NFL in the 1985 season in yards per reception with 21.9, undoubtedly bolstered by his record-breaking game.

1986 season

Paige had two games with multiple receiving touchdowns in the 1986 season, Week 7 against the

and Week 12 against the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Centra ...

. His lone game going over the 100-yard mark came in Week 13 against the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

. In the 1986 season, Paige finished with 52 receptions for 829 receiving yards and 11 receiving touchdowns. He led the team in all major receiving categories.

1987 season

In Week 8, against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

, Paige had five receptions for 121 receiving yards and one touchdown in the 31–28 loss. Paige played in 12 games and recorded 43 receptions for 707 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns in the 1987 season.

1988 season

In Week 14 against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

, Paige had four receptions for 113 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 38–34 victory. In the 1988 season, Paige recorded 61 receptions for 902 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns. He led the team in all major receiving categories.

1989 season

In Week 8, against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

, Paige had seven receptions for 163 yards in the 23–17 loss. In Week 13, against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

, he had seven receptions for 133 receiving yards and a touchdown in the 26–21 victory. Paige played in 14 games and recorded 44 receptions for 759 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 1989 season. Paige led the team in receptions and receiving yards. Despite having only two receiving touchdowns, Paige tied for the team lead with Emile Harry, Jonathan Hayes, and Robb Thomas.

1990 season

In Week 2, against the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

, Paige had ten receptions for 206 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in the 24–23 loss. In Week 13, against the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

, he had seven receptions for 151 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown in the 37–7 victory. The 1990 season marked Paige's most productive year as a professional with 65 receptions for 1,021 yards and five touchdowns. He led the team in receptions and receiving yards. He tied with Bill Jones for the team lead in receiving touchdowns. In the Wild Card Round of the 1990–91 season, Paige had eight receptions for 142 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown in the 17–16 loss to the

1991 season

In the 1991 season, Paige suffered a knee injury, which limited him to three games. He was declared out for the season after Week 5. After the 1991 season, the Chiefs released Paige. Between 1985 and 1991, Paige had at least one reception for 83 consecutive games, a team record until it was broken on January 1, 2006, by tight end Tony Gonzalez. Paige was signed by the Minnesota Vikings in 1993 but did not record any statistics with the team.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Personal life

Paige is married has three children. Paige's sister Faye Mohammad was a basketball player and track athlete at Long Beach State. He is the uncle of NBA player Shabazz Muhammad and tennis player

Asia Muhammad Asia Muhammad (born April 4, 1991) is an American professional tennis player who specializes in doubles. She has been ranked as high as world No. 8 in doubles by the WTA, achieved on March 17, 2025. Muhammad has won 13 doubles titles on the WT ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paige, Stephone American football wide receivers Saddleback Gauchos football players Fresno State Bulldogs football players Kansas City Chiefs players Living people 1961 births Sportspeople from Slidell, Louisiana Players of American football from St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana Long Beach Polytechnic High School alumni Minnesota Vikings players