He slowly developed into a deep threat at wide receiver. In 1997, he suffered a sprained knee injury in the preseason finale against the Cincinnati Bengals and missed the first 4 games of the regular season. He started 6 games, while registering 34 receptions for 637 yards and 6 touchdowns. In the ninth week against the Oakland Raiders, he had 4 receptions for 100 yards and one touchdown, marking his first career 100-yard receiving game. In that contest, he teamed with Joey Galloway (7 receptions for 117 yards) to become the third pair of receivers in franchise history to top 100 yards in the same game.
