How good is Randy Moss at this point?

[zippo59]

Some people say his skills have declined significantly, some his poor stats were the result of playing on a terrible team with a terrible quarterback and not trying. Personally, I don't consider 30 that old for a wide reciever.

I don't think we will know anything for sure until we see him play, but do people have any thoughts about it?

 

[Va_Pats_Fan]

jabbar was a street FA on Sept 1. No one wanted him.

He was a 100 yard receiver in Jan. It wasn't Jabbar, it was Brady.

Apply above rule to Moss.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

When on top of his game, Randy Moss has been as good as any other reciever in the 100 year history of pro football.

We only need that type performance out of him down the stretch. By the playoffs, he will be ready to put it together with Brady, barring unforseen circumstances.

Randy was the best, and to think that he is just dead in the water at the age that Troy Brown really took off is silly.

So he drops a couple balls in the preseason. So he runs a few bad routes. Eventually he will put it together. We don't need his best every week to win, but it will come in handy down the stretch.

 

[Rob0729]

From a degregation of talent standpoint, I am more concerned about his injuries over the last few years rather than his age. He had a foot injury in Minnesotta that was rumored to be a significant reason why they traded him because of the long term effects. He was hampered with groin and other injuries in Oakland. Sometimes these things are reversable and other times these linger on for the rest of the player's career. We will have to wait and see which one it is for Moss.

I am also concerned about his ability to pick up the offense. What Tom Walsh said in Borges article did concern me about his ability to learn new things. Part of it might have been sour grapes, but I don't know if all of it was. He has never done a lot of the things we are going to ask him to do here and this is a complicated offense to learn and not just for morons like Donald Hayes.

I said when we got him that if Moss gives us one or two big plays a game, we got our money's worth. But I still am not as confident as a lot of people that he will return to close to his 2003 and before form.

 

[mtbykr]

TB has made below average receivers look great in the past (cue givens huge contract, gafney and caldwell this year) Even if Moss's talent has decreased (which i don't think is much, i think playing on the raiders had a lot to do with it) playing with TB will be amazing to watch. Remember Moss has never had a halfway decent QB throwing to him...he had no one in oakland and culpepper only got recognition becuase he had Moss turning terrible throws into yards-once Moss left Culpepper has been terrible (even before the knee)

 

[mgcolby]

I don't think anyone could truly answer that question right now (except the coaching staff, I guess).IMO, regardless of how it turns out the risk was/is worth everybit of an extra 4th round pick that was aquired as part of a first round swap.

 

[Rob0729]

TB has made below average receivers look great in the past (cue givens huge contract, gafney and caldwell this year) Even if Moss's talent has decreased (which i don't think is much, i think playing on the raiders had a lot to do with it) playing with TB will be amazing to watch. Remember Moss has never had a halfway decent QB throwing to him...he had no one in oakland and culpepper only got recognition becuase he had Moss turning terrible throws into yards-once Moss left Culpepper has been terrible (even before the knee)

Culpepper had 4,717 yards and 39 TDs in a season Moss had 767 yards and 13 TDs and missed 3 games and didn't have a catch in two others. Let's not overstate the importance of Moss to Culpepper. Culpepper before he tore apart his knee was an above average QB. He had a horrible season at the start of 2005 because they decided to scrap Scott Linehan's vertical offense when he left to use a more quick release offense that didn't suite Culpepper's strengths.

 

[patriotspride]

the only thing that stops randy moss is his me first i this and im that attitude .it made me sick seeing him in a patriots uniform .if you get a chance watch his interview with stephon marberry .

 

[Patstopia]

My one and only concern is that the players TB makes better are the route runners. He couldn't improve Gabriel who was supposedly a poor route runner. It has been reported that Moss is not a good route runner either, and that may be the a problem. My guess would be either Moss runs his routes as they are suppose to be run, or he will be released/traded.

This is also the reason why I look forward to the TB/Welker combo.

 

[patriotspride]

This is also the reason why I look forward to the TB/Welker combo.

believe it or not welker and thomas are the two new guys im looking forward to the most at seeing play .

 

[PATRIOT64]

Marvin Harrison is now 35 and at 34 helped the Colts win the BIG one.

Jerry Rice was in his mid 30s and helped the Raiders GET to the BIG one.

Who says 30 is old for a Wide Receiver? - Nah!

 

[BelichickFan]

Marvin Harrison is now 35 and at 34 helped the Colts win the BIG one.

Jerry Rice was in his mid 30s and helped the Raiders GET to the BIG one.

Who says 30 is old for a Wide Receiver? - Nah!

Although you named a few, WR isn't a position where you last forever, you can't name A LOT of them who have been really good beyond 30. Moss is such an athletic freak, though, I don't think normal rules apply to him.

 

[zarakotas5]

Although this is about Moss, I second the excitement about Welker. Welker is tailor made for Brady.

Moss has gotten by (and been coddled/allowed to get by) on sheer athleticism. The injuries he's had have permanently sidelined lesser athletes. Plantar fasciitis is particularly debilitating. His perserverance through that injury should be a testament to something unappreciated about him.

Even in NE, I doubt Moss will be expected to be a jack-of-all routes receiver. He hasn't had a QB of Brady's calibre any more than Brady has had a Moss. Combining the two, who are both still within the range of "prime" years, could pay great dividends.

If Moss simply does what is asked of him, and considering what he has shown in faith he probably will, there is no reason to expect the experiment to be a failure.

PS: 30 for a receiver isn't a death nell, he supposedly ran in the 4.2s, and his hands have never been a question. He's at least in the top 10.

 

[frankiesfly]

the only thing that stops randy moss is his me first i this and im that attitude .it made me sick seeing him in a patriots uniform .if you get a chance watch his interview with stephon marberry .

What did you say???????????

 

[primetime]

Moss is a strange case. He's one of the most athletic players in the history of football, and his body control is second to none. Athleticism isn't all in a 40 time, though Moss has shown that he can still run an impressive 40. He's probably not where he was 5 years ago, but he has amazing hands as well and can catch balls while flopping all over the field. He's also tall.

I don't think he's faded too much. He's only 30 and played the last two years with the Raiders. Reports of his demise have been highly exaggerated, IMO.

 

[Aqua4Ever04]

Well PWF rated Randy Moss 19th amongst NFL receivers. Donte Stallworth is 26th and Welker isn't on the list. Just a heads up on where all these big signings rank.

None of these guys are even close to the significance of signing Adalius Thomas.

What did you say???????????

No one really ever knows. You kind of just pat him on the head for trying to make sense. I consider him my little buddy from the big brother program.

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

He will be even better once Johnathan Smith gets cut, and he could get a solid number for himself..

 

[patfanken]

Well PWF rated Randy Moss 19th amongst NFL receivers. Donte Stallworth is 26th and Welker isn't on the list. Just a heads up on where all these big signings rank.

Put this under the heading of: Grasping at Straws. Aqua boy, is this the same PFW, which "ranked" the Pats LEAST likely to appear in the Superbowl in the next 5 years in the spring of 2001

And shouldn't the fact that Welker wasn't listed give you hint at how "comprehensive" that ranking was? Lists like those are the jobs at magazines that interns get assigned.

Keep on "grasping at straws" Aquaboy, I'm sure they will ease the pain of ANOTHER season without sniffing a playoff game for the ONCE mighty Dolphins.....oh yeah, I forgot....

 

[patriotspride]

No one really ever knows. You kind of just pat him on the head for trying to make sense. I consider him my little buddy from the big brother program.

e thugging how very lame pats 1 where are you ?your buddy aqua is hijacking yet another thread.

 

[BB_dynasty]

Well let me say this. If I were an NFL player in oakland, I would probably have character issues to, losing every week gets frustrating.


And also, Moss has managed not to get into any trouble so far. There are other players like Tank, and Pacman that have managed to get in trouble, only a few weeks into the Goodell era.

Moss actually has a desire to play now, so character will be fine. And he has plenty of talent left in him. I don't blame him for bad seasons in Oakland. Look who was throwing to him? And I would want to leave if I knew I had Jamarcus Russel throwing to me. He is going to be one of the biggest busts ever.