Randy Moss’ Best Catch Ever?!
Joe Johnson
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Editor’s Note: This piece is part of an on-going partnership purplePTSD.com has with VikingsTerritory.com and is part of their ‘Question of the Week’ Segment…
To me, without a doubt, Randy Moss is the greatest wide receiver to ever play the game and really the greatest non-quarterback to ever touch the field as well. I, personally, don’t understand how people can argue otherwise as really Jerry Rice had the benefit of coming into the league and immediately playing with Joe Montana and then Steve Young. Randy Moss played with Randall Cunningham, Brad Johnson, Jeff George, Todd Bouman, Gus Frerotte, Kerry Collins, Andrew Walter, Matt Cassel, Vince Young, Aaron Brooks, Spergon Wynn, Rusty Smith, and Brian Hoyer… To name a few (I left out a few). That, combined with the difference in years played and you can see how amazing it is that Moss came as close as he did to touching Rice’s numbers.
Randy Moss changed entire defenses like no other player ever had before and like no other player really has since, as of late some have even begun to say that entire styles of defense were created simply to stop Moss. So, with that, it’s really hard as a guy who loves football because of Randy Moss to pick out one specific play as my absolute favorite. I couldn’t help but cheat, as it’s just too hard to narrow it down to just one. So, instead, I decided to pick the two that I believe lays out his otherworldly talent more than any other (Which was rough in it’s own right) and the other that best sums up his career.
First, comes the first example of the otherworldly talent, the play that really is a play that only Moss could make. It shows most of the facets of Moss’ game. From the hands, to the ability to create separation, to the ability to stay in bounds. This play came in 2000 against the Dallas Cowboys on a deep ball from Daunte Culpepper…
While that play shows a lot of those talents, it wasn’t the best example of his out and out speed. Moss was deceptively fast. Not that everyone didn’t/doesn’t know that Moss was most likely one of the few sub 4.2 forty yard dash runners in history (Alongside Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders), I more mean that on the field he often looked like he was running a certain speed when he was in fact in the process of burning you. This was because of his long legs and next level (Even for the NFL) speed. So, this example comes from yet another game against the Dallas Cowboys, an early foe of Moss, as they reneged on a pre-draft promise to take him with their first round pick. On this play Moss showed Cowboys owner Jerry Jones just how badly they screwed up, turning literally a play where he had zero angle into a touchdown and turning John Madden into a drooling fan in the process…
Lastly, comes the (in)famous touchdown that solidified a win against the Packers in the first post-season meeting between the two teams in their 40 plus year (At the time) rivalry. I think that this play best represents Moss’ career, in a way that many people may assume is negative (Show boat-y (With the afro and the mooning)) but in reality is positive. First, Moss played through injury, a lot. He played this game despite a high ankle sprain, which is one of the most painful injuries a receiver, especially one of Moss’ skill, can have. Secondly, we won this game solely because of Moss, showing how important he was to the franchise (And really, any franchise that he was apart of, outside of Oakland). Lastly, as we now know, Green Bay fans would moon the opposing teams bus when they arrived at Lambeau field (a site/smell that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy), meaning that Moss was simply responding to what was probably an awful arrival at the stadium hours earlier and that he/the “celebration” was A) Misunderstood and B) Created a “Scandal” that was completely blown out of proportion and unfair. Both of those describe Moss’ career and my continued hatred of Joe Buck perfectly.