I know this isn't about the Browns nor does it have anything to do with Cleveland sports in general, but I love both football and the NFL and felt compelled to write about the trade of Randy Moss from the New England Patriots to the Minnesota Vikings.
Anytime a player is dealt in the middle of the season in the NFL it's usually a pretty big deal. It's not like baseball, where people can be traded 3/4 of the way through the season and keep playing like pretty much nothing has ever happened. When a NFL player switches teams a lot of times everything is different. It's a different system, it's a different playbook, it's different terminology, different coaches, different team leaders, a different quarterback. The only thing familiar about this situation for Randy Moss is probably the practice facility, the stadium and the colors - although even the uniforms are different since he last played for the Vikings.
And you know that team is ecstatic that Moss is back. You've got a guy who is nearly 41 playing quarterback, and right now Brett Favre clearly needs a big play wide receiver while Sidney Rice recovers from his hip injury. I think it's safe to say right now that Favre is riding the struggle bus with only 2 touchdowns and 6, yes 6 interceptions. It's been well publicized that Favre wanted the Packers to get Moss in Green Bay a few years ago in 2007 before Raiders traded him to the Patriots. The Vikings right now are 1-2, but they've got one of the best running backs in the league in Adrian Peterson and should be able to get right back on track if the chemistry between Moss and Favre clicks early and often.
On the flip side of that, it's interesting to take a look at the New England Patriots to see that they gave up a future hall of fame wide receiver for just a third round pick in next year's draft. In fact, Bill Bellichick sent Moss and a 7th round draft pick in 2012 to the Vikings for Moss. Sure, he hasn't had the type of production this year that he did in the past (specifically 2007, when Tom Brady threw for 50 touchdowns and 23 of them went to Moss), but I think he can still play at a very high level.
That being said, the Patriots have a reputation for not paying people once Bellichick determines they've reached a "certain age." Think about Richard Seymour, Lawyer Malloy, and Deon Branch, just to name a few and now Randy Moss joins that list. All those guys were fairly critical parts of New England's success, but, as Bellichick put it in his press conference earlier today, the Patriots have won more games than any other NFL team in the past decade. I think what we're seeing from that organization right now is clearly a trend to make the team younger as they've now stockpiled eight draft picks in the first four rounds, two in each round. I'd definitely consider the Patriots to be a dynasty team based on what they've done in the past decade - which is win all the time. I like them getting all the draft picks because they do need to get younger, and with their coaching and veterans on that team, rookies can easily make an impact (see Julian Edelman last year). To me, this speaks volumes about their organization's commitment to winning and obviously Bellichick is a big part of that.
I think this is really going to prove to be a win-win for both teams. Brett Favre gets the wide receiver of his dreams for a run that could go deep into the playoffs, while the Patriots rid themselves of a contract situation that would have distracted them for the rest of the season and acquire another draft pick for talent in the future. I'm really looking forward to the Monday Night Football match up of Vikings and Jets coming up this week as we'll get to see if Moss can escape from "Revis Island" once again.
~MAS
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