Moss. Here's a good article on the topic.
<header class="post-info single-post-header" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 0px 0px 30px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: medium; line-height: 16px; font-family: AtlasGroteskWeb, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 575px;">[h=1]Randy Moss May Well Have Been The Greatest Receiver Of All Time[/h]
By Benjamin Morris and Neil Paine
Filed under GOAT
</header>“Now that I’m older … I really do think I’m the greatest receiver to ever play this game.” — Randy Moss, before the Super Bowl in 2013.
When Randy Moss proclaimed that he was the greatest receiver ever, he was wearing the same-color uniform as Jerry Rice. Rice, the consensus Greatest Receiver Of All Time™, did not have Moss’s up-and-down career. He was not marred by frequent controversy, nor periods where, by his own admission, he didn’t go all-out on every play. He was Jerry Rice, the guy who finished ahead of Moss[SUP]1[/SUP] in the all-time list of receiving yards and atop the receiving touchdowns list, too, well ahead of Moss.
But there’s one widely known football expert who makes an excellent case for Moss: Randy Moss.
Here’s the rest of what he had to say in that infamous press conference:
OK then. In conjunction with ESPN’s new “30 for 30” documentary, “Rand University,” let’s do it.[SUP]2[/SUP]
Moss may be even more right than he knows. Not necessarily about being “the greatest” — that kind of claim depends too much upon subjective interpretations of greatness to be attackable empirically — but if we put aside his receiving numbers and just measure his impact on the game, Moss is pretty much boss.
Moreover — in part by virtue of his many controversies — Moss may have created one the greatest (and most important) data sets in the history of football.
If there’s one thing we know about Randy Moss, it’s that he makes QBs look good, going all the way back to 1997, when Moss and Chad Pennington led the nation in touchdown catches (26) and passes (42) for Marshall. Here’s a quick recap of Moss’s NFL career, from the perspective of his quarterbacks:
http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/randy-moss-may-well-have-been-the-greatest-receiver-of-all-time/
<header class="post-info single-post-header" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility; margin: 0px 0px 30px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: medium; line-height: 16px; font-family: AtlasGroteskWeb, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 575px;">[h=1]Randy Moss May Well Have Been The Greatest Receiver Of All Time[/h]
By Benjamin Morris and Neil Paine
Filed under GOAT
</header>“Now that I’m older … I really do think I’m the greatest receiver to ever play this game.” — Randy Moss, before the Super Bowl in 2013.
When Randy Moss proclaimed that he was the greatest receiver ever, he was wearing the same-color uniform as Jerry Rice. Rice, the consensus Greatest Receiver Of All Time™, did not have Moss’s up-and-down career. He was not marred by frequent controversy, nor periods where, by his own admission, he didn’t go all-out on every play. He was Jerry Rice, the guy who finished ahead of Moss[SUP]1[/SUP] in the all-time list of receiving yards and atop the receiving touchdowns list, too, well ahead of Moss.
But there’s one widely known football expert who makes an excellent case for Moss: Randy Moss.
Here’s the rest of what he had to say in that infamous press conference:
I don’t think numbers stand … [2012] has been a down year for me statistically. [2010] was a down year, and Oakland [in 2006] was a down year. I don’t really live on numbers. I really live on impact and what you’re able to do on that field.
Moss — despite leading the league with 17 receiving touchdowns as a rookie, holding the all-time single-season receiving TD record (with 23), and posting 10 or more touchdowns in a season nine times in his career — was saying we should ignore his stats. He wanted us, the commentariat, to take stock of some kind of intangible “impact” he had.
OK then. In conjunction with ESPN’s new “30 for 30” documentary, “Rand University,” let’s do it.[SUP]2[/SUP]
Moss may be even more right than he knows. Not necessarily about being “the greatest” — that kind of claim depends too much upon subjective interpretations of greatness to be attackable empirically — but if we put aside his receiving numbers and just measure his impact on the game, Moss is pretty much boss.
Moreover — in part by virtue of his many controversies — Moss may have created one the greatest (and most important) data sets in the history of football.
If there’s one thing we know about Randy Moss, it’s that he makes QBs look good, going all the way back to 1997, when Moss and Chad Pennington led the nation in touchdown catches (26) and passes (42) for Marshall. Here’s a quick recap of Moss’s NFL career, from the perspective of his quarterbacks:
- In his first two years in the NFL, Moss helped Randall Cunningham andJeff George — both on journeymen’s stints in Minnesota after being relegated to bench duty at their previous clubs — have the best years of their careers.
- From 2000 to 2004 Moss helped make Daunte Culpepper an All Pro. After Moss’s departure, Culpepper struggled to stay a starter in the NFL, ultimately playing five more years for four different teams, with a combined record of 5-22.
- In 2005, Moss went to Oakland, where he underperformed for a round-robin of QBs.
- Then, in 2007, he helped Tom Brady break the all-time passing TD record for New England (at the time, such gaudy passing stats were uncharacteristic for Brady).
- In 2009 he helped Matt Cassel guide New England to a surprising 11-5 record (and Cassel’s best season to-date) with Brady injured.
- In 2010, Bill Belichick dumped Moss in a shocking move, after which — despite briefly teaming up with Brett Favre — Moss bounced around on his way out of football, seemingly for good.
- In 2012, he returned to play for the San Francisco 49ers, where he was relegated largely to role-playing and decoy duty. Whether Moss is at all responsible or not, it’s worth noting that Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick both had their best statistical seasons with Moss in the rotation that year.
http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/randy-moss-may-well-have-been-the-greatest-receiver-of-all-time/
This 1980's 49ers teams were before free agency as well......Rice was surrounded by superior talent, Moss wasn't.
If Moss played on Marino's Dolphins, or Montana's 49ers, or Aikmans Cowboys, he would have sick stats & records......
What would have been the results for Rice if he played when quarterbacks were better protected and the no-contact on receivers was enforced. The best passing teams of the 1980s threw the ball less often than the teams Moss played for. Moss eventually did make it to the premier dynasty and when he did he was still washed up at age 32. Rice had more catches and more yards than Moss ever had at age 33. . .
Rice. Not just because he crushes Moss statistically but because of his versatility. Rice could run any pattern, Moss couldn't. I guess you have to give Moss credit for dominating defenders when they really only had to defend the fly/fades and I will be forever grateful for "straight cash homie", Rice was just a much better player. As someone mentioned, he is arguably the greatest player ever (Also as someone else mentioned, I think Lawrence Taylor was the best player I ever watched) so it is no slight to Moss who was obviously a great talent. I also think Moss was a little misunderstood and got a worse rap than he deserved. He isn't nearly the bad person some tried to make him out to be.
