A Brief History of Randy Moss

Preview

Randy Moss is an a 6-4, 215 lb. wide receiver endowed with physical talents that astounds fans, teammates and fellow professionals, throughout his 13 years in the National Football League. However, his unpredictable divisive attitude often astounds those same people.

Early History

Born on February 3, 1977, Moss was a four sport star at Dupont High School in his birth town of Rand, West Virginia, according to the article, “Randy Moss.” While in high school, he was West Virginia’s Mr. Basketball for two years and won state championships in the 100 and 200 meters. He graduated in 1995.

College

Colleges throughout the United States wanted to enroll Moss, and he chose Notre Dame. Shortly after he enrolled he was in a fight, received a 30 day jail sentence, and Notre Dame expelled him. He transferred to Florida State, and red shirted his first year. When school let out he went to West Virginia, where he was to serve his 30 day sentence on work release. While there he tested positive for marijuana, lost work release privileges, and spent 90 days in jail. Florida State revoked his scholarship.

He enrolled in I-AA Marshall, where he had two outstanding years. At the end of his sophomore year he was 4th in the Heisman voting, named an All-American, and received the Beletnikoff Award as the best receiver in college football. He skipped his final two years of college and entered the 1998 NFL draft.

While at Marshall, except for one incident settled out of court, he stayed out of trouble.

Professional Career

Although most NFL teams had an interest in drafting Moss, his off the field problems concerned them, and it didn’t help when he missed the scouting combine. Reportably, he was at the dentist but many did not believe him, and his draft position dropped. He went from a probable first 5 pick to the 21st pick, when the Minnesota Vikings chose him.

Moss was the third wide receiver on the Vikings depth charge, and saw little action during the first part of the season. However, when he had the chance he made the most of it. He played extensively in a game against the Dallas Cowboys, and caught three touchdowns passes each over 50 yards. After that game he was a staple on the field, he finished the year with 69 catches for 1313 yards, and 17 touchdowns. As a reward for his performance, he earned the Rookie of the Year award. Moss remained with the Vikings for seven years through the 2004 season, and played in the Pro-Bowl five of those years.

Moss had injury problems in the 2004 season, and in 2005 the Vikings traded him to the Oakland Raiders. He continued to have some injury problems and his attitude soured. He decided he didn’t want to play for the Raiders, and refused to give total effort when he was playing, so, they traded him to the New England Patriots for the 2007 season.

Through the 2009 season, Moss was a dominant offensive player for New England. The 2010 season was the final year of his contract, and when the Patriots made no early overtures to extend his contract Moss decided they didn’t want him, and his divisive attitude appeared. The Patriots did not allow his attitude to divide their team, and traded him to the Minnesota Vikings.

Summary

Being a Minnesota Vikings again, Moss has now gone full circle and back where his professional career began. The Vikings now count on Moss to help their aging quarterback, Brett Farve, lead them to the Super Bowl they so narrowly missed last year. Moss retains many of his physical assets, and can help the Vikings, but will his attitude let him?

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