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April 18, 1998, draft day, was a date that re-energized a proud franchise, awakened its slumbering fan base and birthed one of the most electrifying careers in the 99-year history of the NFL. This story is how a Vikings playoff team that didn’t need a receiver and was picking 21st landed one of the greatest ever.
Or, perhaps, the greatest, eh SuperFreak?
“I’m the best receiver that’s ever played,” Randy Moss told the Star Tribune last fall. “Hands down. All day. There shouldn’t even be a discussion.”
Saturday night, Moss’ journey reaches a grand finale that will enshrine the once poor, often troubled kid from little Rand, W.Va., into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in his first year of eligibility.
But first, let’s return to April 18, 1998 …
Brian Billick, offensive coordinator: “[Coach] Denny Green poked his head in my office before the draft. He says, ‘I think we’re going to get Randy.’ My first thought? What are you smoking, Denny? There was no way.”
http://www.startribune.com/randy-moss-vi...489527891/
When Moss fell out of the top five, he assumed Dallas would catch him at No. 8. He says owner Jerry Jones promised him he would. Even said he’d send a limo to pick him up.
But the Cowboys selected Greg Ellis, linebacker, North Carolina. Moss was deflated. Maxine was angry. And a buzz swept through Winter Park …
Marie Green: “I was in Denny’s office that day as he was going to and from the war room. It might have been after the Dallas pick when he let loose with quite a few expletives, as Denny could do at times. He said, ‘I can’t believe it! We’re going to get bleeping Randy Moss!’ ”
Diamond: “We needed defense that year. And we had our eye on Tebucky Jones, who went No. 22. But as Randy is falling, we got Cris Carter on the phone. That was the clincher for me. We said, ‘Cris, will you be willing to mentor Randy?’ Cris said, ‘Absolutely, yes.’ Tennessee took the first receiver, Kevin Dyson at 16. And I thought, ‘Wow, Denny might be right.’ ”
Cris Carter, Vikings WR: “He was definitely the most talented receiver I’ve ever seen. His raw talent is what saved him and kept him from blowing his opportunity.”
Diamond: “Randy was one of my tougher contract negotiations. We wanted to be protected. There was some very tight language that if anything happened off the field and he got suspended, there would be some give-back on the signing bonus. As it turned out, we got the language we needed in the contract. I remember that day, when Randy signed the contract, he said, ‘You don’t have to worry about all that stuff you put in the contract. We’re going to be fine.’ And he was. He had some issues, but never got suspended.”
Matthew Hatchette, WR: “We had a drill called 40 and 5. The quarterback takes a five-step drop and throws the ball 40 yards down the field and 5 yards from the sideline. But Randy was so fast, 40 was too short.”
Randall Cunningham, QB: “Denny said, ‘Then throw it 45 and 5.’”
Hatchette: “Randall and Brad [Johnson] start throwing it 45 and 5. And they’re still underthrowing Randy. Randy goes, ‘Hey, that 45 and 5 … ain’t working.’”
Cunningham: “Randy was more like 50 and 5. It was like street ball back in the day. But we played street ball with structure.”
Moss: “I told them, ‘Throw that daggone ball as far as you can and I’ll go get it.’ I caught bombs in junior high, high school, college and the NFL. I can’t remember not scoring. I scored a touchdown when I was 6 years old. Belle Bulldogs versus the Cedar Grove Wildcats and [former NBA player] Jason Williams, who also went to DuPont. We won 6-0. First time I got my name in the newspaper. USA Today.”
Moss, now 41, played 14 seasons for five teams. His 156 career touchdowns rank second in NFL history. He caught 17 touchdowns when the Vikings scored a record 556 points while going 15-1 in 1998. Nine years later, he caught a record 23 touchdowns as the Patriots went 16-0 and upped the scoring record to 589 points.
Matt Birk, Vikings center and fellow ’98 rookie: “Growing up in St. Paul, I remember games not selling out. In 1998, not only did we win, we were the sexy, exciting team with Randy.”
Bill Belichick, Patriots coach: “He’s the greatest deep-ball receiver I think that’s ever played.”
Season ticket sales at the Metrodome increased 38.1 percent and sparked a 14-year streak of sellouts.
Of course, 1998 also is remembered for the 30-27 overtime loss to Atlanta in the NFC Championship Game.
Moss: “Billick let Randall open up the offense just a little bit more. But one thing I didn’t figure out until I was older was when you start putting multiple receivers on the field, that means you’re exposing your edges. Maybe if we have a tight end in there at the end of the first half, Chuck Smith doesn’t strip Randall of that ball and Atlanta doesn’t score on the next play. We got outsmarted. We outsmarted ourselves that day.”
Cunningham: “I had Cris Carter wide open. It would have been a big gain and, who knows?”
Moss didn’t win either Super Bowl he played in for New England and San Francisco. But he will go down in history as one of the most dangerous playmakers on the big stage.
McCombs: “Jerry Jones and I were friends long before I bought the Vikings. Before that Thanksgiving game in ‘98, he put me up in a nice suite and says, ‘And just so you know, your boy Randy is not going to run wild on us. Matter of fact, I doubt he’ll even catch a significant pass.’ I told Randy that, and he said, ‘That don’t mean nothing to me. People have ganged up on me my whole life. You watch and see.’ ”
Three catches for 163 yards and three touchdowns over 50 yards. Vikings win 46-36.
Mike Zimmer, Cowboys DB coach and current Vikings head coach: “We saw the freaky speed and decided to have our scout team receivers start plays 2 yards offsides. We thought we had a good plan. Obviously, Randy was mad at everybody in Dallas for not drafting him. He wanted to show us in front of the whole country what a big mistake we made. Boy did he.”
McCombs: “John Madden awarded me with one of his turkey legs after the game. Never gave one to an owner before. I took a couple of bites and I’m walking away and there’s this one beautiful lady … hanging over the railing, yelling, ‘Red! Red! Give me a bite of your turkey!’ I was so happy, I said, ‘Honey, you can have a bite of anything I got!’ I threw the turkey leg to her. [Wife] Charlene wasn’t happy with me, but that was a great day for the Minnesota Vikings.”
Moss: “I didn’t say nothing that week. But everybody knew exactly what was going to happen to those Cowboys. Denny knew it, too. I owe Coach Green so much for drafting me. I just remember when I finally heard my name called, saying, ‘Thank you, Coach Green. Thank you, Minnesota Vikings.’ I’ve learned a lot of things in my life and had to take a lot of lumps for it. But this little country boy from Rand, West Virginia, made it. All the way to Canton, Ohio.”
Quote:McCombs: “John Madden awarded me with one of his turkey legs after the game. Never gave one to an owner before. I took a couple of bites and I’m walking away and there’s this one beautiful lady … hanging over the railing, yelling, ‘Red! Red! Give me a bite of your turkey!’ I was so happy, I said, ‘Honey, you can have a bite of anything I got!’ I threw the turkey leg to her. [Wife] Charlene wasn’t happy with me, but that was a great day for the Minnesota Vikings.”
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That was a fun read. "Throw that daggone ball as far as you can and I’ll go get it." I don't care what Randy's forty time was. When the ball was in the air and he had to catch up to it, he had a turbo gear that was just jaw dropping.
Quote: @"MaroonBells" said:
That was a fun read. "Throw that daggone ball as far as you can and I’ll go get it." I don't care what Randy's forty time was. When the ball was in the air and he had to catch up to it, he had a turbo gear that was just jaw dropping.
Randy said during a media interview today he still believes he could suit-up and catch 10 td's in a season. I dont doubt it. He looks thin, in good shape.
Someone here said generational talent. We wont see another one for a long while, if in our lifetimes. We're very lucky to have him as a Viking.
Maybe the greatest athlete to don the uniform - ever.
I started a Reddit thread on the NFL subreddit on Calvin Johnson or Randy Moss. And the amount of people that said Johnson was insane. I started it because I work in the Casino business in St. Louis market. I see a lot of out towners come in and whenever I do I tend to talk football if they have a team. This guy was a Lions fan. And he was making it like I was insane for saying Moss was better. LOL! Not only was Moss better he was much better. I had Megatron in fantasy football for many seasons. Megatron was a garbage time stat whore. I love his athleticism but they never really translated to being a better player than Moss. Also then the guy really threw his credibility away and said Matthew Stafford is the most talented QB ever and Aaron Rodgers is garbage. At that point I stopped engaging with him because he was clearly an idiot.
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