Randy Moss

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Lore & Background

Moss played college football for the Marshall Thundering Herd and earned Unanimous All-American honors in 1997. A six-time Pro Bowl and four-time first-team All-Pro selection, Moss was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 1998 NFL draft, where he set the single-season record for touchdown receptions in a rookie season and was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. In his first stint with the Vikings, Moss caught 90 touchdown receptions in his first seven seasons, as well as having more than 1,200 yards in each of his first six seasons. He was traded in 2005 to the Oakland Raiders, where he experienced a slump in play, notably due to the lack of talent surrounding him and perceived decline. In 2007, Moss was then traded to the New England Patriots, where he experienced a career resurgence and set the single-season record for total touchdown receptions. That season, he helped lead the Patriots to a record-breaking 16–0 regular season record and an appearance in Super Bowl XLII, where they were upset by the New York Giants. During both the 1998 and 2007 seasons, Moss was the catalyst of the two highest scoring offenses of all time at the time they occurred (556 points in 1998, 589 points in 2007), now ranking sixth and second all-time. In October 2010, Moss returned to the Vikings in a trade from the Patriots but was waived less than a month later and then claimed by the Tennessee Titans. After sitting out the 2011 season, Moss signed a one-year contract with the San Francisco 49ers in 2012, who would then appear in Super Bowl XLVII. Following the 2012 season, Moss retired. Moss was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018, and is a member of the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team and the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. Following his playing career, he began working for ESPN as a studio analyst for its Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown programs. In 2022, Moss left Monday Night Countdown.

In Their Own Story

In his first seven seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Moss caught 90 touchdown receptions and surpassed 1,200 receiving yards in each of his first six campaigns. His playing style was defined by extraordinary speed and superior leaping ability; he ran a 4.25-second 40-yard dash at 6 ft 4 in with a 43-inch vertical leap. This physical dominance allowed him to secure spectacular contested catches in tight coverage, physically overpowering defenders in a way that birthed the term "mossed." During both the 1998 and 2007 seasons, Moss served as the catalyst for two of the highest-scoring offenses of all time at their respective moments, helping his teams score 556 points in 1998. His tenure with the Vikings ended when he was traded to the Oakland Raiders in 2005, though he briefly returned to Minnesota in October 2010 before being waived less than a month later.

Reader's Guide

Moss was born in Rand, West Virginia. He attended DuPont High School, one of two schools that later consolidated into Riverside High School, where he excelled in football, basketball, baseball, and track. Randy was also on the school's debate team. On the football field, Moss led the DuPont Panthers to back-to-back state championships in 1992 and 1993. He was a star at wide receiver, but also played free safety, returned kickoffs and punts, and was the team's kicker and punter. In 1994, he was honored with the Harrison H. Kennedy Award as the West Virginia Football Player of the Year. Parade magazine named him to their annual All-American high school football team in 1995 and in 2009 named him one of the 50 greatest high school football players of all time. At DuPont, he was a teammate of future Chicago Bears linebacker Bobbie Howard. In addition to playing football at DuPont, Moss was twice named West Virginia Player of the Year in basketball (in 1994 when he was co-player of the year and in 1995), where he was a teammate of future NBA player Jason Williams. In his senior season of basketball, Moss averaged 30.2 points, 13.7 rebounds, 5.1 steals, 3.8 blocks, and 3.1 assists while shooting 60% from field; he scored a school-record 1,713 career points. As a sophomore in 1992, at the age of 15, Moss joined the track & field team and was the West Virginia state champion in the 100 and 200 meters with times of 10.94 seconds and 21.95 seconds, respectively. This was the only year he competed on the school's track team, but he would later join the Marshall track team and lower his 200 m time to 21.15 seconds. He also played center field for the baseball team. After originally signing a letter of intent to play college football with Notre Dame in 1995, Moss took part in a racially charged fight at his high school that left one person hospitalized. On March 23, 1995, Moss had backed a friend in a hallway fight against a white student who had allegedly used racist comments towards Randy's friend. Moss was initially charged with a felony for kicking the student, but it was later reduced to a misdemeanor. On August 1, 1995, Moss pleaded guilty to two counts of misdemeanor battery and was sentenced to 30 days behind bars at the South-Central Regional Jail in Charleston, West Virginia. He served 3 days in jail starting that night and would be required to serve the remain

Did You Know?

• Moss holds the NFL single-season touchdown reception record of 23, set in 2007 with the New England Patriots.
• Moss set the NFL single-season touchdown reception record for a rookie with 17 in 1998.
• Moss had four touchdown receptions in the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game.
• Moss set the NCAA Division I-AA record for most receiving yards gained by a freshman in a season (1,709) in 1996.