04/24/24
November 01, 2010
Vikings waive Moss: One day after Moss publicly criticized his new team and said of his old team, "I miss them guys, man. I miss the team." The Bengals now have an opportunity to complete the rare diva receiver trifecta...
It would be awesome, hopefully a legally-binding statement to prevent Brad Childress from ever talking about Belichick again. But he'd have to get through waivers, passing every team with a worse record than the Pats. Of which, there are currently 31 teams.
posted by yerfatma at 03:18 PM on November 01, 2010
Or better yet, this is the move that gets Childress fired and Billy offers him a job.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 03:38 PM on November 01, 2010
Childress is a fool, and needs to go now.
I hope the Vikings just go ahead and make the move now, rather than waiting for the end of the season.
Let the new guy get situated during the last half of the year.
posted by dviking at 04:03 PM on November 01, 2010
Hopefully this gets us one step closer to Leslie Frazier, head coach.
posted by hootch at 04:44 PM on November 01, 2010
Tedy Bruschi calls Childress "inept" for the way he handled this situation.
posted by googly at 04:49 PM on November 01, 2010
Favourite team for Moss to show up on now, anyone? I like the idea of him at Cincy, alongside Ochocinco and TO.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 04:52 PM on November 01, 2010
Favourite team for Moss to show up on now, anyone? I like the idea of him at Cincy, alongside Ochocinco and TO.
Oh, I like it too...but then, I'm fond of disaster movies.
(in truth, I really feel bad for the guy. He is clearly confused, doesn't know what he wants and/or can't get out of his own way to get it)
posted by lil_brown_bat at 05:13 PM on November 01, 2010
Why the fuck did they trade for him in the first place? Tell my one thing--anything--they didn't know about him when they traded for him. He takes plays off. He shoots his mouth off. He sometimes has a bad attitude. He's a great wide receiver. If Favre can be a prima donna at press conferences, why can't Moss? Who's going to replace him? Sidney Rice isn't ready to come back. This doesn't make any goddamn sense.
It's vaguely reminiscent of the Herschel Walker trade, where the Vikings mortgaged their future for Herschel Walker, then tried to make him fit their system instead of building a system around him. How many times, total, in the games that Moss played did the Vikings even throw to him, maybe 12? Last week Favre threw as many complete passes to the Packers as he did to Moss.
posted by kirkaracha at 05:23 PM on November 01, 2010
Unless Moss did something we don't know about yet, it's an incredibly shitty way to treat a player you just traded a third-round pick for. Childress has lost his mind. Moss isn't the Moss of old, but the consensus around the league was that he's still a player worth a third-round pick!
posted by rcade at 05:23 PM on November 01, 2010
I'd like to see Moss come to Jacksonville. We could use a little more drama along with the receptions.
posted by rcade at 05:25 PM on November 01, 2010
Moss isn't the Moss of old, but the consensus around the league was that he's still a player worth a third-round pick!
Whether he is or isn't, the Vikes are now going to have to pay some 4mill of his salary if he clears waivers regardless. So 4 mill plus a loss of a 3rd round draft choice for 2 games? Totally worth it. Not.
posted by bdaddy at 05:28 PM on November 01, 2010
He won't clear waivers.
posted by rcade at 05:28 PM on November 01, 2010
There has to be something more to this than anybody is saying. Somebody upstairs had to give Childress the OK to get rid of Moss. There was too much to lose here --a third-round pick, Moss -- for Childress just to be playing ego games.
Stay tuned.
posted by roberts at 05:56 PM on November 01, 2010
Honest to God, this blew my mind. Not the biggest fan of Moss' behavior all the time, but he's a first class player. Childress must be at some level of desperate here.
posted by Joey Michaels at 06:24 PM on November 01, 2010
It'd be interesting to see Moss brought in to Detroit to be the number two but I doubt his ego could take it. Plus, his presence would have a lessened impact since double-teams don't seem to affect Calvin Johnson.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 06:25 PM on November 01, 2010
Detroit doesn't seem to be interested in players that bring drama with them. I remember how quickly they said they were not interested in Haynesworth.
Childress is pretty much done, I think. I can't see him surviving past this season.
posted by bperk at 06:50 PM on November 01, 2010
Is Dallas desperate enough to pick him up?
posted by NoMich at 06:56 PM on November 01, 2010
That one reception for 8 yards in yesterday's loss seems to suggest the guy only plays when he wants to. An elite receiver with his skills? One catch? Eight yards?
The Vikings are a disaster, Childress will be shown the door at the end of the year, but don't forget the fact Moss will always be a pain-in-the-ass who performs when the mood strikes him. Either that or he's too old and just sucks on given weeks.
posted by dyams at 07:06 PM on November 01, 2010
For those who thought things weren't enough of a mess in Winter Park (Vikings' training facility), Jay Glazer is reporting that Moss hasn't been waived officially yet. Sounds like Chilly decided to make this move on his own, and basically everyone from the team up to the owner is unhappy with this.
It's possible that Childress may have found a way to swing the axe and lop his own head off with it.
posted by TheQatarian at 07:26 PM on November 01, 2010
The Vikings are a disaster, Childress will be shown the door at the end of the year, but don't forget the fact Moss will always be a pain-in-the-ass who performs when the mood strikes him.
I'd say his performance and behavior in the 2008 season argues against that.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 07:26 PM on November 01, 2010
Detroit doesn't seem to be interested in players that bring drama with them. I remember how quickly they said they were not interested in Haynesworth.
I agree. They were quick to dump Shaun Rogers after he proved to be a talented player who often didn't give 100%.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 07:42 PM on November 01, 2010
It's possible that Childress may have found a way to swing the axe and lop his own head off with it.
I hear the Chargers are interested in him.
posted by cjets at 08:12 PM on November 01, 2010
I hear the Chargers are interested in him.
In Childress???
posted by lil_brown_bat at 08:45 PM on November 01, 2010
I'd say his performance and behavior in the 2008 season argues against that.
Exactly. Play like that in 2008, then have one freaking catch in this game? The guy can put up numbers if the mood to play strikes him. It's not like the the Patriots have this stellar, awe-inspiring defense this season. If his head is on straight, there's no way in hell anyone on the Patriots should hold the guy to one reception.
posted by dyams at 09:31 PM on November 01, 2010
In Childress???
Sure. He and A.J. Smith (Lord of no rings) can trade war stories how they didn't put with shit from their diva WRs.
posted by cjets at 09:49 PM on November 01, 2010
The guy can put up numbers if the mood to play strikes him.
Um. It's not like he can will the football to be thrown to him. If Favre doesn't throw him the ball, it doesn't matter how much Moss tries.
posted by grum@work at 09:50 PM on November 01, 2010
If Favre doesn't throw him the ball, it doesn't matter how much Moss tries.
When you half ass your routes and you're not even close to open, Favre or any other qb isn't going to throw the ball your way.
posted by sgtcookzane at 10:46 PM on November 01, 2010
Sure. He and A.J. Smith (Lord of no rings) can trade war stories how they didn't put with shit from their diva WRs.
Exactly. And, they have the losses to prove it.
posted by bperk at 10:48 PM on November 01, 2010
I hear the Chargers are interested in him.
I think that would be a good possibility. The teams in order on the waiver wire.
Buffalo (been there done that) Carolina (Lil' Steve Smith would break his face) Dallas (WR is the least of their problems) SF (Mike Singletary would break his face) Denver (Wr is the least of their problems) Minn ( been there done that) Detroit ( They might pretend they are drafting him in the 1st rd.) Cleveland (Apparently throwing to a wide receiver is beyond their playbook) Cincy (Oh, what fun. Not gonna happen)
San Diego(Still has a shot of going somewhere? Yep. Need a wide out? Yep. Could look forward to V.Jackson and Moss over P. Crayton and ?)
posted by tselson at 10:56 PM on November 01, 2010
1). To defend Cincy (I was once a fan, though don't really care anymore), taking troubled guys is a Moneyball strategy for them (they can get quality players cheaper), and the Owens deal has kinda worked out.
2). Someone will grab Moss. Yeah, he takes plays off (and entire seasons, when he was with the Raiders), but he can still be a great player when the lights are on. SD would be a perfect fit for him.
3a). Childress looks even more incompetent, and should be updating his resume.
3b). We can pretty much count Childress as gone. Singletary is looking done as well. Any other coaching vacancies that can be expected for the offseason?
posted by Bonkers at 11:57 PM on November 01, 2010
1). To defend Cincy (I was once a fan, though don't really care anymore), taking troubled guys is a Moneyball strategy for them (they can get quality players cheaper), and the Owens deal has kinda worked out.
I can't see them taking Moss. They would have to somehow convince one of the three biggest egos in the game to be the number three guy. I don't see that happening.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 12:07 AM on November 02, 2010
Wonder which worldwide relief agency is going to be handing out all that new purple #84 merchandise?
Don't anyone worry about Childress losing his job. He'll always be able to find work.
posted by beaverboard at 12:37 AM on November 02, 2010
Um. It's not like he can will the football to be thrown to him.
So you think it's just a coincidence Moss had those game stats a day before he was waived?
posted by dyams at 07:09 AM on November 02, 2010
YYM,
I agree. Not saying they will take Cincy. I agree that it would be a bad idea for them, and they have no real need. I'm just saying that the move by Cincy to pick up TO hasn't worked out that bad.
posted by Bonkers at 08:00 AM on November 02, 2010
So you think it's just a coincidence Moss had those game stats a day before he was waived?
You think it was his numbers and not his actions off the field that caused a team in need of receiver help to cut him? You're also being a little unfair about his stats. The 1 catch for 8 yards doesn't include the 29 yard gain he caused due to a pass interference call. And none of it accounts for the fact he was draped with a safety over the top almost the whole game. The one time the Pats put him in single coverage was the interference call. And some of Percy Harvin's success on Sunday is directly attributable to Moss drawing double teams.
Is Moss a personality problem, especially for a young or leaderless team? Sure. Is he no longer an effective NFL wide receiver? I can't agree with that.
posted by yerfatma at 08:45 AM on November 02, 2010
So you think it's just a coincidence Moss had those game stats a day before he was waived?
Receivers have bad games and/or get double-teamed all day by a defense. Moss had some 1- and 2-reception games for the Patriots too but didn't manage to get waived. I don't think there's any way you can justify this decision on football grounds. You don't drop a player worth a third-round pick a month earlier because he caught only one pass in a game.
posted by rcade at 09:28 AM on November 02, 2010
"What the fuck? Who ordered this crap? I wouldn't feed this to my dog!"
posted by yerfatma at 09:33 AM on November 02, 2010
I figured there must be some more going on here. That's some sorry-ass behavior from Moss, especially when you consider the proprietors of the restaurant were there.
Given the fallout from waiving him, it's a shame that some Vikings players didn't take care of the situation as it was going on. Childress didn't have many good options available to him after Moss acted like that Friday and then publicly dissed his team and coaching on Sunday. He could have suspended him, I guess, but that wouldn't have shut him up.
Perhaps Childress should have gone public with this stuff to explain why Moss was hurting the team. The press might not be roasting him alive.
posted by rcade at 09:42 AM on November 02, 2010
Maybe its just me, (and it probably is) but I think that its interesting that Childress acquired a prima donna and is apparently surprised because that is what he got. Did Moss promise to check his ego at the door and did not? I seriously doubt it. I don't feel sorry for Childress at all. In Randy Moss, he got what he asked for.
posted by yzelda4045 at 10:19 AM on November 02, 2010
What's going on in Minnesota is a real shame. Without Favre and Moss they are a young and developing playoff caliber team. The sandlot touch football mentality these 2 divas bring into a NFL game is pathetic - neither of them listen to the coaches or execute the plays they are asked to execute.
posted by cixelsyd at 10:56 AM on November 02, 2010
I find the quote attributed to Moss difficult to believe. Given his history with dogs, why the fuck would he care what he feeds them?
posted by wfrazerjr at 11:14 AM on November 02, 2010
A recommended musical montage of sparkling Moss moments here.
posted by beaverboard at 11:27 AM on November 02, 2010
Maybe its just me, (and it probably is) but I think that its interesting that Childress acquired a prima donna and is apparently surprised because that is what he got.
Right. That is what makes this so incredibly stupid. Either Childress knew that Moss was a prima donna and decided they could deal with him or Childress had no idea and everyone else did. Neither one of these scenarios make Childress look good.
posted by bperk at 11:45 AM on November 02, 2010
Given his history with dogs, why the fuck would he care what he feeds them?
What am I missing? Are you thinking of Vick? Ron Artest?
posted by yerfatma at 11:46 AM on November 02, 2010
Childress knew, as did many people, what he was getting with Moss, but he probably sees this as his final chance at winning before he loses his job. He let Favre dictate what was going to happen, how it was going to happen, and when since the guy signed and right through camp this year, and that isn't delivering the intended results. He saw the team needed help at receiver and went after a great talent in Moss. But as I specified earlier, the guy disappears in certain games but absolutely goes off during others. He lights it up in New England but has issues, on and off the field, everywhere else. With regards to coverage, I doubt he's the only big-name receiver to draw, and beat, double (or additional) coverage, and I'm sure it has been utilized many, many times by practically every team he plays against. I just don't see him as a player practically any team can handle when he has his head on straight and wants to produce, and I definitely don't see Favre as someone who won't be throwing it his way in a effort to have him go up and try to make a play. Trent Edwards, yes. Brett Favre, no. I'll always believe he's a guy who's play on the field is in direct relation to what transpires in his head.
posted by dyams at 12:03 PM on November 02, 2010
I'm just saying that the move by Cincy to pick up TO hasn't worked out that bad.
My fantasy team agrees with you.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 12:38 PM on November 02, 2010
Different locker rooms make for different behavioral scenarios. When Moss first got to the Pats, they still had a good supply of team leadership on hand - Vrabel, Bruschi, Harrison, etc.
Moss did OK under those circumstances, but he flakes out with less developed levels of presence and stature in the overall team environment.
posted by beaverboard at 12:55 PM on November 02, 2010
Jesus Christ, yes, I'm thinking of Vick. Moss would have had to have said, "I wouldn't feed this to a metermaid!"
posted by wfrazerjr at 01:00 PM on November 02, 2010
Yeah, reading that story about his treatment of the people who provided the meal for the players, it's just one more example of why the guy is, was, and always will be a jackass. But, as always, another team will pick him up, thinking they can deal with him, then find out they can't.
All the money in the world won't class you up, Randy. Spend all that money on food at some greasy-spoon drive-through, because no self-respecting establishment should even want to serve someone like you.
And I still don't think he tries during certain games.
posted by dyams at 01:35 PM on November 02, 2010
I just can't understand how Brett Favre is on the same team as Moss and his reputation for trying to stick his cock into cheerleaders and massage therapists even though he is married clearly precedes him in every corner of the earth, and yet ESPN is coming down on the black guy for not being a "team player." Calling his yelling at the catering service as "indecent." I am the last person to use the race card but what a fucking joke. They even ran a redux of all of Moss's selfish moments? Are you serious?
Maybe it's not a race thing. Maybe the difference between Favre and Moss is that Favre is considered the consummate team player, and that gives him carte blanche to act poorly off the field.
By the way Childress is a fucking idiot.
posted by phaedon at 02:14 PM on November 03, 2010
phaedon: it may also be worth comparing the reaction to Randy Moss and Logan Mankins, pre-trade. I thought that at that point, Moss had raised less stink than Mankins, but been criticized more harshly. Go figure.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 02:55 PM on November 03, 2010
Moss has been claimed by the Titans.
They were #22 in waiver priority.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 05:22 PM on November 03, 2010
Moss has been claimed by the Titans.
That fits. Look at where they are in the division, look at their remaining schedule, look at Indy's remaining schedule. They can make the playoffs, but they need a little help and they need it now, and that's the picture of a team that would take a chance on Moss.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 08:28 PM on November 03, 2010
Plus the Titans have a strong coaching personality that has been there a long time, so I doubt he'll put up with the crap Childress has shown he generally does. Childress and the Vikings allowing Favre to pretty-much do whatever he wants, when he wants, shows they really didn't have the organization capable of handling a character like Moss. Seems like the Titans would be better off allowing a proven passer like Kerry Collins start at QB rather than Vince Young at this point if they are serious about getting Moss involved and making a solid run at this thing.
posted by dyams at 09:09 AM on November 04, 2010
This Titans fan is feeling pretty good about it. Kenny Britt was turning into a nice downfield option, and a solid receiver on the other side will make him more dangerous (not to mention what Moss himself will produce).
posted by bender at 09:19 AM on November 04, 2010
(not to mention what Moss himself will produce).
Especially on those days he actually feels like producing!
ok, i'll give it a rest.
posted by dyams at 09:58 AM on November 04, 2010
Way to make use of that third rounder, Vikes.
How hilarious will it be if Billy re-signs him now?