Wednesday, May 9, 2007

Patriots to the Promised Land?

By Piet Van Leer

In a much publicized move, the New England Patriots acquired Randy Moss from the Oakland Raiders for a fourth round draft pick. The prevailing consensus surrounding this move was that not only had New England fleeced the Raiders from their most-prized possession for a paltry pick, but that they had also firmly entrenched themselves as Super Bowl favorites.

But before we put the Pats in Glendale next February, I think we need to scrutinize the Moss acquisition a bit further. And I don't want to get bogged down in his off-the-field antics, either.

Everyone is familiar with Moss's prolific statistics, or at least what everyone assumes to be his prolific statistics. His first six years in the league were on a par with the greatest receivers of all-time.

Would you believe, though, that over the last three years this certain Hall of Famer has averaged 50 catches and 775 yards? There are plenty of excuses — he was hurt, his quarterbacks were terrible, or he had no motivation to play.

It could be a change of scenery is all that is needed. But what if it's not just psychological? Randy Moss has had nagging hamstring injuries every season. And this will be his 10th year in the NFL. He's 30-years-old, not exactly the age that is most conducive for a rebound season at a skill position.

It might just be that Randy Moss has lost a step. That it's not the good old days, when he would rundown Daunte Culpepper's 80-yard bombs. The truth is that if he does try to rekindle his youth, his aging legs might suffer another inevitable injury.

What confuses me further is New England's failure to sign Deion Branch last season. Tom Brady voiced his displeasure last year when an agreement with Branch could not be brokered, and he seemed to miss his security blanket for much of the second half in the AFC Championship Game in Indianapolis last season.

Why New England would opt to let Branch go, then put its trust in Moss is beyond me. I know they also signed Donte' Stallworth, but again, a wide receiver with a history of injury trouble in place of a sure-handed Super Bowl MVP bewilders me.

I'm not saying New England isn't going to be good this year — they could have easily made it to the Super Bowl last year. I just don't believe that this Randy Moss "steal" cements their status as the team to beat this season.