Second coming of who?
Giant catches drawing legendary comparisons for Moss
Posted: Wednesday January 06, 1999 01:43 PM
Tired of hearing rookie sensation Randy Moss being compared
to Jerry Rice? Vikings
coaches offered up a new comparison for their talented receiver this
weekend: Willie Mays.
Never mind that the 5-foot-10 Mays is six inches shorter. It's Moss'
penchant for those long, over-the-shoulder catches that has the NFL's
surefire Rookie of the Year in the same breath as the 1951 National League
Rookie of the Year.
What the Vikings like about Moss is that like Mays, he seems to wait until
the very last second to make a basket catch. The poor defensive back has no
way of knowing when Moss will go up for the pass -- Moss doesn't telegraph
the ball's arrival, giving him all the more advantage in those alley-oop
passes he's brought down every week.
So Moss creates three mismatches on defensive backs -- almost all are
shorter than the 6-foot-4 rookie, few can keep up with him on deep routes,
and he never tips anyone off as to when the touchdowns are coming. This is
why he's come up with so many big catches when he looks like he's being
covered closely.
Vikings coaches have been equally impressed with the rookie's work ethic.
On most Sundays, he and quarterback Randall Cunningham are out
on the field in shorts two hours before kickoff, just throwing back and
forth. So once the game begins, he and Cunningham have already connected a
couple hundred times. It's almost unfair for opposing defenses. Who's
No. 1? With 13 points and a win next week, the Vikings can set an
NFL record for scoring and tie one for wins in a season. I've never seen a
team so explosive.
The Vikings scored 38 points on the Jaguars on Sunday night in the second
half alone. Sure, Mark
Brunell was missing, but no other team (including the Broncos this
year) had scored that much on Jacksonville in an entire game since 1995.
Three times this year, the Vikings have scored 21 or more points in a
single quarter against a team that will be in the playoffs. Minnesota makes
good teams make mistakes, which lets the Vikings score in bunches. With
their offense, they honestly feel they can score on every possession, and
that security lets their defense play loose, to gamble a little more than
most teams can. They got Robert Smith back on
Sunday, and they'll have Jake Reed back for the
playoffs, meaning it's not going to get any easier on the rest of the NFL.
If the Broncos are the wise veterans getting tired down the stretch, the
Vikings are the little kids that never run out of energy. Minnesota might
not be the NFL's best team right now, but they're certainly the scariest.
From the college ranks
I stopped in Madison on Monday to watch Wisconsin practice in preparation
for the Rose Bowl, and tackle Aaron Gibson may be the biggest man I've ever
seen. At 6-foot-9 and 375 pounds, he's absolutely massive, but he's not
soft at all and is amazing athletic and flexible for someone his size. He
could be a guard in the NFL but will likely start his career as a right
tackle. The first offensive lineman taken in the April draft will either be
Gibson or Georgia's Matt Stinchcomb.
The best Badger not in the draft is tailback Ron Dayne, who's decided to
stick around for his senior year. This is great for college football --
Dayne saw exactly what Ricky Williams was able to do by putting off the
NFL, and while Dayne might not get a Heisman Trophy like Williams did,
he'll probably break Williams' NCAA rushing record. He needs only 1,334
yards next year to catch him.
You'll hear Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez mentioned for many NFL jobs in
the next few months, but look for him to stay in Madison. He's got a good
program in place and has found success and stability. Don't be surprised if
Wisconsin re-works his contract soon to end the rumors and lock him up for
a long time.
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