Savvy?
Or silly?
Those are the opposing viewpoints that Tennessee Titans fans in particular and the NFL in general will begin to debate today after the Titans claimed wide receiver Randy Moss off waivers Wednesday.
If Moss plays even remotely like the player who caught an NFL record 23 TD passes during the 2007 season, Titans coach Jeff Fisher could finally have the offense he needs to reach the team’s first Super Bowl since the 1999 season.
But if Moss acts like the spoiled, sulking brat who threw a fit in the Minnesota Vikings locker room last Friday over the free food that was catered — “I thought it was pretty good,” countered Vikes quarterback Brett Favre — if he questions the coaching staff the first time 10 balls aren’t thrown his way, if he becomes more of a character than a contributor, the makings of a promising Titans season could implode.
Certainly, the vast majority of the NFL would appear to vote for silly, since the 5-3 Titans are believed to have been the only team to put in a claim on Moss, despite being No. 22 in the waiver claim order, which is determined by 2010 win-loss records.
When 21 teams supposedly weaker than the Titans pass on a chance to sign a Hall of Fame caliber receiver, there may be more red flags than America has red states after Tuesday’s mid-terms.
Yet to be fair to the Titans, no one knows which Moss will arrive in the Music City at the close of the team’s off-week. It could even be a variation of the two Randys, a mostly amendable Moss only occasionally becoming a distraction. As if that’s never happened before inside a professional sports locker room.
And that’s clearly the Moss at least one Titan expects.
Said quarterback Kerry Collins, who played with Moss for a year on the Oakland Raiders, “He was professional, respectful, a team guy. The guy speaks his mind. He was truthful with what he says and that doesn’t always play well. He was a great teammate.”
But whether he pans out or not, two points seem certain. First, the hamstring that wideout Kenny Britt injured early in Sunday’s loss at San Diego is serious enough to add another receiver to the roster.
Second, the Titans brass obviously believes that the possible reward for adding the talented yet turbulent Moss is worth the risk. At least until Britt can return. If he can return.
And that’s where a motivated Moss could pay both immediate and long-term dividends.
“Why do we need Randy Moss?” said Titans star running back Chris Johnson. “You can’t put eight in the box if you’ve got Randy Moss out there on the outside. If you’ve got Randy Moss out there, you just can’t play him one-on-one. I feel like Randy would really help us … go deep in the playoffs.”
It’s hard to argue with that assessment. Imagine being a defensive coordinator should the 6-3 Britt return and you’ve got to account for Britt on one side, the 6-4 Moss on the other and Johnson — who rushed for over 2,000 yards a year ago — in the backfield.
Collins is no Peyton Manning, but either Collins or injured starter Vince Young should be able to guide that offense to the AFC championship game at the very least.
There’s always a chance it won’t work. Even before Moss became a big enough pill in Minnesota that the Vikings were willing to release him barely a month after handing the New England Patriots a third-round draft pick for his services, there were small signs that the 33-year-old with 153 career touchdown catches was in decline.
But Fisher quickly dismissed any possible erosion in Moss’s skills, saying, “Randy’s been a tremendous threat wherever he’s been. We’ll bring him up to speed as quickly as possible.”
If he’s a tremendous threat for the Titans, it could be as savvy a mid-season sports acquisition as the San Francisco Giants picking up Cody Ross after he was put on waivers by Florida Marlins in August.
If he’s not, let the team’s caterers beware.