Lessons Learned From Randy Moss

Marshall wide receiver Randy Moss was drafted 21^st overall in the 1998 NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings. Moss’s talent was considered top-5 in the draft, but teams were concerned about “character issues” – Moss’s rap sheet already included a battery charge and a positive test for marijuana.

This was not the first time Moss’s stock dropped below his estimated talent: he had originally signed to play for Notre Dame in college, but the Irish revoked his scholarship after he pled guilty to the aforementioned battery charge. He then transferred to Florida State, but had to sit out his freshman season because of NCAA transfer regulations. While at FSU, Moss tested positive for marijuana during a routine drug test and subsequently lost a second scholarship. He then transferred to Marshall, then a D I-AA school.

At Marshall, he immediately set I-AA records for most games with a touchdown catch in a season (14), most consecutive games with a touchdown catch (13), most touchdown passes caught by a freshman in a season (29), and most receiving yards gained by a freshman in a season (1709 on 78 catches). In addition, Moss was the leading kickoff returner in I-AA, and Marshall went undefeated and captured the I-AA title.

In 1997, Marshall moved up to D I-A. Led by Moss and Chad Pennington, the Thundering Herd took the MAC title in their first year in the conference. Moss set a D-I record for touchdown catches in a season (25), garnered first-team All-America honors, and won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s top wide receiver.

Moss’s impact on the Vikings was potent and immediate. During his rookie season, Minnesota set an NFL record for points by a team and went 15-1 before a shocking upset loss in the NFC Championship. Moss finished third in the NFL in receiving yards his rookie season, scored a rookie-record 17 touchdowns, was a Pro Bowl starter, and took the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. His ’99 season was just as productive, with 80 catches for 1413 yards and 11 TDs. In 2003, Moss finished with 111 receptions for 1632 yards and 17 TDs, all personal and league bests.

Currently Moss

• Has 101 TD in only nine seasons – trailing only Jerry Rice, Cris Carter, Marvin Harrison, and Terrell Owens (who have all played more seasons)
• Has caught 13+ TDs in four different seasons – only Rice and Owens have done this more seasons
• Is the only player other than Rice to have caught 17 TDs in a season twice
• Is the only player in NFL history to have had three seasons with an average of more than one TD per game (98, 03, and 04)
• Averages 11.2 TDs per season, an NFL record
• Holds the record for most 1,000 yard seasons to start a career (6)

On Sunday morning, Moss was traded from the Oakland Raiders (who acquired him in March 2005 for Napoleon Harris, a #7 first round pick, and a 7^th round pick) to the New England Patriots. For a player of Moss’s caliber, what did the Patriots (a contending team in desperate need of some receiving clout) give up? Moss is neither unhealthy nor old. He turned 30 in February, by no means over the hill or even old for an NFL wide receiver (Terrell Owens is 33, Rod Smith is about to turn 37). Thirty is still “in the prime.” Shortly before the trade, Moss was clocked at 4.29 seconds in the 40 yard dash, an extremely quick time. And yet, Moss was traded for…

A fourth-round draft pick.

The Raiders (who probably deserve their own jawdropping-ineptitude post) traded Randy Moss, an incredibly talented and proven wideout in the prime of his career, for one fourth-round pick. What (other than their obvious inane incompetence) could have driven them to do so? How could they deem Moss less valuable than a fourth-round pick?

There are two main reasons, which are likely just two manifestations of one problem: attitude.

Moss has always had “character issues” like the ones that prevented him from playing for Notre Dame and Florida State, and these have not subsided in the NFL. Most notable was Moss’s altercation with a Minneapolis police officer in September, 2004 in which Moss bumped the officer with his car and was arrested. Moss has also received a number of fines from the NFL during his career, including a $25,000 fine in 1999 for squirting a referee with a water bottle.

More disturbing are concerns regarding Moss’s effort on the field. In 2004, Moss infamously walked off the field before the end of a game against the Washington Redskins. While still with the Vikings, Moss once stated “I play when I want to play.”

Most believe Moss rarely gave full effort while a member of the Raiders. Moss was criticized by his teammates for a lack of effort down the stretch in 2006, including team leaders Warren Sapp and Tyler Brayton. In a November press conference, Moss was asked about a rash of dropped passes and poor production. “Maybe because I'm unhappy and I'm not too much excited about what's going on, so, my concentration and focus level tend to go down sometimes when I'm in a bad mood,” Moss explained.

This Moss comment on Fox radio a few days later gave the Raiders little choice in the matter:

“I might want to look forward to moving somewhere else next year to have another start and really feel good about going out here and playing football.”
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Moss now has his fresh start, with the top franchise in football. His coach and quarterback are the best in the business. Moss may well flourish in New England and, possibly, finish off a Hall of Fame career. Yet the fact remains that on April 29, 2007, the value of a healthy 30-year-old Randy Moss was a fourth-round draft pick.

While I was a professional poker player, I continually sought to make analogies between the sports world and my own profession. While often applicative, these analogies were ultimately frustrating because most of poker in the short term really comes down to luck. I would watch an athlete or team focus and bring its all and defeat a superior foe. This didn’t work quite how I hoped it would in poker tournaments – what really mattered was the cards. As I move into the business world, I hope that I can draw more relevant analogies between sports and business. I am always trying to learn lessons, from sports and everything else that enters my conscious. Here are the lessons I have learned from Randy Moss’s rollercoaster career:

• Possessing great talent means there will always be another chance. Only a flagrant malfunction, a la Ugueth Urbina or Rae Carruth, will suspend this opportunity.
• Effort matters. The Patriots traded a fourth-round pick for Moss shortly after snagging Wes Welker for a second-round pick. Clearly Moss is more talented, but Welker's reliability makes him more valuable.
• Passion is a defining characteristic. When Moss has cared about playing football, he has been one of the most productive receivers in the game.
• You will be judged on how you conduct yourself. Behavior and attitude can be quantified.
• As a coach, motivating and disciplining players like Moss is part of the job description. Maximizing talent, on both the micro and macro levels, is the key to leading a group to success.