What started as speculation (perhaps pipedream is a better word) earlier in the week became a reality yesterday, as the seemingly unthinkable occurred: Randy Moss is coming to the city of Nashville.
That’s right folks, our very own Tennessee Titans; a franchise that’s been hell-bent on not taking chances on players with questionable character and often avoiding the big-names in free agency/potential trades, uncharacteristically decided to roll the dice on the diva-like Moss as the team attempts to make a serious playoff run in 2010.
Despite the red flags associated with reeling in a talent/potential locker-room cancer such as Moss, in my opinion, the positives outweigh the negatives, thus making the decision to acquire him a no-brainer.
What are the positives associated with bringing in Moss, you ask? Let’s take a look, shall we?
1. He’s still a top-notch deep threat that requires a ton of attention from opposing defenses, which inevitably will open things up for Chris Johnson in the running game.
2. Picking up Moss to potentially fuel a deep playoff run sends a message to the locker-room that management is doing whatever it takes to ensure that the team has all the pieces to accomplish their goals in 2010.
3. Perhaps the main reason why the Titans were the only team willing to file a waiver claim on Moss was due to the status of injured WR Kenny Britt.
Reports are already surfacing that suggest that Britt may miss 6-8 weeks, so bringing in Moss instantly gives the offense the same dimension that the emerging Britt provided as of late: A playmaker with the ability to beat defenses deep while simultaneously opening things up for others on the Titans’ offense.
Of course, one cannot ignore the presence of the proverbial 800 lb. gorrilla in the room when it comes to taking on a personality such as Randy Moss: Two teams within the last couple of months have decided to part ways with him due to reasons that have nothing to due with his mouth-watering football abilities.
Despite his status as a certified team cancer, I’m somewhat confident that Jeff Fisher can reign him in for the rest of the year. Also, due to his impending status as a free agent, if there’s football in 2011, Randy is in danger of putting himself in the precarious position of being overlooked in free agency due to the locker-room concerns that surround him.
If Moss doesn’t behave well in his stint as a Titan, he could emerge as next year’s Terrell Owens: the future Hall of Famer who had to wait until training camp started to sign with another team due to other franchises passing up on the chance to acquire him thanks to his well-documented team chemistry issues.
In terms of potential negatives, there’s also the ghosts of Carl Pickens, Yancey Thigpen and David Givens that continue to haunt Titans’ fans to this day. To sum it up in one sentence, the Titans have had horrible luck when it comes to securing the talents of big-name wide receivers.
As I stated earlier, in my opinion, the positives attached to picking up Randy Moss outweigh the negatives. Even if he did tear up the locker-room or suffered an injury a la Pickens, Thigpen and Givens, at the end of the day, Moss is (at most) only on an eight-week leash. If this move doesn’t pan out, there’s no long-term contract that could force the Titans and Moss to continue their marriage if it fails to yield a positive outcome.
Sitting at 5-3, in the cusp of playoff contention and facing a heavy slate of division games over the course of the rest of the season, I’m elated with the Titans’ decision to acquire a talent such as Moss as they attempt to make a deep playoff run in 2010.
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