Brad Johnson shared a great story that highlights just how talented Randy Moss was as a player.
Johnson played in the NFL from 1994-2008 and was the Minnesota Vikings’ quarterback during Moss’ rookie year in 1998. Moss caught 69 passes for 1,313 yards and a league-best 17 touchdowns that season.
In The Athletic’s feature on the top 100 players in NFL history, Johnson was quoted for an anecdote about Moss.
According to Johnson, Moss was so fast and talented that the receiver only actually ran full speed (100 percent of his ability) in limited occasions. Those times came when he was facing the fastest cornerbacks in the league. The rest of the time, he ran below his full speed, because that would allow him to have more control over his body when it came to making the catch.
“The rest of them, he said, ‘If you will just throw it as far as you can, I’ll go get it,’ ” Johnson told The Athletic regarding Moss. “That is unique for someone to say that. Usually, they are full tilt all the way. What is really cool about it was, if it was a jump ball, the defender was running at 100 percent at the tail end of the catch, and Randy would be at 80 percent and more under control for the jump ball.”
And that partially explains how Moss became synonymous with outjumping his opponent for balls. The guy was so fast that he didn’t actually need to break out his full speed except for certain situations, and that is why he was so great on deep balls.
Moss led the NFL in touchdown catches five times. His 156 receiving touchdowns are second all-time behind Jerry Rice. Being behind Rice in the history books probably bothers Moss quite a bit.
H/T Zone Coverage
