We knew Tom Brady’s stats would go down without Randy Moss and that the Patriots would be a less-potent offense without the star, but we could not have figured they’d be struggling as badly as they are. Don’t get me wrong, they still were the top team in our power rankings last week, but the Pats’ offense hasn’t lit it up since trading the Pro Bowler.
ESPN provided some excellent analysis of Brady’s stats in the four games with Randy Moss and the four games without him. Here are some of the highlights:
- + Completion percentage is down 11.4%
+ Yds/attempt is down 0.9 (from 7.5 to 6.6)
+ Four fewer touchdown passes (9 vs. 5)
+ Sacked three more times (8 vs. 5)
+ Passer Rating down 24.8 points (109 vs. 84.1)
Wes Welker’s stats without Randy Moss
- + Six fewer targets (24 vs. 18)
+ Eight fewer catches (26 vs. 18)
+ Catch percentage down 12% (76% vs. 64%)
I always said Randy Moss made Wes Welker and it looks like that’s exactly the case. That’s not a knock on Welker because he was the ideal complement to Moss, but on his own he can’t create the type of plays he could with Randy there.
The Vikings meanwhile experienced a similar change in production with and without Randy Moss. They averaged 21.5 points per game with Randy and just 17.5 without him. Brett Favre’s passer rating was 80.8 on average in games played with Moss but 71.5 without him.
Even though Randy’s stats might not show he’s doing much, it’s pretty clear he has a large, positive impact on any offense of which he’s a part. Obviously this is good news for the Titans’ prospects the rest of the year.
Photo Credit: AP Photo/Amy Sancetta
