Randy Moss has said that he is the best receiver to ever don an NFL uniform. Current receiving records-holder Jerry Rice disagrees, saying though he’d never claim to be the best himself, he is.
I gotta agree with my man Randy Moss on this one. Taking nothing away from the greatness that most definitely is Jerry Rice, I believe Moss was far more talented a receiver than Rice.
Yes, Rice has better career stats than Moss but he also had the advantage of having two Hall of Fame quarterbacks throwing to him his entire career in Joe Montana and Steve Young and an MVP quarterback at the end of his career in Rich Gannon.
Check out Rice’s highlights below: The vast majority of his catches are absolutely on target. Compare that with Randy’s highlight reel and note the number of off-target, under-thrown and contested balls he had to catch from the likes of Brad Johnson, Jeff George, Daunte Culpepper, Todd Bouman, Bubby Brister, Spergon Wynn, Gus Frerotte, Shaun Hill, and Randall Cunningham in Minnesota; Kerry Collins, Andrew Walter, and Aaron Brooks in Oakland; Tom Brady in New England; and Kerry Collins again and Vince Young in Tennessee; and now Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick in San Francisco.
There’s only one elite quarterback and sure-fire Hall of Famer amongst Moss’ quarterbacks in Brady. Cunningham was on fire in 1998 and Culpepper had his moments but after those three, the talent level among Moss’ quarterbacks drops profoundly. And do not underestimate the value of playing with the same quarterback year in and year out and year in and year out. It’ll do wonders for your stats.
Lastly, Jerry Rice did not change the way the game is played the way Randy Moss did. The year after Moss came into the league, Vikings’ division rival the Green Bay Packers stocked up on six-foot-plus defensive backs in an attempt to defend him. You can’t tell it from the highlights, but defensive coordinators routinely played their safeties extremely deep, opening up the underneath game. And the double- and triple-teams Moss commanded did the very same.
No, Moss didn’t go all out on every play and yes he quit sometimes but in terms of best ever, yes, Randy Moss was the best. Besides, I never saw Rice take a screen pass at the line of scrimmage and without the benefit of any blockers, outrun the entire defense for 60 yard touchdown like Moss did against the Cowboys. As a rookie.
Jerry Rice Career Highlights
Found at YouTube from Billy Spikes.
Randy Moss Vikings Highlights
Found at YouTube from member2ndy.
Randy Moss Career Highlights
Found at YouTube from BuffaloBills28.