Mossunderstood

The media never really painted a pretty picture of former receiver Randy Moss. He rarely gave them the time or the attention that they are always feel that they deserve. The media never takes kindly to that. He just didn't want their attention. Moss certainly didn't do himself any favors. The media is going to swarm to a player that is so talented and can be so abrasive. There was always a story with Moss even if the media had to piss him off to get it.

Unfortunately, the media never gravitated to the real Randy Moss. The good Randy Moss. They likely just didn't care. The punk stories sold the papers. Grabbed everyone's attention. A former player was recently talking about a charity golf event. Moss was there and he noticed a very pregnant woman working at a food service station. He told her that she should be resting rather than working. She said that she needed the money. Moss pulled out a large wad of cash and handed it to her. Told her to go home, get some rest. This generous act did not surprise me at all. In his too short career with the Vikings I heard about similar acts regularly. He was always willing to give back, especially to kids, any kid in need. The media never talked about this. Moss never talked about this. Other players talked about it, but mostly the parents of the kids talked about it. Moss never gave to get attention. He gave because he cared.

There were a lot of things that I never could reconcile with Randy Moss. He was this freakishly gifted, ultra-competitive athlete that would take a few plays off. I never could understand how a player that competitive could do that. I still could never put Moss in the group of selfish diva receivers like Terrell Owens because personal glory always came second to team success. It never mattered to Moss if he didn't get the ball if the team won. If the team lost and he didn't get the ball, then Moss could be problem. I always appreciated Moss for his dynamite football skills and his amazing charitable efforts. The former was for all to see. The latter was only for those that needed some help. I often wished that the media would have spent more time on the good Moss. I find that a better story. Painting that bad picture of Moss, poking at the rich selfish receiver, shaking things up grabbed the headlines. Moss could be a bit surly, but too often he was misunderstood.