The Randy Moss trade can be judged by the two quarterbacks involved in both New England and Minnesota.
In what is turning out to be the season of the bombshell news stories in the NFL comes a real shocker: the Patriots traded receiver Randy Moss to the Vikings for a third round draft pick in 2011 and a seventh round pick in 2012.
That sound you hear is either Brett Favre singing 'Pants on the ground'; or every other team in the AFC is breathing a huge sigh of relief. I spoke to a scout from a rival AFC team and he said what every other team in the AFC is thinking right now, "You're happy he's out of the AFC and that you don't have to worry about him when we play them (Patriots)."
But the AFC's gain has become the NFC's pain. You can be sure there are a lot of defensive co-ordinators across the NFC who are not very happy.
Before discussing what kind of impact Moss will have with the Vikings, just take a good look at some of the incredible numbers he put up as a member of the Patriots.
During his 52 game stint in New England: 259 catches for 3,959 yards and 50 touchdowns.
To put that into perspective, Steelers Hall of Fame receiver Lynn Swann caught 51 touchdowns over the course of his entire career.
The bottom line is that Moss is not only one of the greatest receivers of our generation, but also deserves to be mentioned in the same sentence as of the greatest receivers of all time.
So now, for the very reasonable cost of a third round and a seventh round draft pick, the Vikings received a huge boost to its offence. With Sidney Rice still rehabbing his hip injury, the addition of Moss could not come at a better time.
Monday night, the Vikings will be in the Meadowlands to face one of the toughest teams in the league, the Jets. All of a sudden Rex Ryan and the Jets coaching staff have a whole new dimension to worry about when game planning for the Vikings. The Patriots never had a running back like Adrian Peterson. So the Jets have to worry about finding a way to stop both Peterson and Moss. Not to mention Visanthe Shiancoe and Percy Harvin (assuming he doesn't have a migraine). Favre is not what he once was, but he can spot single coverage in his sleep. If the Jets focus too much on stopping Peterson and Favre spots Moss in single coverage, it will be bombs away. To make this game even more interesting is the fact that Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis is back practicing -- the last time Moss faced Revis he came up with an insane one-handed touchdown grab. It is shaping up to be a fascinating match-up between an elite receiver and an elite cornerback. ESPN's Jon Gruden might need paramedics standing by in the booth because he's going to be so jacked up breaking down the X's and O's from the Vikings and Jets game.
Now before Vikings fan start running out to buy a new Moss jersey, there is the little matter about a contract extension. According to profootballtalk.com, the Vikings have a pre-Moss payroll of $143.4 million dollars. So, Brad Childress and the Vikings front office have to find some serious money to sign Moss to that extension. Otherwise Moss might be inclined to take his services to the highest bidder in the offseason.
For now, Moss is moving back to the place where he started his NFL career. His biggest concern will taking a crash course in the Vikings playbook before Monday's game against the Jets and developing some chemistry with Favre. Once Moss gets over the fact that Favre likes to burp and fart in the huddle, I think two of them will get along just fine.
As for what this means going forward for Brady and the Patriots, I will discuss that at a later date. I wouldn't be surprised at all to see the Patriots make a deal to acquire another receiver before the next game against the Ravens. I can't imagine Brady is too pleased to see a target like Moss taken away from him. Even if Moss was unhappy about his contract situation in New England, he is still one of the great deep threat receivers in the NFL. Players of that calibre are not easy to replace -- especially in the middle of the season.
As a final note, make sure to mark October 31 on your football calendar. Not only is it Halloween, but it is also the day that Moss and the Vikings take on the Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
