In a sport full of colorful characters, there may not be two individuals whose ability to court controversy nearly exceeds their immense athletic gifts like Terrell Owens and Randy Moss...
Owens, reality television’s newest star, has been following his own script for years. He plays brilliantly for a number of years for a team and develops a close relationship with the quarterback. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Owens appears dissatisfied with his role and begins to complain to the media that the 49'ers/Eagles/Cowboys are not utilizing his talents to their greatest abilities and Jeff Garcia/Donovan McNabb/Tony Romo are conspiring against him. The resulting strife then leads to a sub-par season and a messy divorce so that Owens can seek out a new situation to continue the pattern.
Moss has battled through his own bouts of immaturity. He once infamously remarked to a reporter “I play when I want to play” (to be fair, he did claim that quote was taken out of context), he pretended to moon the Green Bay faithful and shamelessly stole money from the Oakland Raiders by putting minimal effort into games during his disastrous two years there. However, a trade to New England resuscitated his career and he has been nothing but a true professional since.
What sometimes gets lost in the scandalous headlines is, when things are going smoothly, how incredibly good these two have been to fantasy football owners over the years. Both of them have eclipsed the 1,000 receiving yard mark nine times in their careers. They have combined for 274 receiving touchdowns.
Owens will play this season (and perhaps beyond) with the Buffalo Bills. What is significant about this upcoming year is it will be the first time these superstars have played in the same division at the same time. Time and two meetings between the Bills and the Patriots will tell which receiver is currently better than the other.
However, if you had to choose right this second, which guy would you want for not only this season, but the long haul?
REDRAFT CONSIDERATIONS
Owens had some great chemistry going with Tony Romo until he decided he didn’t like him anymore. That chemistry, plus the fact that had virtually no competition for looks from the rest of the Dallas wide receiving corps, led to some excellent results (11 games with over 100 yards receiving and six multi-touchdown contests) in his time there. In Buffalo, he’s going to have Lee Evans lining up across from him and, while Owens will be the main guy, Evans has a pretty good thing going with starting quarterback Trent Edwards (who, by the way, is not on the level yet of any of Owens’ previous quarterbacks) himself. The Cowboys have also averaged 539 passing attempts over the past two years (as compared to the 461 of the Bills), so Owens will see less opportunity there. T.O will still be good, of course, but he is not likely to be the same dominant receiver in Buffalo that he was in Dallas.
Moss hasn’t played on the same field with Tom Brady since the latter got hurt during Week One last year. However, take a look at what the two accomplished together two years ago: 23 touchdowns and 1,493 receiving yards. Even though he shares the load with Wes Welker (who has caught 223 balls the past two years), Moss is Brady’s primary target and, while a repeat of those lofty numbers may not happen again, it’s almost certain that the receiver will top last year’s numbers (69 catches, 1,008 yards and 11 touchdowns). New England is motivated to get back on top after failing to close out their perfect 2007 season, so expect them to utilize Moss early and often in their quest. He could be the top receiver chosen in many leagues.
KEEPER/DYNASTY CONSIDERATIONS
Even though Owens will turn 36 during the season, the fact that he keeps himself in such unbelievable physical shape makes the number itself immaterial. He still has another couple of years before he’ll experience the inevitable decline. However, his situation will dictate his productivity and I just don’t see him being great in Buffalo...not with Trent Edwards as his quarterback, anyway.
Moss, on the other hand, is four years younger and in about the most perfect long-term situation that a wide receiver could ask for. New England is not going to lapse under Bill Belichick’s watch any time soon and Tom Brady will remain one of the league’s best quarterbacks for the foreseeable future. Naturally, if situations change, then all bets are off, but history has shown that a happy Randy Moss is an unbelievably productive one....and he is unquestionably elated.
THE BOTTOM LINE
In a non-PPR format, this comparison is closer than many would think. If there’s two things T.O knows how to do well, it’s score touchdowns and celebrate them; and the Bills will make every effort to get him the ball in the red zone.
However, if we’re talking PPR and/or long-term projections, Moss has too many advantages not to get the nod.
REDRAFT EDGE: Moss
+++++
KEEPER/DYNASTY EDGE: Moss
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