Randy Moss to New England Patriots: "I Love You, Man..."

Randy Moss...wow...this guy is a laugh a minute, eh? After his new team, the Minnesota Vikings, lost to his old team, the New England Patriots, Moss decided to let the love flow—literally.

He seemed, at times, troubled, and at others incoherent as he rambled and tripped his way through a soliloquy at the post-game press conference.

The entire transcript of everything he said is offered here, but here are just a few excerpts:

"... I'm not going to answer any more questions for the rest of this year. If it's going to be an interview, I'm going to conduct it. So, I'll answer my own questions, ask myself the questions and then give you all the answers. So, from here on out, I'm not answering any more questions for the rest of this season..."

Moss was fined $25,000 earlier in the week for "failing to cooperate with the news media". He, apparently, took offense to that and hence the above decision to not speak to the media anymore this season. Well, that's all fine and good, Randy, but you look like a bit of a head case saying you'll conduct your own interviews and ask yourself the questions—seriously, dude, get a grip.


"Man, I miss them guys, man. I miss the team. It was hard for me to come here and play. Been an up-and-down rollercoaster emotionally all week. And then to be able to come in here and see those guys running plays that I know what they're doing, and the success they had on the field, the running game -- so, I kind of know what kind of feeling they have in their locker room, man, and I just want to be able to tell the guys that I miss the hell out of them. Every last helmet in that locker room, man."

Wasn't this the same guy who felt unappreciated in New England a few weeks ago? Jeez, you'd think he'd forgotten why he's back in Minnesota in the first place—you talk too much, Randy.


"I tried to prepare. Tried to talk to the players and coaches about how this game was going to be played and a couple tendencies here, couple tendencies here...It hurts as a player that you put a lot of hard work in all week, and toward the end of the week, Sunday, when you get on the field, that's when they acknowledge about the hard work you put in throughout the week. That's actually a disappointment."

Hmmm, now where have we heard this "I feel unappreciated" song before...*thinking*...oh yeah:





Randy, Randy, Randy...when will you ever learn?

Here was the best part of the tirade:


"I don't know how many more times I'm going to be up here in New England, but I'm going to leave the New England Patriots, Coach Belichick, man, with a salute, man. I love you guys, I miss you, I'm out."

Good grief, you'd think the Patriots birthed Moss' children. Wonder how the Minnesota fans will react to his Patriot love fest? 

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• Minnesota Vikings' Randy Moss nonfactor, declares media silence (sports.espn.go.com)

Laurence Maroney Traded To The Denver Broncos—Should Knowshon Moreno Be Worried?

The New England Patriots finally gave up on Laurence Maroney. The 25-year old back who, once was thought to be full of untapped potential, was traded to the Denver Broncos—reuniting with former Patriots offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels.

Maroney was drafted in the first-round of the 2006 NFL Draft out of the University of Minnesota. Although he was never a full-time starter for the Gophers, he still managed to collect three consecutive 1,000 yard seasons—sharing time with Marion Barber.

When New England selected him No. 21st overall, it was clear that he was going to be there back of the future. Corey Dillon was getting older and they needed a guy who had both the size and the skill-set to make the transition into their offense. Maroney fit the bill as he was not only an explosive runner with above-average field vision, but a strong back who was capable of moving the pile and churning out the hard yards.

That said, he also came into the league with a red flag attached because he was routinely beset by injuries in college—despite receiving minimal carries. The Pats felt the reward outweighed the risk, however, and rolled the dice.

Today, that risk became expendable as the Patriots seem more than willing to ride the veteran legs of Fred Taylor this season—using Green-Ellis and Faulk to spell him when needed.

So, what's next for Maroney? The Denver Broncos already have a feature back in second year man,
Knowshon Moreno. Does this mean that his job is suddenly in jeopardy? After all, Moreno did struggle towards the end of last season—both with ball protection and injuries—and he's yet to be pushed by any other backs on the roster.

Could the the acquisition of Maroney light a fire under the talented young running back?

Some might say that Maroney isn't good enough to be anything more than a reliable second option to Moreno—his injury history makes him a question mark at best. However, Maroney is nothing if not a team player and, he has the veteran attitude that McDaniels wants to foster in his young locker room.

For Maroney, his departure from New England was met with surprise and a bit of sadness because he was truly hoping to get back to his 2007 form again soon. Now he will have to prove himself worthy someplace else.

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• Laurence Maroney was traded from the New England Patriots to the Denver Broncos (sports.espn.go.com)