Remember When . . . Randy Moss Ruined Thanksgiving in Dallas
November 26, 1998 — The Thanksgiving Day Massacre
Back in elementary school, I would wake up every morning at 6am so I could read the sports page with my Dad and watch SportsCenter — twice — before I had to catch the bus. One thing that I remember from reading the sports page is the “On this day in sports history” section — it was fascinating to see all of the incredible individual performances and games that I had forgotten or never known about.
In the spirit of the “On this day in sports history” section, I’ve decided to start writing a re-occurring “Remember When” column as part of the Has Been Sports publication. The Remember When columns won’t necessarily be an anniversary of a particular event or game — however, the story will have been inspired by or relate to some significant event going on in the world of sports today.
Thus, without further ado, enjoy your Thanksgiving today — but as you do, remember when Randy Moss ruined Thanksgiving in Dallas.
3 Receptions, 163 Yards, 3 Touchdowns. Touchdowns of 51, 56, and 56 yards. He also drew a 50-yard pass interference penalty for good measure.
His stat line was mind-boggling. But focus on the box score and you miss the big picture of what happened on this day. Randy Moss took Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones back to the woodshed in front of a national audience. You had to watch it to truly appreciate how sublime the performance was.
Americans do 2 things every Thanksgiving — eat and watch football. Thus, the entire US tuned-in to watch the Minnesota Vikings travel to Dallas to take on the Cowboys on November 26, 1998. Little did they know, they would be witnessing more than a football game that day — they’d be witnessing the massacre of America’s Team and a revolution of the wide receiver position.
This revolution was unique in that it was the result of only 1 player — Randy Moss. Moss was built unlike any wide receiver in NFL history — he was taller, faster, and more athletic than all those before him. In less than a season, he single-handedly revolutionized the way teams played defense — forcing defenses to shift a safety to Moss’ side of the field to help the cornerback cover the deep ball. His first Thanksgiving Day game was the exclamation point to that revolution.
Before I discuss November 26, 1998 in greater detail, I want to first provide a little context and perspective for you.
As this shrine in my old room suggests, I loved Randy Moss. He was easily my favorite player in any sport growing up. I guarantee I was the only 4th-grader in all of Pennsylvania wearing a Minnesota Vikings #84 jersey to school in 1998. Hell, there was even a time when my AIM Screen name was SoftHands84 (embarrassing, I know). Therefore, his Thanksgiving Day performance his rookie season will always have a special place in my heart.
I may have only been 9 years old at the time, but my fascination with Moss was piqued a year earlier:
December 15, 1997 — Heisman Trophy Presentation
8-year-old Pat Heery had never heard of Randy Moss until the 1997 Heisman Trophy Presentation. Moss finished 4th in votes, but, by the end of the presentation, he finished 1st in my heart. He possessed a couple of important qualities that a young-Pat Heery valued:
- Outrageous Stats: In 28 career games at Marshall, Moss caught 154 passes for 3,529 yards and scored 54 touchdowns. 54!!!;
- “Character Issues”: Moss managed to get kicked out of Notre Dame and Florida State before he ever played a single down of college football; and
- Swag for days: Moss wore sunglasses to the Heisman Trophy Presentation.
December 27, 1997 — Motor City Bowl, Marshall vs. Ole Miss
Randy Moss wasn’t finished making a lasting impression on me though. A couple weeks later, I was playing around in my house near the TV when I heard “6'5, 210-pound sophomore from Rand, West Virginia.” I looked up just in time to see Marshall’s first play from scrimmage:
April 18, 1998 — NFL Draft
Perhaps it was my intrigue with Moss or perhaps it was all the Manning vs. Leaf coverage — whatever the reason, this was the first NFL Draft that I actually paid attention to.
Everyone knows about this draft — the Colts wisely chose Peyton Manning over the notorious Ryan Leaf. After Leaf went second, the story of the draft was where would Randy Moss get drafted? Many, including Moss himself, believed that the Cowboys would take him with the eighth overall pick — they took Greg Ellis instead. Moss was blindsided by this because Jerry Jones had indicated he would draft him if he fell to the Cowboys during a private meeting with Moss and Deion Sanders.
Instead, Moss continued his fall until the Vikings happily grabbed him at 21. Moss was relieved to finally get picked. However, as the rest of the NFL would soon find out, telling Randy Moss that there were 20 players who were more draft-worthy than him was a bad idea. As he put it, “I’m gonna come here and do the best I can to rip the NFL up.”
Late-August, 1998 —Winchester Farms Fantasy Football Draft I
The inaugural Winchester Farms Fantasy Football Draft featured 10 Pittsburgh kids under the age of 10, 1 fantasy football book, and some antiquated fantasy rules (there were no free agent pickups — so you were stuck with the team you drafted for the entire season). The draft yielded some amazing results — highlighted by Kordell Stewart going #1 overall. Thankfully, no one had ever heard of Randy Moss — besides me. If you are wondering how my team did — I finished in 2nd place. If only I hadn’t drafted Ryan Leaf and Curtis Enis. . . .
October 5, 1998 — Vikings vs. Packers
Randy Moss’ first primetime game on Monday Night Football left those that watched it in awe. Unfortunately, Monday Night Football games started well after 9pm and I was 9 years old with an 8:30pm bedtime. Thus, I only got to see the highlights of the game the next day and, good lord, were they spectacular:
At this point, I knew Moss was pretty special, but I wasn’t sure just how special. The highlights and fantasy numbers indicated he was very special. However, it was early in the season and most of my friends still would have taken Steelers’ wide receiver Yancy Thigpen over Randy Moss. (In retrospect, that’s because they were all 4th-graders who lived in Pittsburgh — lil’ Yinzers).
Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 1998 — Vikings vs. Cowboys
At long last, Thanksgiving Day rolled around and I could hardly contain my excitement because I’d finally get to watch a Vikings game in its entirety. I still remember this game like happened yesterday. . . .
John Madden knew it was coming — he had already witnessed Moss eviscerate the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football earlier that season. Madden knew what the Cowboys apparently didn’t — you could not put your cornerback on an island with Moss.
According to Moss, on the first touchdown — a flea flicker — his head coach — the late-Denny Green — told him to not start sprinting at first because the QB — Randall Cunningham — wouldn’t be able to throw the ball far enough. The poor cornerback hesitated for a split second when the ball was first handed-off and it was all over for him. Moss still had to slow down and wait for the ball.
On his second touchdown, Moss further demonstrated why it was idiotic to ever leave a defensive back in 1-on-1 coverage with him. Cunningham saw this coverage and signaled to Moss. Moss proceeded to zoom past the corner like he wasn’t even there. The corner tried to hold Moss — that didn’t matter. No one in the NFL could match him stride-for-stride. Touchdown #84.
When you witness something truly transcendent — you remember it the rest of your life. Almost 20 years later, I still remember the exact seat cushion I was sitting on when I saw Moss’ third touchdown. Moss caught a hitch pass, shrugged off a tackle and started flying down the field. Yet, it looked like a couple of Cowboys had an angle on him and would eventually force him out-of-bounds. But then, with a slight step to the inside, Moss froze the defenders for the split second he needed to blow past them. There was no way in hell he should have scored on that play, yet he galloped into the end zone completely untouched. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a man run that fast with a football before or since. Moss ran a 4.25 40-yard dash — judging by this touchdown, he may have been faster than that.
The game ended and Randy Moss and his teammates ate turkey legs with John Madden while Jerry Jones probably drown his sorrows away with his pal Jack Daniels. I’m guessing Jones would have drank an entire barrel of his own oil to go back in time and draft Randy Moss instead of Greg Ellis. Unfortunately for Jerry Jones and the Cowboys, Moss never forgot:
“Am I still mad at the Cowboys? Man, I always carry a certain chip on my shoulder for the Cowboys.” — Randy Moss in 2010
