Was Moss Distracted?

Far from critical Moss
Team delivers for distracted star
By John Tomase / Patriots Beat | Monday, January 21, 2008 | http://www.bostonherald.com

FOXBORO - For most of the week, Randy Moss found himself where he had worked so hard not to be - in the eye of the storm.

But now he's back on course. He's headed to Arizona for Super Bowl XLII.

It would be nice to say Moss responded to the most-trying week of his Patriots [team stats] career with a monster game against the Chargers yesterday, but reality proved different. Moss was held to one reception for 18 yards, one reverse for 14 yards, and otherwise he was barely a factor in the Pats' 21-12 victory.

That didn't stop his teammates from embracing him after the game. Not only was he heading to his first Super Bowl after a decade in the league, he had also overcome his first crisis as a member of the Patriots.

The allegation that he committed battery against a Florida woman, who he believes then tried to shake him down for $500,000, had the potential of torpedoing everything he had worked to achieve in a Patriots uniform.

He instead faced the allegations head-on and convincingly declared his innocence without trying to pretend he was completely blameless. He struck a sincere tone between conciliatory and angry and helped squelch the controversy before it grew legs.

"He got caught up in a terrible situation and we've all got his back in here," said fellow receiver Jabar Gaffney [stats]. "We know what kind of character guy he is. There are two sides to every story. For him to shake that off and get the 'W' must feel real good."

Moss left without speaking to reporters. He appeared distracted at times during the game, though that could have been a function of the cold, the flu running through the team, or the aggressive defense the Chargers threw his way.

Whatever the cause, he didn't look like the Moss of early in the season, but that didn't stop him from playing virtually every snap and often drawing extra defenders to his side of the field, opening things up for Kevin Faulk [stats], Wes Welker and Donte' Stallworth on the opposite sideline and underneath.

The Chargers were physical with him at the line and the Patriots eventually stopped looking his way, focusing their offense on Laurence Maroney [stats]'s runs and swing passes to Faulk.

"He hasn't had the big plays lately, but the most important thing, I'm sure he'd tell you, is the win," Stallworth said. "Whenever he's out there you've got to account for him. Teams definitely have to know where he's at at all times.

"He made a big play on the reverse. When the coaches put it in a couple of weeks ago, we were all laughing at him. Hey, you're 30 years old. You're not the Randy from Marshall. You can't run reverses anymore. But he made a big play."

When it was over, his teammates were able to look at the big picture. Randy Moss, lightning rod, was now Randy Moss, AFC champion.

"When I walked into this locker room and looked at Randy, I just told him how happy and proud I was for him, because he's worked his butt off," said safety Rodney Harrison [stats]. "He's gone through a lot of criticism, a lot of scrutiny, since he's gotten here. A lot of public opinion, good bad and indifferent. For him to stand tall and week after week stay focused on what Bill (Belichick) had been preaching just shows his maturity as a person and as a player, and I'm happy for him."

Other teammates seconded that emotion, speaking for Moss in an instance when he would not speak for himself.

He had already done that earlier in the week.

"We rally around any player with any type of personal issues," tight end Ben Watson [stats] said. "When we come in here, this is our oasis."