ShareThisFOXBORO, Mass. - Randy Moss got fined $25,000 by the NFL this week for not cooperating with the media. The Minnesota Vikings receiver had plenty to say Sunday after catching only one pass in a 28-18 loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
In one of the strangest "news conferences" you'll ever see, Moss announced that he will not conduct any more interviews the rest of the season.
Moss then said that if he does grant an interview, he will ask the questions and provide the answers. Wearing a black Boston Red Sox hat, he spoke nearly five minutes about his affection for the Patriots organization, his former teammates and coach Bill Belichick and the relationships he made during his three-plus year tenure. He said he "shed a tear" over an ovation he received after the game.
Moss then criticized Vikings coach Brad Childress' decision not to kick a field goal at the end of the first half and said he was disappointed his coaches and teammates didn't listen to the insight he gave on the Patriots last week.
Moss concluded by literally saluting the Patriots and Belichick.
"I love you guys, I miss you, I'm out," Moss said.
Moss was basically a nonfactor in his return. He caught one pass for 8 yards and was targeted only three times, one of which drew a pass interference penalty. The Patriots used deep safety help to take away his vertical threat. He also had a classic Moss moment in the fourth quarter. Moss drew an interference penalty on safety Brandon Meriweather on a deep pass down the sideline near the end zone. Meriweather fell down on the play, leaving Moss wide open with the ball in the vicinity. But he let up and inexplicably did not try to catch the ball.
Reporters gathered around Moss' locker after the game and he informed everyone that he would be talking on the podium. Did he ever.
"I'm going to go ahead and say this, look I got fined $25,000 for not talking to ya'll," he said. "Me personally I really don't care. But at the same time I do answer questions throughout the week and for the league to fine me $25,000 ... I'm not going to answer any more questions for the rest of the year. If it's going to be an interview, I'm going to conduct it. I'll answer my own questions. Ask myself the questions and then give y'all the answers. ... Enough said with that. Now we'll get to the game."
Moss paused and exhaled deeply before praising everything about the Patriots.
"I miss the team," he said. "It was hard for me to come here and play (Sunday). It's been an up-and-down roller coaster 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. 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."
Moss provided the Vikings coaching staff insights on the Patriots last week, but he indicated no one took it to heart until Sunday.
"I tried to talk to the players and coaches about how this game was going to be played. Couple tendencies here, couple of tendencies there. The bad part about it (is) you have six days to prepare for a team and on the seventh day, that's Sunday, meaning today, they come over to me and say, 'Dang, Moss, you were right about a couple of plays and a couple of schemes that they were going to run.' 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 the hard work you put in throughout the week."
Moss then referred to Belichick as "the best coach in football history." Moss also referenced Childress' decision to go for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 1 rather than kick a field goal in the final minute of the first half with the score tied 7-7.
"Definitely down that we lost this game because I didn't really expect for us to lose this game knowing that we had a few things to clean up. I wish we could've had that three at the end of the first half. Maybe could have been different. Maybe not."
At that point, Moss finished with his salute and walked back into the locker room.
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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