A Look At Restricted Free Agent Receiver Lance Moore, of The New Orleans Saints

The 2008 season proved what die-hard Saints fans already knew — good things happen when Lance Moore is on the field. When Marques Colston was lost to injury, Moore made the most of his extra playing time, running crisp routes and catching anything thrown in his direction.                                                                                   

He quickly earned Drew Brees' trust, becoming his "go to" guy. While only starting 11 games, he caught 79 balls, for 928 yards, and most importantly, 10 touchdowns. He was given the nickname "Velcro-man" by his teammates.                                      

Moore attended the University of Toledo from 2001 to 2004 , where he scored 25 touchdowns on 222 receptions for 2,776 yards, plus, 902 kick return yards and 399 punt return yards with two touchdowns. He entered the NFL in 2005, as an undrafted free agent for the Cleveland Browns, was waived, then signed by the Saints.                                                                                                                          

Moore played sparingly in the 2006 season. I really didn't think he would make the team in 2007, with Marques Colston and Devery Henderson entrenched as one and two, first round draft pick Robert Meachem, and David Patten, the odds were stacked against him. Not only did he make the team, he played in all 16 games.                       

At first glance, 32 catches on the 2007 season doesn't look all that impressive, but 22 of those were for first downs, demonstrating Brees' comfort level with the speedy receiver. He just never seemed to drop a pass, and was always where he was supposed to be.                                                                                                          

In 2008, Moore really showed that he had become a well-rounded receiver. Moore easily out-performed both Henderson, and Meachem.The Saints tendered Moore an offer of $1.545 million,as a restricted free agent.

If he signs with another team, the Saints get their second round pick as compensation. That's a steep price, but after the season he's had, combined with the shortage of quality receivers, who knows?

Teams like the New York Giants, Tennessee Titans, and Philadelphia Eagles would be wise to look at his film, he's better than anyone currently on their roster.

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