Randy Moss and the San Francisco 49ers: An Unavoidable Connection

Let’s begin with a hypothetical, or first, a snapshot into the past.

A lanky, six-and-a-quarter-foot West Virginian emerged onto the NFL scene in such a fashion not witnessed since the days of the greatest-of-all-time Mr. Jerry Rice.

Not to reduce this article to straight and utter blasphemy—my San Francisco 49er faithful—but Randy Gene Moss produced a rookie campaign of epic proportions, even more so than Rice accomplished in his first year.

Moss absolutely took the league by storm in 1998—posting a 19 yards-per-reception average and the most receiving touchdowns in the league at the rather absurd number of 17. He propelled the Minnesota Vikings to an NFL-best 34.8 points per game and 13-1 record.

He continued to dazzle football enthusiasts and the very much casual fan for the next six years in Minnesota, capping it off with a 111-catch, 1,632-yard, 17-touchdown performance (well, to be fair, his second-to-last year with the Vikings).

After posting respectable numbers in NFL-Siberia from 2005-06 (Oakland), he harnessed his rather fleeting motivation to wreak havoc in the league for the next three years while with Tom Brady and the Patriots.

Better, faster, stronger—it was relative cartoon-hour with Moss destroying helpless defensive backs most of the time.

Then, it all came crashing down.

After ostensibly breaking team rules in New England, then experiencing a not-so-palatable homecoming in his NFL birthplace, he transformed into a veritable apparition of the former Randy Moss in Tennessee.

The prevailing sentiment was that he cashed it in…for good.

So, what was the purpose of this quaint little visit down Moss Memory Lane? What possible relevance could this semi-retired wide receiver have to do with the 49ers and their plans for 2012?

Coming back full circle—ladies and gents—to that aforementioned hypothetical: Randy Moss' gangling frame donning his Sunday best in San Francisco 49ers' attire.

But as my esteemed colleagues at Bleacher Report have already cited, this “what-if” scenario is, well, more tangible than most such fledgling theoretical possibilities. 

He will have the opportunity to showcase his abilities during a workout on Monday to team officials (3/12/12).

At first glance though, the word incommensurate screams loud and clear. How could Randy Moss, the player who quite literally takes plays off, be compatible with the Jim Harbaugh-49er brotherhood, where hard work, accountability and a team-first mentality reign supreme?

Because at this stage of his career, Randy can’t afford to exert anything short of maximum effort. And he knows it—as does Harbaugh and Trent Baalke.

If the 49ers were to sign him and his selective willpower took over, Harbaugh would feed him to the wolves who are the assassins on this 49ers defense. Patrick Willis would corral him physically and subvert any of his unwanted tendencies.

Moss would have no desire to make so many strides to generate another chance at playing time in the NFL to simply waste it away. He would have stayed home in the first place and not even bothered to post that Ustream feed. 

Logistically, the 49ers can afford to sign him, other free agents and draft multiple players at the position. He has very limited leverage—he wants to be part of an NFL team more than the NFL necessarily wants him.

This is not to portray Moss’s situation in an overly negative light—it’s merely what is.

The 49ers surely have a dire need for legitimate deep-threat receivers, but the free-agent and draft pool is absolutely teeming with available options. Baalke also is simply too intelligent, methodical and dedicated to the draft as the means to create a sustainably successful franchise.

He won’t overspend for Moss’s services.

Baalke, Harbaugh and the rest of the organization will tell it to him straight, but at the same time, illuminate the immense possibilities that his presence on the team could do towards advancing to the Super Bowl (which was so utterly attainable last year).

As I stated in a previous article, taking a flier on Moss with authentic aspirations for signing him makes sense financially without compromising the team’s other needs. 

Equally significant is that he may actually satisfy one of the 49ers' greatest needs. Even with decreased speed due to age, he still commands double teams and is an awesome, sure-handed target in the red zone and elsewhere. The mere presence of him will at the very least open up underneath routes for Michael Crabtree, Josh Morgan and Vernon Davis.

Randy Moss is the quintessential downfield option that the West Coast offense utilizes so effectively and that the 49ers were do desperately talent-deficient in 2011.

Alex Smith may not have the most consistently accurate deep ball or sideline pass, but he’s proficient enough to nail Moss to move the chains, capitalize on broken coverage when he’s outside of the pocket and throw lobs and “Catch-3”-esque lasers into the end zone.

Moss is by no means the sole answer to the 49ers' offensive woes, but he’s a fine cog in this steady improvement.