AFC West memories of Randy Moss

Some quick thoughts on the retirement of star receiver Randy Moss at the age of 34:

The valley of Moss’ career (other than his time with the Minnesota Vikings and Tennessee Titans) last season were the two years spent in Oakland, spanning 2005-06. Moss’ production dropped after the Oakland Raiders sent a huge package to Minnesota for Moss.

He started his Oakland career off well, but his production dipped and he was often accused of dogging it in Oakland. The Raiders grew frustrated and traded him to the New England Patriots for a song in 2007.

The Moss Oakland-dogging-it accusations resurfaced instantly in 2007 because he became the pre-Oakland Moss as soon as he went to the Patriots. I covered Moss from 2000-04 as a Vikings’ beat writer and he was often accused of being lazy or not giving it his all. So, the Oakland accusations probably had some merit.

Meanwhile, there was a lot of talk this offseason that a team like the Kansas City Chiefs or the San Diego Chargers could pursue Moss. Neither team made a move nor, apparently, did many teams around the league. I wouldn’t be surprised if Moss decides to play again if there is an offer out there. I wouldn’t think it would come from an AFC West team unless a contender has a major injury at receiver.

In the end, Moss will go down as one of the most dynamic receivers ever to play the game and one of the most entertaining, yet challenging interview subjects I’ve ever dealt with.

Enjoy retirement, Super Freak.

Agent: WR Randy Moss will retire

 

Seven-time Pro Bowl WR Randy Moss will retire rather than suit up for a 14th NFL season.

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By Winslow Townson, AP

Moss' 153 TD catches are tied for the most among current players with Terrell Owens.

PHOTOS:  Randy Moss through the years

Moss, 34, was often linked to the New York Jets as a destination for 2011, but they signed WR Plaxico Burress yesterday.

Moss played for three teams in 2010 -- he was traded from New England to Minnesota last October, waived by the Vikings in November before finishing out with Tennessee -- and had his least productive season (28 catches, 393 yards, 5 TDs).

But his career totals -- 954 grabs (8th all-time) for 14,858 yards (5th) and those 153 scores (tied for second all-time behind Jerry Rice's 197) -- will almost certainly land him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He led the NFL in TD catches five times and snared 23 in 2007, a single-season record.
"I don't want to say he was the best ever deep threat, because a threat is something you make without doing something. He did it," Hall-of-Fame WR James Lofton, who knows something about stretching the field, told USA TODAY's Robert Klemko.
Joel Segal, Moss' agent, told NFL Network and ESPN of his client's decision.
Moss was a first-round pick out of Marshall in 1998, taken 21st overall, though concerns about his off-field behavior prevented him from going much earlier. He responded by winning offensive rookie of the year honors, catching 69 passes for 1,313 yards and 17 TDs -- deemed the best rookie season ever by NFL Network.
Moss had a forgettable two-year stint with the Raiders after spending his first seven years in Minnesota. But he revived his career after being dealt to the Patriots during the 2007 NFL draft.
He did have some infamous incidents -- squirting a water bottle at a referee; a (literal) run-in with a Minnesota meter maid; mooning Packers fans at Lambeau Field after catching a TD in the playoffs; and walking off the field before time expired in a three-point loss to the Redskins (his last regular-season game in his first stint with the Vikings) -- but Moss was also a dynamic offensive force with his sticky fingers, leaping ability and propensity for leaving defensive backs in his long-striding wake.
"His body control, his ability to slow himself, elevate, and position himself is unbelievable, better than anybody I've ever seen play the game," said Lofton.
"He had a phenomenal presence on the football field. He was a player that defenses had to adjust to and really didn't do a very good job of it."
One of Moss' former teammates thinks he's got enough of that ability left that he'll actually pull a Brett Favre (Moss' quarterback briefly in 2010) and unretire in short order.
"He's as talented a guy as I've ever seen play the game. He's a guy with some pride, and more than anything else in the past few years he's thinking about his legacy," said ESPN analyst Robert Smith, who played with Moss on the Vikings from 1998-2000.
"Without a Super Bowl, I think he can't help but look at his resume and say that it was a disappointment. I would be completely surprised if he was actually retired."
Contributing: Robert Klemko
See photos of: NFL, Randy Moss

db cooper prison break

 

db cooper prison break

db cooper photos

db cooper

D.B. Cooper hijacking mystery is revived with 'promising lead'

A reported tip has led investigators to a person who might have information on D.B. Cooper's 1971 jetliner skyjacking, and an unspecified item has been sent to a lab. It's the 'most promising lead we have right now' in a case that has captivated the public imagination, an FBI spokesperson tells a Seattle newspaper.

 D.B. Cooper, the infamous airplane hijacker who vaulted into urban mythology by parachuting out of a jetliner over the Pacific Northwest with a $200,000 ransom, is back on the FBI's radar screen.
Cooper, whose case remains the only unsolved airline hijacking in U.S. history, became the stuff of legend on the night of Nov. 24, 1971, when he jumped from a Boeing 727 into the skies between Portland, Ore., and Seattle. He disappeared with the ransom he extorted -- 10,000 $20 bills.
The case has remained open, but the trail has been cold despite hundreds of tips, thousands of theories and dozens of breakthroughs in scientific investigation. Now the FBI, which has previously said that Cooper is likely dead, is looking at fresh evidence, according to weekend reports in the media in Seattle, the epicenter of the story that seemingly can never die. The FBI's recent tip in the case was first reported by the Telegraph newspaper in London, a testament to Cooper's international appeal.
The tip provided to the FBI came from a law enforcement source who directed investigators to a person who might have helpful information on the suspect, FBI spokeswoman Ayn Sandalo Dietrich told the Seattle Times on Sunday. She called the new information the "most promising lead we have right now," but cautioned that investigators were not on the verge of breaking the case.
"With any lead our first step is to assess how credible it is," Sandalo Dietrich told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer on Saturday. "Having this come through another law enforcement [agency], having looked it over when we got it -- it seems pretty interesting."
The information includes an item that was sent to a lab in Quantico, Va., for testing, she said. She did not provide specifics about the item or the man's identity.
Dietrich was on vacation on Monday, according to a message on her FBI voicemail.
It is not surprising that the Cooper story has spawned a dozen books and at least one movie. It combines elements of mystery (what happened to…), adventure (man jumps from plane into rugged terrain..), but above all, the romance of an unknown person getting away with something and vanishing to possibly enjoy the ill-gotten gains.
According to reports, a man calling himself Dan Cooper purchased a one-way ticket to Seattle the day before Thanksgiving, 1971, at the Portland airport counter of Northwest Orient Airlines. He was somewhere in his mid-40s, between 5-10 and 6-2. He wore a black raincoat, a dark suit, white shirt and black necktie. He could have passed for a funeral director or a banker with his mother-of-pearl tie pin.
He ordered a bourbon and water and lighted a cigarette (in those days one could smoke on an airplane). He called over a stewardess and handed her a note, printed in all capitals: "I have a bomb in my briefcase. I will use it if necessary. I want you to sit next to me. You are being hijacked."
By late afternoon, the plane had landed in Seattle, had been refueled and passengers taken off. By evening, the ransom and parachutes were delivered and the plane took off for Reno. At 8:13 p.m, the aircraft's tail section sustained a sudden upward movement.
When the craft landed at 10:15 p.m, authorities searched but Cooper was no longer on board.

On the Radar: Syrian deaths, hunt for New Hampshire girl, possible D.B. Cooper clue

 

Gunfire in Syria – Activists said shots erupted again in the Syrian city of Hama on Monday, a day after more than 70 people died in clashes across the country, including at least 50 there. CNN was unable to confirm the death tolls independently. There has been little break from the violence that has racked Syria for months as anti-government protesters have opposed President Bashar al-Assad's regime. Hama is considered the center of revolt.

Decision soon on U.S. hikers  – An Iranian court could issue a verdict within a week in the case of two American hikers who  have been held in Iran for nearly two years, the hikers' attorney said Sunday. The hikers were arrested and accused by the Iranians of crossing into the nation illegally and being spies.
Attorney Masoud Shafiei, who represents Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer, argued Sunday that his clients were innocent of charges. A third hiker, Sarah Shourd, was released last year due to medical reasons.
"We can still appeal this decision if we disagree with it. But I am hoping for the best," Shafiei said after Sunday's hearing, which was the last court proceeding in the trial.

New Hampshire girl missing – More than 400 leads have poured in to authorities who spent the weekend hunting for missing 11-year-old Celina Cass. She was last seen at her West Stewartstown, New Hampshire, home a week ago. The girl's name is trending high on Google and other search engines Monday morning. Her father begged for the girl's safe return Sunday.
Clue in D.B. Cooper mystery? – The FBI says it is investigating a credible lead in the case of D.B. Cooper, who hijacked a passenger plane in the Pacific Northwest in 1971 and jumped out of the plane with a suitcase full of money.  The FBI calls the case "one of the great unsolved mysteries" in its history. Watch an agent discuss the case on "AC 360°" in 2008.