Are We Better Off Without Moss?

[SmootSmack]

Is it more than a coincidence that the two games in which our offense has looked sharpest are the two where Moss has sat out?

It seems like without him to lean on, the passing game is more fluid and open.

Thoughts?

[skinsguy]

I still think of Moss as our #1 receiver, despite the off year he's been having. However, I have been disappointed with him this year. I don't know if it's a slump, the ol' injury bug, or both. I think what we have are receivers who are hungry to get in there and make a play for this team. Guys like KM and JT. In the first year with Moss, Santana had a lot to prove to us. I think he needs to get that mentality back for us, but I believe we do need him still down the stretch.

[hurrykaine]

No. When Moss is healthy, the offense is far better with him. When he's dinged up, it affects JC's throw timing. A healthy moss makes the long bomb catch that Lloyd missed today.

[SmootSmack]

Yeah I suppose I meant to say the Moss of 2007, not the healthy Moss we have seen in past years.

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Yeah I suppose I meant to say the Moss of 2007, not the healthy Moss we have seen in past years.

The Moss of 2007 has definitely been a huge disappointment. Besides the injuries, he's dropped quite a few of very catchable passes this season.

[GMScud]

I think Moss is a bit of a head case at this point. All the drops and injuries, benching himself in the GB game... Look how well the passing game got going today with a few guys taller than 5-9 catching balls! Why not do a three WR mix of McCardell, Randle El, and Caldwell? Randle El had another bad drop today, but has still been solid. McCardell has looked great every time he's been in, and Caldwell has a lot of experience. Thrash was awesome today, but his knee injury looked bad. This is a lost season for Moss I think. If he's healthy you have to play him some (I'm not suggesting we bench him), but get the other guys in the mix like today. I'd say it's a safe bet we go after a bigger WR either in the draft or FA this offseason. Lloyd-Moss-El hasn't worked out.

[Beemnseven]

Originally Posted by GMScud

I think Moss is a bit of a head case at this point. All the drops and injuries, benching himself in the GB game... Look how well the passing game got going today with a few guys taller than 5-9 catching balls! Why not do a three WR mix of McCardell, Randle El, and Caldwell? Randle El had another bad drop today, but has still been solid. McCardell has looked great every time he's been in, and Caldwell has a lot of experience. Thrash was awesome today, but his knee injury looked bad. This is a lost season for Moss I think. If he's healthy you have to play him some (I'm not suggesting we bench him), but get the other guys in the mix like today. I'd say it's a safe bet we go after a bigger WR either in the draft or FA this offseason. Lloyd-Moss-El hasn't worked out.

Yeah, you hate to basically write off this wideout lineup, but to me, this was the make or break year for the Moss/Lloyd/Randle El experiment.

This season, it's been an utter disaster. Since pass protection has generally been good, you can't put this one on offensive line injuries either. Maybe it's the development curve of Jason Campbell, but usually a team knows whether or not this combination of QB and receivers are going to work out. Year two should be when things begin to take off.

How ironic that after hearing that no wide receiver on the team has caught a touchdown yet, the one who finally does is way down the depth chart (and true to form for 2007, is probably gone for a long time due to injury).

[dgack]

Originally Posted by Beemnseven

Yeah, you hate to basically write off this wideout lineup, but to me, this was the make or break year for the Moss/Lloyd/Randle El experiment.

This season, it's been an utter disaster. Since pass protection has generally been good, you can't put this one on offensive line injuries either. Maybe it's the development curve of Jason Campbell, but usually a team knows whether or not this combination of QB and receivers are going to work out. Year two should be when things begin to take off.

How ironic that after hearing that no wide receiver on the team has caught a touchdown yet, the one who finally does is way down the depth chart (and true to form for 2007, is probably gone for a long time due to injury).

By far and large it has been a disaster, but ARE has been pretty damned effective when he's been healthy. And let's not forget that he was stopped on the 1, what, 3 or 4 times? The whole "no TD's to WR" stat is a little misleading there, and if our goal line run game was the slam dunk it should have been, you'd be reading about how dominant our RB's are.

As I have been saying for some time, I do think something isn't right with Moss. Lloyd isn't even worth discussing because he's poison on and off the field. ARE is worth the money we paid him, IMO, and I don't want to see him go anywhere.

[skinsfan69]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Is it more than a coincidence that the two games in which our offense has looked sharpest are the two where Moss has sat out?

It seems like without him to lean on, the passing game is more fluid and open.

Thoughts?

I remember getting killed for saying this in another thread a long time ago. But I'll say it again. SM is nothing more than a good #2 NFL WR. He is not a #1. So I think when he is out it's not like our offense crumbles. We need him on the field but life goes on.

[EternalEnigma21]

no we're not better without him, but we do have a glaring need at wideout... I think moss can be a hell of a speedster, and we need a fast tall strong wideout to complement him and take away the best defenders from ganging up on him...

[Campbell17]

Forget 07 Moss, in the last two years, he's a very streaky player, in 05, he had 9 TD's, 5 were in 3 consecutive games, and two others were in the same game, and in 06, he had 3 TD's in 1 game then had 1 the next, then shut down for weeks. Do I think he's gonna get hot and start scoring again? No. I was just throwing those facts out there.

[GTripp0012]

If he's going to be dinged up, then he probably isn't any better than the guys we've been playing in his absence.

[FRPLG]

I have been toying with the notion that outside of Moss' first year here he looks more like a deadly slot guy than a #1. To me a speed guy and game breaker like him should be downfield busting up secondaries or getting WR screens. Not being relied on as the go to guy play in and play out. He isn't a possession guy and isn't as dominant as I'd like in a #1. I still think is great when healthy but I just thinks he fits better in a supporting type roll. I'd even move ARE to #1 where he can run slants and mid outs and hooks and let Moss press the secondary it just seems like a better fit to me. He certainly doesn't fit the traditional mold of a #1.

[SouperMeister]

If Moss is healthy, hell no we're not better without him. The guy stretches the field if Gibbs/Saunders give him a chance to do so. I've counted 3 times this year that Campbell has missed him for wide open TD bombs. The way Campbell looked today, I have faith that Moss will make plays for us once he's healthy.

[chrisl4064]

plain and simple, no