Do the Vikes Waive Bye Bye to Randy Today?

Randy Moss--Do the Vikes Want To Trade Him?
Randy Moss couldn't be a bigger talent and everyone who wants to win knows how valuable he would be to their team...good teams have to assess the salary he is owed and poor teams (poor won-loss records) don't know how to get him the ball...that's why they couldn't win in the first place presumably, they couldn't find a quarterback who could deliver the ball in a balanced offensive team design. Putting Moss on your team makes you better but at what price to team cohesion? Good teams have good team chemistry and have presumably encouraged beneficial interpersonal relationships among their players.

Randy Moss was a sensation coming out of college in 1998...as a member of the Marshall Thundering Herd you might think we all misspelled the Thundering Herd because Randy Moss made his team be heard forever more. They've always produced good and sometimes great teams...the Vikings drafted Moss number one in 1998 and he instantly began producing results posting 1000+ yard seasons each of his first six seasons and only failing to gain 1000 yards as a Minnesota Viking in a season in which he missed three games. His numbers are astounding...over 13 seasons he has gained nearly 15,000 yards and has scored 153 touchdowns. His 15.6 yards a catch has remained relatively constant over the years...his first few seasons with the Vikings were remarkable though he averaged about the same yards per catch in his first seven years in the NFL as he has over his entire career. With almost 1,000 receptions in his career he has only lost ten fumbles. To my understanding if Moss isn't claimed off the waiver wire the Vikings retain the rights to his services unless they want to cut him outright. I saw that he was cut on a roster listing , but I'm not sure that reflects his status accurately. The deadline for claiming him off the waiver wire is 4 PM today, November 3, 2010 with the team with the poorest record that claims him getting his services until his contract runs out. His contract pays him $6.4 million dollars and whoever claims him owes him the rest of his prorated 2010 salary of $6.4 million.

Shawne Merriman--Who'll Claim Him?
Shawn Merriman was waived by the San Diego Chargers this week and the same situation exists for Merriman as for Randy Moss...whoever claims him (the team with the worst record gets his services) will be required to pay the rest of his $3.269 million salary for 2010. Merriman was the 2006 Defensive Rookie Player of the Year and has earned three Pro Bowl in his first four seasons. In 2006 he was suspended for testing positive for steroids. It was a positive result he attributed to his ingestion of a mislabeled supplement. He has produced great sack numbers as a Charger though reconstructive knee surgery has hampered his effectiveness recently.

Waive or Trade?
The waiver wire is where some big time stars are put to send a message to them as I believe is the case for Randy Moss though I don't know why Shawne Merriman was put there. I think the players rights revert to the team that placed them on waivers if they're not claimed in 48 hours. I don' think the Minnesota Vikings would just release Randy Moss outright with no compensation. They must be looking to trade Moss and the waiver wire was intended to see who was interested. I don't think Merriman or Moss will be claimed, but we'll see. Perhaps the San Diego Chargers are looking to trade Merriman as well and are simply seeing who's interested in him.

Breaking News
Randy Moss was claimed late this afternoon--November 3, 2010-- just before the 4PM deadline by the Tennessee Titans who are in need of a wide receiver after Sunday's loss of Kenny Britt with a leg injury. Randy Moss can elect to not accept the waiver claim by Tennessee and can sit out the year instead. Randy Moss is no longer a Minnesota Viking.

Resources:
www.nfl.com
www.prosportsdaily.com/nfl/vikings