The first time he touched a ball in an organized football practice, 12-year-old Santana Moss sprinted ahead of the defenders on a reverse. And then he stopped.
He allowed them to catch up.
“I thought the game was to get tackled,” Moss said. “My coach said, ‘What are you doing!’ He told me you have to juke.”
These days? Nobody catches Moss from behind — and he’s no longer giving defenses a hand by stopping. Especially not Jacksonville’s, which allowed him to grab three touchdown passes in the Redskins’ 36-30 overtime victory Sunday. Twice he pulled away and juked defenders for long scores, including on the 68-yarder in overtime.
And he knows his speed is a weapon.
“You can tell a guy is cautious about the speed,” he said. “I notice that. You can be cautious of my speed and you can be cautious of the move, but you can’t be cautious of both of them.”
In his 20 regular season games in Washington, Moss has caught 12 touchdown passes. He also has six games with more than 100 yards receiving after Sunday’s 138-yard effort. And he does it without the flair of a Chad Johnson or Terrell Owens.
“Moss is the silent assassin,” Redskins fullback Mike Sellers said. “His actions speak for themselves. The dude is phenomenal. I don’t think there’s anyone in the league who can touch him.
“Even if he burns you he won’t talk trash. He’ll just walk back to the huddle and run the next play. That’s a true professional.”
Moss doesn’t need the same attention other wideouts receive. And he doesn’t demand the ball. Moss entered Sunday with modest stats — 14 catches for 188 yards. But he doesn’t even complain privately.
“Me and Chad are close friends; T.O, I know of him,” Moss said. “I like their games. But they’re T.O. and Chad Johnson because they’re their own guy. I’m going to do what I do and so far it’s been getting me along.”
Besides, the Redskins wanted Moss to give them precisely what he has: big-play ability. His first touchdown Sunday, a 55-yarder in the first quarter, set a tone for the day. Others, such as running back Clinton Portis, might power the offense. But no one gives it more pizzazz than Moss.
“You just want to get it in his hands,” Redskins quarterback Mark Brunell said. “He makes people miss. He’s got great explosiveness. You can’t say enough about the guy. … He’s unbelievable.”
Week 5 notes
» Running back Clinton Portis was fined $5,000 by the NFL for leaving the bench area and celebrating Rock Cartwright’s kickoff return for a touchdown in Dallas. Portis was not in uniform that night, but was one of the first to reach Cartwright and celebrate.
“They keep trying to make an example of me,” Portis said. “They’re taking the fun out of the game.”
Portis also isn’t keen on the rule banning end zone celebrations where teammates join in.
“They’re full of [expletive] with all of that,” Portis said. “That’s B.S. week in and week out. The league might as well go and get robots to play the game. Everybody has to look the same, you can’t do this; you can’t do that; you can’t wear a towel. They come to you and say, ‘Tuck in your jersey, pull up your socks.’ Man, I’m playing a football game. You think I’m trying to tuck my jersey in when somebody is wrapping me in the head? No. I don’t think it should be a rule. But I’m just a player.”
» In their last 11 quarters, the Redskins’ defense has held opponents to seven conversions on 31 third-down attempts. In the season’s first five quarters, the Redskins’ defense had allowed 13 conversions in 21 attempts.
