Randy Moss recently revealed that he has won his battle against cancer. You could say, cancer got “Moss’d” this time around. The Hall of Fame wideout’s public struggle has prompted many kind words and nostalgic recollections from his peers and contemporaries. His former coach, Bill Belichick, joined the chorus too, stating how Moss doesn’t receive nearly enough “credit” for all the things he did off the gridiron.
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Belichick coached Moss during some of the best years of the wideout’s career — from 2007 to 2010. He was a polarizing figure during his playing days thanks to his outspoken nature. The coach reflected on what kind of a man the 47-year-old player-turned-analyst is, beyond the perceptions from the NFL days.
“Randy Moss is a tremendous person and human being. He was a great player to coach, fun player to coach, and an extremely competitive and good football player. But he was so unselfish, he did so many things that he never got credit for, never wanted credit for,” said Belichick on his podcast, The Coach Show.
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Belichick is not the only one who feels Moss is a “tremendous person”. Any YouTube clip, Instagram post, or Tweet about Moss is nearly always accompanied by heartwarming personal stories or anecdotes about the wideout’s stand-up character and generosity.
Moss’ charitable efforts off the field have always focused on the youth.
“Helping kids, spending money to give kids experiences at his own expense. Putting them up in hotels, taking them to games. Doing so many charitable things and he was never about the credit. He just wanted to do it for the sake of doing it, because he was such a good person. Randy, our thoughts and prayers are with you,” Belichick added.
Co-host Matt Patricia and guest Michael Lombardi also spoke glowingly about Moss during the episode. Patricia, a former New England Patriots position coach and defensive coordinator, said one of the best things about Moss was the ease with which someone could sit down and have a conversation with him about life.
Moss has founded countless charitable endeavors. This includes the ‘Randy Moss Celebrity Charity Invitational Bass Tournament’ in 2005. It helped raise money for the Smile Network, a foundation that provides assistance to children with treatable mouth conditions, such as cleft palate.
At every stop in his career, Moss made sure to give back. He had a close relationship with many patients at the children’s hospital in Minnesota when he played there. He handed out free backpacks in Boston when he was a Patriot. And he’s made sure to give back to the community that raised him in West Virginia, where he founded the ‘Links For Learning’ foundation.
What’s most notable about Randy Moss and his charitable initiatives is that he doesn’t do it for the recognition he would receive from others. He keeps much of his charitable work off camera. Moss focuses on the work and the issues rather than the optics and the marketing.
In an era where virtue-signaling is rampant, it’s nice to see that there are still some who do good simply to do good. Or, to be paid in “smiles”, as Randy Moss says, rather than for money, clout or media attention.
