During the draft, trading a seasoned player can be tricky. Bill Belichick discussed how challenging it was to strike a deal with the Raiders for Randy Moss, a Hall of Fame wide receiver.
In an interview with Pat McAfee, Belichick shared the process of negotiating with Al Davis to finalize the trade, which eventually happened for a mere fourth-round draft pick.
However, it wasn’t a straightforward task. The draft was already underway, and before the Patriots could make their fourth-round pick, Moss had to undergo a physical examination and agree to a new contract.
“The most interesting trade was the Randy Moss trade,” Belichick remarked. “We had been trying to trade for him for two months, it was like childbirth, it took forever.”
After the first day of the draft, Belichick confronted Mr. Davis, seeking confirmation on the deal. Davis agreed to it for a fourth-round pick but left the logistics to Belichick, stating, “That’s your problem.”
Belichick then hustled to arrange for Moss to undergo a physical and negotiate a new contract. However, Moss initially thought it was a prank call when contacted by Belichick’s team, as he hadn’t realized the Patriots were genuinely trading for him.
“I call up Randy, I said, ‘It’s coach Belichick.’ He hangs up the phone,” Belichick said, adding that Moss demanded to know, “Who’s pranking me? Is this a joke? This better not be a joke. Who is this?”
Eventually, Moss believed Belichick was for real and listened when Belichick told him the clock was ticking to get the deal done. “He said, ‘What do I need to do?’ I said, ‘We got to get you up here, you got to take a physical.’ He said, ‘By noon?’ I said yeah. He said, ‘Well, I’m in Houston, but I’ve got a plane, I’ll be there.'”
Belichick says that as soon as Moss arrived in New England, he impressed with his dedication to the team.
“First thing he says to me is, ‘Where’s the playbook?'” Belichick recalled, adding that Moss vowed to learn the offense as well as Tom Brady knew it. It worked out well, as Moss caught 23 touchdown passes in his first season as a Patriot, and New England went 16-0.
