New England Patriots

Transcript Provided by New England Patriots
FOXBOROUGH Q: How nice was it for you to play alongside Troy Brown today?

RM: I think I was as excited as he was. I've always been a fan of Troy and I like the things he does in the slot as far as his quickness and his hands. I was just anxious to see him out there and be a part of the receiving corps again.

Q: Did you think as quickly as you started that you might get number 22 today [to tie Jerry Rice's single season touchdown reception record]?

RM: As you saw, the way we were trying to go downfield I really wasn't paying attention. I think once I caught my first one I was like, "Ok, this could be a long day" and then once they started playing defense - we came out [in the] second half and they made their adjustments. I just wanted to get the win. Like I said before, that record has been, I don't know how many years, but it's been up for a very long time. Records are meant to be broken and if I break the record I'm cool, if I don't I'm cool. As long as that zero stays in that [losses] column, I'm fine. Basically what I'm saying is I want to keep winning, the hell with the record.

Q: Would you like to get Tom [Brady] the passing touchdown record?

RM: I'm not speaking for Tom; I'm speaking for myself. This is a team. There's no individual play here and I that's how coach prepares us week in and week out. He wants his team to go out there and do whatever we can to win the game. Like I said, if the touchdown record for wide receiver is broken, it's broken. If it's not, it's not, as long as we keep doing what we're doing and keep winning.

Q: You had some good blocks on [Laurence] Maroney's first long run. He seemed pretty appreciative of that.

RM: I told Maroney I tried to - the guy was on his heels a little bit and I was taught at a young age, at the beginning of my career, when you are out in the open space like that -I try my best to cut the guy so that gives the running back a little bit more vision so he can see more of the field. By my body presence and the DB's body presence it's like you see zigging in and out. Basically I was trying to go at him and hopefully he would bring his feet together so I could try and cut him and get him out of Laurence's way, but you saw him keep backpedaling. I just did whatever I could just to - I thought Maroney was going to go all the way across the field. Like I say, we win as a team, we lose as a team so it was just a team effort by everybody.

Q: Are you happy with where you are personally at this stage in the season?

RM: I don't have any complaints.

Q: Do you think it's important to keep taking those shots downfield to you when you have double, triple coverage, even when the play's not working?

RM: I mean, hell, I'm Randy Moss. What do you expect? (laughter)

Q: After you score a touchdown you do this, what does this [your touchdown celebration] mean?

RM: At the beginning of the year, you guys talked about how I lost my step and really wasn't into the game of football. Coming off my hamstring injury in training camp that - I don't even know how long the play was, but it was against the Jets, that long 70-80-something yarder. I thought to myself that physically I didn't think that I was able to do that, to run like that, because I'm coming straight off a hamstring injury - so for me to be able to part the defense like I did that's basically me parting the defense. That's where it came from.

Q: Did you think you got interfered with on that bomb that you were triple covered? It looked like you got jostled.

RM: All I know is it hurt. That's all I know. Physically, it did hurt. There are a lot of things in the game that you really don't feel until after the game, but that kind of hurt me. I went over to the ref, I think after the next series or something, and I asked him about that play, and he said, "We all had our heads around looking for the ball." It was a good call.

Q: With so much still to play for, is it hard to appreciate the historical significance of 15-0?

RM: I don't think the people, and when I say people I mean the fans of the game of football, I don't think they realize what we're doing, how hard [we're working for] what we're trying to accomplish. Coach Belichick, before this team was ever brought together, he already had a history of being able to get things done late in the season, basically, as far as playoff time, to make that run. This year, what we've done, we've put in a lot of hard work on the field and in the classroom. We sort of argue, but not toward him, amongst each other, about how hard it is throughout the week and [him] putting those pads on us last week was really physically hard. What we're trying to accomplish, I really see it coming together. I know we have the New York Giants next week; they're standing in our way. Hopefully we can get a victory. I know we're going to New York to put 11 on the field and see what happens.

Q: Have you ever been part of a team that has been so good at maintaining its focus throughout the season?

RM: I think that's hats off to Coach Belichick. Because you have a lot of different guys, a lot of different personalities. And with the success that we're having, to be honest with you, it really is kind of hard, and I'm not really talking about this team, I'm just saying when you have things going good like that, it's hard to keep everybody on the same page. It's hard to keep everybody focused. That's a credit to Coach Belichick and what he's done from the start of this thing to the end of it. So he has a tone or a beat, that we're beating to, trying to stay in rhythm. That's what we're beating to now: his beat.

Q: With the '98 Vikings, you had a great season, but you didn't close the deal. How much has that influenced you, in terms of not getting wrapped up in all the records?

RM: The one thing I don't try to do is I don't try to live in the past. I still have memories of my 10-year career in the NFL. But that one hurt, it really hurt. But, like I said, I don't really try to live in the past. I try to love in the present. What we have ahead of us now is really what I'm trying to put my mind to and go out and give it my all.