You know those moments in time that change the course of history? The sports world is loaded with them.
A missed kick, a bad play call, or even a player in the wrong place at the wrong time can have an effect on a franchise. For the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers, that moment may have come on Jan. 9, 2005.
The Vikings were holding on to a 24-17 lead in an NFC Wild Card game and looking for a crucial score in the fourth quarter. Daunte Culpepper took the snap out of the shotgun, rolled to his right, and lobbed a touchdown pass to Randy Moss to put the Vikings up by two scores.
Playing through an ankle injury, Moss hobbled to the goalpost and pretended to moon the sold-out crowd at Lambeau Field. As he gyrated in the end zone, play-by-play announcer Joe Buck labeled it “a disgusting act.” Ten minutes later, the Vikings came away with the victory.
Depending on which side you were on, this is one of the most iconic or notorious plays in the history of the two franchises. But Moss’ celebration had a butterfly effect that not only applied to the Vikings but sent a shockwave that changed the course of the NFC North.
It starts with the background leading up to that game. The Vikings were a hot mess in 2004, starting 5-1 but losing seven of their last 10 games. A hamstring injury Moss suffered early in the season led to some frustration. After fumbling away the NFC North title with a pair of losses to Green Bay, Moss hit the tunnel early in a season-ending loss to Washington.
With a history of questionable antics, the media took the storyline and ran with it. Cris Collinsworth suggested that Mike Tice should have benched Moss at the start of the game. Troy Aikman said the team rallied around Culpepper and Matt Birk as opposed to Moss, who convinced his fellow receivers to bring out their afros as a sign of solidarity.
But nothing compared to Buck, who drove the point home when the Vikings were up 24-10 in the third quarter.
Who would have thought the actions by [Moss] would have such a galvanizing effect on the Vikings? And by the way, anyone feigning astonishment that [Moss] would do that last week hasn’t been taught anything by history. He did it a couple of times under [Dennis Green], squirting an official with a water bottle during the playoffs in St. Louis. Give me a break. That’s what he does. That’s him.
It was a meaningful contrast to Brett Favre, who was the hero to Moss’ villain. On a play late in the first half, Favre scrambled past the line of scrimmage and playfully flipped a pass to Bubba Franks in the end zone when he realized he was going to be tackled. Collinsworth, Aikman, and Buck all chuckled as Walt Anderson made the call for an illegal forward pass that led to Ryan Longwell‘s missed field goal immediately before halftime.
In an alternate universe, Moss’ celebration could have been painted the same way. In 2021, Moss revealed that his celebration was a way to get back at Packers fans who mooned the visiting team bus as it pulled into Lambeau Field.
“There’s about 10 white asses sitting there over the hill,” Moss explained. “They got all their pants down. There’s nothing but white moon all lined up. … For all that stuff y’all did, y’all taking this.”
Moments after the celebration, Moss had a similar explanation to Meyers.
“Just having a little fun, man,” Moss said. “I didn’t mean no harm. Just having fun with the boys a little bit, so I guess I was just enthused I scored a touchdown. It’s just a touchdown celebration. I hope I didn’t get in trouble for it. But if I do, I’ll take the heat.”
But while Moss may not have realized it, there was a full-blown inferno raging in the broadcast booth. Buck’s observation of Moss had reached its tipping point as a joyous Collinsworth noted that Moss was “shooting the moon” to the Lambeau crowd.
“That is a disgusting act by Randy Moss and I am absolutely disgusted that we showed that live on our airwaves,” Buck interrupted. “…Randy Moss gets the touchdown with the classless act after it.”
Buck elaborated on why he reacted the way he did during a 2020 interview with SI’s Jimmy Traina, noting the difficulty of doing live play-by-play on television.
If I answer this question, I seem defensive or apologetic. I’m neither. I stand by what I said in the moment on live TV. … I always do. I have to. It’s a high-wire act every week, every game. It’s not as easy as most people think. … Moss got fined for something, he didn’t care what I said then and he doesn’t now.
Buck went on to note that Moss worked with his wife, Michelle Beisner-Buck, at ESPN. Now a colleague with Moss as the play-by-play announcer for Monday Night Football, Buck also mentioned he received a note from a fan who was glad Buck made the call “because he didn’t really have to explain much to his sons about what that move was they just watched a Pro Bowl player do on television.”
Moss fanned the flames. He told reporters to “talk about this W we just put on Lambeau Field” and later giving the legendary “Straight Cash Homie” quote to reporters who asked about his $10,000 fine. By that point, Moss had punched his ticket out of Minnesota – especially with a spiteful Red McCombs, who was selling the team after multiple failed attempts to build a new stadium in Minneapolis.
It was an unfortunate end to Moss’ first stint with the Vikings. But what would have happened if Moss simply went back and high-fived Onterrio Smith or simply got his roll on with Culpepper?
That’s where this argument gets fun. The Vikings acquired the seventh-overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft but used it on Troy Williamson, a player with Moss’ speed but Rudy Gobert’s hands. With Nate Burleson also regressing from a career year, Minnesota put more onto Culpepper’s plate. He threw six touchdowns and 12 interceptions in the first seven games of the 2005 season.
With his supporting cast and the loss of offensive coordinator Scott Linehan affecting his play, it’s possible Culpepper was trying to do too much when he scrambled and suffered a multi-ligament knee injury against the Carolina Panthers.
If Moss is on the field, does Culpepper simply toss it to his top receiver and hope he makes a play? If Moss and Culpepper are still on the same team, does Mike Tice lose his job at the end of the 2005 season? And if both of those things happen, does Tice last a few more years? Perhaps someone else hires Brad Childress, and the Vikings hire a young assistant by the name of Mike Tomlin before the 2007 season?
All of these things exist in an alternate universe. But it paints an interesting picture for Minnesota’s next championship window. The Vikings were building the foundation for the team that went to the NFC Championship game in 2009. Antoine Winfield was already a top corner on the 2004 team, but they signed Pat Williams and paired him with Kevin Williams before the 2005 season. Minnesota drafted Chad Greenway in 2006, and they traded several draft picks to acquire Jared Allen in 2008.
Oh and don’t forget about Adrian Peterson, who the Vikings took with the seventh overall pick in the 2007 draft.
With Culpepper, Moss, and Peterson leading the offense and a strong defense to support it, the Vikings could have had a better fate in 2008. Instead of relying on Tarvaris Jackson, they’d have Culpepper in his place. Therefore, the Vikings probably don’t need a quarterback, which means they don’t sign Favre in 2009.
There’s also a chance that the Vikings aren’t bad enough to secure the pick to secure Peterson in 2007 and that Tomlin would have favored different players during the draft process. But it’s interesting to think about how much better that 2009 team could have been – even without Favre.
Favre was one of the league’s best quarterbacks in the late ‘90s, winning the Super Bowl in 1996 and falling to the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXXII. However, Favre averaged 257 yards per game but threw 11 touchdowns to 16 interceptions in his next seven playoff games. The Packers went 2-5.
That included a rough outing in the Wild Card game against the Vikings. Favre threw for 216 yards, one touchdown, and four interceptions. It also came two years after Favre had a similar disaster, throwing six interceptions in a 2002 divisional round loss to the St. Louis Rams.
With Favre’s advanced age and threats of retirement, his play in the Vikings loss could have sparked a conversation about the future. That future may have led to the Packers to keep their options open and pounce at the opportunity to take Aaron Rodgers 24th overall in 2005.
That made the end of the Wild Card Game similar to the end of a Friday the 13th movie. The Vikings limped away from the carnage at Lambeau Field only for Rodgers to rise out of the turf yielding a machete. After four years, Rodgers tortured the rest of the NFC North. He led the Packers to a Super Bowl victory in 2010 and ran the division they traded him to the New York Jets in the offseason.
It’s impossible to know exactly what changes if the Packers win, but it’s interesting to think about. Washington drafted Jason Campbell with the 25th-overall pick in 2005, but they could have landed Rodgers. That would have led to the Packers playing out the string with Favre and potentially diving into the 2008 draft class that included Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco, or the 2009 draft which featured Matthew Stafford, Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman.
With the exception of Ryan or Stafford, it’s hard to see the Packers having the same run of success, leading the Vikings to run the division and perhaps end their Super Bowl drought.
But that didn’t happen after Moss’ celebration sent shockwaves across the league. What began as a fun idea to get back at fans turned out to transform the Vikings and the Packers. Without his “disgusting act,” the NFC North could have turned out very differently.
