INDIANAPOLIS — Thaddeus Moss doesn’t shy away from his roots.
The LSU tight end was asked question after question about his Pro Football Hall of Fame father, former NFL wide receiver Randy Moss, at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday, and he answered every one with a smile on his face.
“I’m so appreciative of him,” Moss said about his father. “He came here. He faced a lot of adversity throughout his career, growing up. It opened up a lot of pathways and a lot of doors for me. I’m forever grateful for it. The questions will never get old. To be honest, I actually like talking about him. There’s not a lot of people who get to talk about their dad being a Hall of Famer and being in this position already.”
Thaddeus Moss understands it would be a big deal if he wound up playing with New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Randy Moss and Brady connected for 39 touchdowns with the Patriots from 2007 to 2010, 23 of which in the 2007 season alone.
“It would mean a lot,” Thaddeus Moss said. “Just to catch a touchdown pass period in the NFL would mean a lot. But to catch it from Tom Brady knowing that he threw a good amount of touchdown passes to my father, it would be a good story.”
Thaddeus Moss caught 47 passes for 570 yards with four touchdowns on LSU’s 2019 national champion team. He would rather block, however, and that might be music to New England’s ears. The Patriots expect their tight ends to be complete players, capable of contributing in the passing game and as run blockers.
“I took pride in that all year,” Moss said. “All of the receivers always ask me in the offseason, ‘How many catches are you going to have? How many touchdowns are you going to have?’ I was like, ‘Look, man, I don’t care about catches. You can have as many as y’all want. I’m a tight end. I’m not a receiver. I’ll do the dirty work, and y’all go score touchdowns do y’alls little dance and stuff. I’ll go block.'”
The younger Moss, who measured in at 6-foot-2, 250 pounds, is a projected mid-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. The Patriots desperately need to replenish their tight end corps and Thaddeus is one of the few complete players at the position in this year’s class. So, the fit is a natural one.
He took a trip down memory lane when the Patriots came up.
“I’ve talked to Coach (Bill) Belichick before,” Thaddeus Moss said. “I’ve talked to (Robert) Kraft. Probably my most fond memories is the undefeated season that they had. Obviously, they didn’t finish it the way they wanted to. That, and I was in the facility once or twice before, meeting Tom Brady when I was younger, sitting there starstruck. Walking down the hallway seeing Tedy Bruschi, seeing Coach (Mike) Vrabel walking down the hallway when I was younger. Those are probably the fondest memories that I’ve had.”
Thaddeus Moss said he had not yet met with the Patriots at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine.
