Bill Belichick recalled the ‘most interesting’ draft-day trade he made with the Patriots

Bill Belichick looked back on trading for Randy Moss in 2007: Former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick joined “The Pat McAfee Show” for their live coverage of the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday night, predictably showcasing his vast football knowledge.

Along with offering (occasionally blunt) analysis of each draft pick, Belichick shared a few stories from his time with the Patriots. Specifically, the 72-year-old future Hall of Famer recalled “probably the most interesting” draft-day trade he made during his 24 years in New England.

“We’d been trying to trade for Randy Moss for probably two months,” Belichick remembered of the circumstances leading up to the 2007 deal. New England was coming off a 12-4 season, but needed wide receiver help. Moss, then 29 years old, had just gone through the worst statistical season of his career on a struggling Raiders team.

“After the first day of the draft, I talked to [Al] Davis and I said, ‘Well, are we going to make this deal or not?’ He said, ‘Yeah, we’ll do it for your fourth [round pick].’”

New England sent a fourth-rounder (110th overall) to Davis’s Raiders for Moss, then a five-time Pro Bowler. The problem was that the Patriots had to move quickly to finalize the trade.

“I said that we have to get the guy in for a physical. We can’t take his contract, we’re going to have to renegotiate his contract,” Belichick explained. “Mr. Davis said, ‘Well that’s your problem. You want to trade for him? Then trade for him, you get it done.’”

“I hung up the phone. This is like 11:30 at night on the first day of the draft. I called up Randy and said, ‘Randy, this is Coach Belichick.’ Boom, [he hung] up the phone.”

Moss, as he has humorously explained from his perspective, thought he was being pranked. He did not believe it was actually Belichick calling him.

Finally, on the third try, Belichick was able to communicate the message to Moss.

“Randy, this is Coach Belichick, we traded for you,” the longtime New England coach recalled, eventually explaining the details of the trade.

“I said yeah but look, we have to get this done by tomorrow at noon,” Belichick told Moss. “He goes, ‘Alright, what do I need to do?’ I said you need to come up, take a physical, and we need to renegotiate your contract.”

Moss was in Houston at the time, and was initially shocked at the quick timing.

“But I’ve got a plane,” Moss said to Belichick. “I’ll be there.”

“He flies [in],” Belichick added. “He’s there at eight in the morning, comes in and takes the physical, we renegotiate the contract, and we’re done at 10 o’clock. First thing he says to me is, ‘Where’s the playbook?’”

Moss, disproving accusations that he was not a team player, immediately committed himself to preparing for the next season.

“He said, ‘OK, because when I walk out there with the first team with Brady, I have to know all the plays, I can’t make mental errors and screw up. I have to know this offense,’” Belichick remembered of what Moss told him.

“He was smart, man,” said Belichick. The two watched film together, and Moss’s new head coach was quickly impressed by his knowledge of the game.

“This is awesome,” Belichick offered before explaining the detail of coverages Moss knew would be played against him. The two football minds quickly connected, with record-setting results.

Moss went on to catch 23 touchdowns in his first season playing alongside Brady, setting an NFL single-season record that still stands.

Trivia: Randy Moss ranks fourth in all-time receiving yards. Can you name the three players above him?

(Answer at the bottom).

Hint: Two were drafted by the 49ers, one by the Cardinals.

Scores and schedules:

The Patriots picked quarterback Drake Maye third overall in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday night. New England will have the second pick in the second round (34th overall) tonight when the draft resumes at 7 p.m.

The Red Sox lost to the Guardians 6-4 on Thursday. Boston begins a three-game set at Fenway Park against the Cubs tonight at 7:10 p.m.

Tomorrow:

• The Celtics face the Heat in Miami in Game 3 of the first-round playoff series (currently tied 1-1) starting at 6 p.m.
• The Bruins play the Maple Leafs in Toronto in Game 4 of the first-round series. Boston holds a 2-1 lead, with the puck set to drop at 8 p.m.
• The Revolution host Inter Miami, as all eyes turn to the possibility of Lionel Messi playing at Gillette Stadium in front of what is expected to be a crowd of over 60,000.
• PWHL Boston will be on the road for a matinee matchup with Minnesota at 1 p.m.

On Sunday, the Free Jacks will matchup with RFC Los Angeles in Carson, California at 6:30 p.m.

More from Boston.com:

Devin McCourty’s take on Bill Belichick’s analysis: The former Patriots safety loved his ex-coach’s draft media debut, though it may have hit a little close to home.

A Brad Marchand story from The Great One: Wayne Gretzky shared a story about Marchand’s leadership with the Bruins.

On this day: In 1964, the Celtics clinched a sixth consecutive championship, defeating the San Francisco Warriors 105-99. Despite Wilt Chamberlain’s game-high totals in both points (30) and rebounds (27), Bill Russell (14 points, 26 rebounds) was able to limit his rival. And with five other Celtics reaching double figures, Boston produced a greater team performance to overcome the Hall of Fame center.

Daily highlight: Eric Cole with an ace on a 207-yard par three at the Zurich Classic.

Trivia answer: Jerry Rice, Larry Fitzgerald, Terrell Owens

Newsletter Signup

Stay up to date on all the latest news from Boston.com