Not many Redskins have performed better at Texas Stadium than Santana Moss.
In what was probably his last trip to the place the Dallas Cowboys have called home since 1971, the speedy receiver delivered once again.
Moss had his way with the Cowboys' secondary on Sunday, catching eight balls for 145 yards and helping the Redskins walk away with a 26-24 victory.
In four career games at Texas Stadium, Moss has caught 26 passes for 494 yards and three touchdowns. His most memorable game there was in 2005, when he caught two touchdown passes in the final minutes to lead the Redskins to a 14-13 comeback win.
"Santana Moss is a really great receiver," Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips said after the game. "This guy is a Pro Bowl receiver."
Moss showed explosiveness, burning Cowboy cornerback Terrence Newman for a 53-yard grab to help set up Shaun Suisham's first field goal of the afternoon.
For a receiver who has given Dallas so many problems in years past, there was no other way to say goodbye to Texas Stadium.
"It was fun while it lasted" is how Moss described playing in the historic stadium.
Although the season is still young, a trip to Hawaii might not be that far away for the Redskins' leading receiver. He has 27 catches for 421 yards--a 15.6 yards-per-catch average--and three touchdowns so far this season.
Moss is among the league leaders in receptions, receiving yards and total yards from scrimmage.
He is not getting caught up in the numbers.
"I always try to go out and not think of the stats, but just think about what I can do for my team," Moss said.
While some NFL greats, like Jerry Rice and Art Monk, credited their intense off-season training regimens for their results on Sundays, Moss believes the time he took off last offseason is a big reason for his success this season.
"I am going to be honest with you, my body is a lot better than it has been in the past," Moss said.
Instead of spending the offseason running and lifting weights, as he had in years past, Moss took three months off to let his body heal after a grueling 2007 season.
"This is the first offseason where I just shut it down for three months," Moss said, "I was scared to do it because I had never done it before."
To stay in shape, he took up mixed martial arts and came to training camp healthy for the first time since 2005.
Moss was encouraged to change his training habits by former NFL cornerback Robert Bailey, who told the receiver he was pushing his body too hard.
Redskins head coach Jim Zorn has seen the benefits of having a healthy Santana Moss. Zorn's version of the West Coast Offense is starting to click, putting up 381 yards against a respected Cowboy defense.
After watching film of Moss from last season, Zorn decided to move Moss from flanker to the X receiver position. Zorn hoped that the move would allow Moss to set up on the line of scrimmage and enable him to get a quicker release into the defensive backfield.
So far the move has worked.
Moss has already had two 100-yard receiving games and closely resembles the big play receiver who put up 1,488 yards and nine touchdowns in 2005.
