49ers to pay Randy Moss straight cash homie for 2012

After a disappointing 6-10 season in 2010, the San Francisco 49ers bounced back in a huge way in 2011 under their Rookie head coach Jim Harbaugh, coming within one game of the Super Bowl, falling in overtime to the eventual world champion -- New York Giants. With an already stellar defense in tact which ranked among tops in the league, if there was any one position in need of some bolstering, it was the wide-receiver position. And on Monday, the 49ers did just that. After having little to work with on offense last year outside of Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree and the running back tandem of Frank Gore and Kendall Hunter, 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh made sure he would provide whoever his quarterback is next year with another target to throw to. That target's name? Randy Moss.

It didn't take long for the reigning Coach of the Year Jim Harbaugh and company to make the decision to sign Moss, a 7-time Pro-Bowler, as the two were said to have met earlier on in the day where Harbaugh was seen throwing passes to Moss. After their brief game of catch, Harbaugh had seen enough, eventually leading to 49ers GM Trent Baalke offering Moss a one-year, incentive laden deal with a base salary of $1.75 Million. Just days prior to the signing, Moss had reportedly worked out with the New Orleans Saints where scouts raved about the 35-year old still possessing some of the best hands in the game. But what remains to be seen is whether or not the former Rookie of the Year can still stretch the field. That is something the 49er faithful and Alex Smith who's projected to re-sign with the organization will have to stay tuned to find out.

Coming into the off-season, the 49ers were said to be pursuing a number of big name free-agents to upgrade their wide receiving corps, with the likes of a Mike Wallace or a Vincent Jackson, as well as the possibility of bringing back Josh Morgan who following a promising start, missed a majority of the 2011 season due to injury. Instead they've gone with a much cheaper route thus far, signing Moss for a fraction of the cost it would have been to land one of the aforementioned marquee wide-outs. Not to mention the deal is a low-risk, high-reward type of deal that could do more help than harm opposed to investing a number of years and a ton of money on a top-tier free-agent. I'm not expecting him to evolve back into the Randy Moss of old who we grew accustomed to seeing log double-digits in the touchdown category, but at the same time, that won't be needed. His presence alone should do enough wonders to help ease the pressure put on Vernon Davis.

The signing of a seasoned veteran like Randy Moss could also be the perfect ingredient to help influence a breakout season from Michael Crabtree who should see a lot more windows with both Moss and Davis drawing attention as possible deep threats. Notorious for being somewhat of a cancer on the sidelines as well as in the locker room in the past when failing to see eye-to-eye with his coaching staff and quarterback as displayed during his time spent with the Oakland Raiders from 2005-06, I think we can expect to see a more respectful Randy Moss in 2012 that not only understands his role, but knows that his teammates and coach will be depending on him. After his brief hiatus in 2011 which saw the future Hall of Fame receiver eye a comeback to no avail, I'm sure he's just thankful to be given another chance and knows that bickering like he's done in the past could be his ticket out of the league once and for all. Moss also understands that this could be his final shot at adding that long awaited Super Bowl ring to an already impressive resume.

With the 49ers scheduled to face off against the Minnesota Vikings and the New England Patriots this year, both of whom Moss shared his most productive seasons with, there's plenty of reasons for the receiver who ranks second behind only the great Jerry Rice in touchdown receptions (153), to be looking forward to the 2012 season. But until then, the million dollar question remains: Will Randy Moss revive his career again like he did with the Patriots or will he be 2012's version of Braylon Edwards?

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