By George Dohrmann
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, October 19, 1998; Page C11

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 18 – Minnesota Vikings rookie wide receiver Randy Moss called Darrell Green "his kind of guy," but he wasn't ready to give him too much credit. He admitted the Redskins cornerback was the best player he has faced, but then said a lack of focus, not Green, was his real problem in today's 41-7 victory over Washington at the Metrodome.

Moss had five receptions for 64 yards but did not catch a scoring pass.

"I wasn't much into the game today," Moss said. "Some plays I took off, some plays I went hard. I need to get that straightened out."

Moss did help the Vikings on two scoring drives as Minnesota improved to 6-0 and remained, with Denver, the last of the NFL's unbeaten teams. But Moss's performance lacked a true highlight.

"Some of that was Green, and some of it was me," Moss said. "He made some plays, but there were a lot of plays that I could have made. [Quarterback] Randall [Cunningham] and I had some miscommunications."

Minnesota didn't need much from Moss because Cunningham found veteran wide receiver Cris Carter the few times the Vikings needed a key reception. Carter's five catches for 109 yards included a one-yard touchdown catch with 17 seconds left before the intermission. Another short scoring grab in the first quarter was negated because Carter was flagged for pushing off on Green.

"Cris Carter is always going to show," Vikings offensive coordinator Brian Billick said. "I always have five or six plays for Cris to use whenever we need them or whenever the offense is struggling. Whenever we needed the catch, he was there."

Carter was there on the Vikings' first scoring drive, catching a 20-yard pass on the second play that moved Minnesota into Redskins' territory. He had a 36-yard catch on the drive that ended with the Vikings up 14-7, and then made it 21-7 by reaching above safety Darryl Pounds right before the half.

"Cris was working hard today," Cunningham said. "He knew what kind of game it was going to be and he came up big on some long passes in the first half."

In the second half there was little worth watching, but Green's duel with Moss was the exception. On one series in the third quarter, the Vikings twice tried to break Moss free along the Redskins' sideline, but Green, who at 38 is 17 years older than Moss, defended well on both plays. The first try was a hitch-and-go that Green didn't bite on, and the pass sailed out of the end zone. The pair ran into the padding beneath the stands, and Green was slow to get up.

"I waited to make sure he was all right," Moss said. "I have respect for the guy. He plays hard and doesn't open his mouth."

The 5-foot-8 Green looked beaten on a fly pattern two plays later, but he made up a step when Cunningham underthrew the 6-foot-4 Moss, arriving in time to bat the pass away.

"Darrell Green is a great warrior, a future Hall of Famer," Vikings Coach Dennis Green said. "Even when he was semi-injured he came out and competed."

And, Moss, even though he was only semi-interested, still made some plays. Three of his receptions and 50 yards came on the Vikings' drive right before the half that ended with Carter's touchdown.

It began at Minnesota's 39-yard line, and on the first play Cunningham threw in the flat to Moss, who sprinted across the field, and was pushed out of bounds by Green after a 28-yard gain. The next play was identical except that Moss headed down the left sideline after the catch, picking up 10 yards to the Redskins 23. Following an incomplete pass, Moss made his third reception (in front of Green) for 12 yards and a first down.