As will happen due to the short life span of a coach in the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys are planning to deal with a high amount of turnover on their coaching staff this offseason. While the Cowboys have decided to retain head coach Jason Garrett and both of his coordinators, Scott Linehan and Rod Marinelli, substantial change appears to be on the way at the position coach level.
The Cowboys are getting ready to replace their coach of the most high-profile and important position in football: Quarterback. And, it’s been rumored the man who will be promoted to do the job is current Cowboys QB Kellen Moore.
Moore, who played in the final three games of the 2015 season for the Cowboys, lost his backup job this year to Cooper Rush. Rush simply outplayed Moore during the preseason, and most of Cowboys Nation was calling for Rush to win the QB2 job after those performances.
The one thing we’ve always heard about Kellen Moore, though, is how smart he is. And honestly, you can tell.
For someone as physically limited as he is to stick around in the NFL since 2012, he must have some value off the field. It was rumored last season that while Moore was out with a severe leg injury he worked with the coaches to scout opposing defenses weeks in advance. Obviously this would greatly help the team’s preparation, allowing Moore to scout the future opponents as they were primarily focused on the team of the week.
But despite his football IQ, I’ve seen a lot of people against hiring Kellen Moore as the quarterbacks coach this year.
The main argument against this hire would be the Cowboys accepting “more of the same.” Fellow Staff Writer Sean Martin asked where the “fresh ideas” would come from this offseason, and hiring a current member of the team for a different role in the franchise certainly doesn’t seem “fresh”.
Still, I think that hiring Kellen Moore is a fine idea.
The fact that it wouldn’t be “fresh” isn’t that big of a deal. In fact, I contend that Moore’s familiarity with both Scott Linehan and Dak Prescott would be an advantage.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott had a shaky finish to his sophomore season, and due to these struggles his third season will be vital to both his development and the trust of the franchise in him.
I still believe in Dak Prescott as this team’s franchise quarterback, and I do believe he will turn things around next season if given help by his pass catchers. But there’s no question that a good quarterback coach would be helpful to the young quarterback this season.
Do we know that Kellen Moore will be a good quarterback coach for sure? Of course not. But hiring Moore — who has a relationship with Prescott and knows this offense already — on a cheap contract would be more advantageous than bringing in a high-profile outsider who would cost more money and come with a transition period.
The philosophies of internal vs. external recruiting in business have their pros and cons, but the key advantages of internal recruiting are limited cost and increased continuity. These outcomes can certainly be applied in sports as well.
I completely understand if you’re ready to see Linehan and all associated with him out the door in Dallas, but it’s clear that isn’t going to happen in 2018. So, the Cowboys might as well make the best of it and surround Linehan with coaches who understand his philosophies.
Kellen Moore fits that bill perfectly.
