While not yet made official by the team, it's been reported that quarterback Kellen Moore will retire as an active player and become the Dallas Cowboys' QB position coach. He had been on the team's practice squad.
Wade Wilson had been the Cowboys quarterbacks coach since 2007, and had another stint from 2000-2002 in the same position. He also played for Dallas as a backup QB from 1995-1997.
Like Wilson, Kellen Moore is using his playing career in Dallas to now move into coaching.
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Moore has been with Dallas since 2015 when Scott Linehan, who coached him with the Detroit Lions, brought him in during the QB debacle that occurred after a season-ending injury to Tony Romo. Moore finished the year as the starting QB and, while not overly impressive, was at least better than Brandon Weeden or Matt Cassel. In 2016, Moore was injured in preseason and opened the door for the ascension of Dak Prescott.
Prescott's increased playing time allowed the rookie to be handed the keys after Romo was again injured. If not for Kellen's injury, he may very well have been the Cowboys' starting QB to at least start the 2016 season.
This year, Moore lost his backup job to another standout rookie, Cooper Rush. After out-playing Kellen in the preseason, Rush remained the third QB for a few weeks but was eventually moved up the depth chart. Moore was released and signed to the practice squad.
There are reasons to be excited about Kellen Moore becoming the new QB coach.
Never having the physical tools that one looks for in an NFL quarterback, Moore has made it this far on his brains. He has been credited in both college and in the pros as having some of the best football intellect anyone has seen. He has played a big role in helping the other QBs on the team with game preparation and in-game analysis.
In fact, Dak Prescott referred to Kellen Moore as a “genius” in one interview. After a difficult sophomore year and with a critical season ahead, Dak will rely on Moore's football acumen more than ever.
They say, “those who can't do, teach.” Moore actually did play QB and probably exceeded expectations given his physical drawbacks. We can only hope he remains an overachiever as Dak Prescott's new coach.
