Why The Dallas Cowboys Can’t Lose Kellen Moore to Boise State
Only two weeks of football remain in the 2020 NFL season. It's been a rocky year for the Dallas Cowboys, who are surprisingly still in the hunt despite their 5-9 record. Regardless of what happens in the next couple of weeks, the Cowboys will undergo plenty of changes before next season. Due to recent news […]
Only two weeks of football remain in the 2020 NFL season. It's been a rocky year for the Dallas Cowboys, who are surprisingly still in the hunt despite their 5-9 record. Regardless of what happens in the next couple of weeks, the Cowboys will undergo plenty of changes before next season. Due to recent news in the college football world, you might as well add Kellen Moore to the list of moving pieces.
It makes too much sense. Boise State has a vacant head coaching position after Auburn's hiring of Bryan Harsin. For seven seasons, Harsin's Broncos finished in the AP Top 25. Why wouldn't the Broncos want to go big? Even when Moore declared for the NFL Draft, it felt like it was a fact he'd end up as a head coach somewhere. Just pick up any scouting report on the former Boise State quarterback and you're likely to find some commentary on his high football IQ and his potential to be a coach down the road.
And Moore's history with Boise State is right there. A four-year quarterback who broke all kinds of records in his day and finished his career with an unbelievable 50-3 record. A player as beloved as him should be an immediate reason for excitement for Boise State's fans.
But the romantic side of it isn't the only reason Moore is a legit candidate. It seems every year, more and more young head coaches are standing on the sidelines both in the NFL and in the NCAAF. Kellen Moore has been one of the most promising and up and coming coaches in football for a while now. Even when he was a QB Coach for the Cowboys he was causing whispers around the NFL.
As for Moore's potential interest in the gig, make no mistake about it: Boise State is a big job in the coaching world. If he's a legit candidate for the Broncos, he should seriously consider taking it.
Mike McCarthy spoke to the media on Wednesday and said he hadn't talked to Moore about Boise State's opening. That should happen eventually, though. But how should Dallas Cowboys fans feel about the potential departure of Kellen Moore?
Moore has been a controversial topic among fans since 2019. In 2020, that controversy has only increased as the Cowboys have struggled on offense after Dak Prescott's injury in Week 5. But truth be told, what NFL teams don't struggle without their starting quarterback? Not to mention an offensive line that has been forced to feature preseason-caliber talent.
The fact of the matter is when Moore had Prescott at quarterback, this was a top-tier offense. Through five weeks, the Cowboys averaged 32.6 points per game. Granted, there were some issues, specifically in the turnover department. But turnovers have more to do with the players on the field than the play-caller on the sidelines.
Moore was successful even in his first year as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator. Although Dallas missed the playoffs in 2019, the team's offense drastically improved from one year to another.
In 2018 they scored 21.2 points per game (22nd in the NFL) and averaged 5.4 yards per play (21st). If you preferred advanced stats, they ranked 24th in offense DVOA, per Football Outsiders.
Compare that to 2019, when the Cowboys were one of the best offenses in the NFL. They scored 27.1 points per game (6th) and led the NFL with an average of 6.5 yards per play. And of course, they improved to second-best in offense DVOA.
This season has surely been frustrating for Cowboys' fans. But recency bias should be avoided when discussing Kellen Moore's performance. You can't really expect this team's offense to perform like they were at the beginning of the season with Prescott under center. It's just not realistic. And even still, Moore has shown a lot of creativity in the last few weeks.
The Dallas Cowboys should hope Kellen Moore sticks around. But be it Boise State this year or somewhere else, Moore's time in Dallas might be running out. Young, offensive-minded coaches are still in high-demand ever since Sean McVay took the NFL by storm. If Kellen keeps it up, opportunities like this will only keep coming his way.
It's only a matter of time before he's ready to move on.
Featured Image Via Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
