Moore as Miami’s starter? Not so fast
DAVIE — People are emotional. They want answers: Is it
job? Shouldn’t he be the Dolphins quarterback? Doesn’t he release the ball quicker, spark this team better and throw downfield more aggressively than Let’s take a breath. There’s an easy answer here. It starts by realizing there are dozens of websites updating their 2018 mock NFL draft each week. Yes, stay with me here. It’s the darndest thing.
The draft isn’t until the spring. There are months of football yet to be played, games to be scouted, interviews to be held. Yet, starting in August, USC quarterback and Wyoming’s ranked near the top of most mock drafts. Everyone was certain.
Then, in September, Darnold and Allen both dropped in the mock drafts. Darnold became a mid-tolate-first-round pick by October while Allen tumbled completely out of the first round of mock drafts. What happened? That’s an easy and natural and pertinent explanation to this emotional demand for an answer on the Dolphins quarterback today, right now, this second. What happened is Darnold and Allen played some games. Information was gathered. Performances were analyzed.
And, again, there was no decision necessary until next spring.
Can we similarly watch Moore play and gather information from Thursday night in Baltimore? Can we do so without a final answer already in mind?
Because there’s no need for an answer now, today, this second. Cutler is out with cracked ribs. He can’t play Thursday and there’s a good chance he won’t be ready the following week.
“You’re getting way ahead of me,” coach
said when asked if Moore can win the starting job. “We’re only focused on this week. When we get through Thursday, we’ve got a bye weekend.
“I’m able to kind of sit back and see where we’re at, big picture, and health status of people. I’m not even ready to think to that point right now.”
It’s fair to think Gase wants Cutler as his quarterback. He picked Cutler once over Moore already, COMMENTARY after went down. Gase invested $10 million in Cutler. Gase is a smart offensive mind. He had worked with Cutler. It made all kinds of sense to spend that to possibly save a season. And he has far more knowledge and insight into quarterbacks than anyone else in this discussion.
But what everyone will have after Thursday is more information. More results. More time seeing how this offense runs under Moore. Quite simply, everyone will have more Moore.
Cutler hasn’t been much through five-plus games with the Dolphins. The offense ranks 31st in scoring. He’s 30th in the allencompassing yards-perattempt stat. You hear reasons why: The offensive line is bad;
is hurt; the receivers lead the league in drops. All true.
But all that was true when Moore came in Sunday and brought the Dolphins back for the win. Gase explained that as “everyone picking up their game” to help when the back-up entered the huddle.
Maybe so. Or maybe all the intangibles coaches always look for in quarterbacks — leadership, fire, big plays — are what Moore brings. We’ve seen it before. Now we’ll get to see him again on Thursday.
Gase is frustrated by his offense’s inability to do much. He laments the idea it’s still running “basic” stuff in his second year working with it. He thought they’d be beyond that by now.
Is it the offensive line? The drops? Or could it be the quarterback? Probably, it’s some combination of all the above.
Now comes Moore. He’ll get all the practice snaps. He’ll get a game plan centered around his strengths. At 33, he’ll get all he’s seemed to want — a chance.
the great baseball manager, was once asked with the Marlins why back-up catcher
wasn’t getting more playing time considering he was on a hot run. Leyland said any back-up should fear one thing: “Over-exposure.”
Moore gets more exposure Thursday. Maybe he lights up the night in Baltimore. Maybe he makes the kinds of mistakes that explain why no team has viewed him as a starter.
You can demand today that Moore be the full-time starter — or not — just as the mock-drafts list who’s No. 1. But a decision isn’t needed now. So sit back. Watch the game. Gather information. And, as the Dolphins should, let the decision come to you.