Kellen Moore's college coach heard from his former quarterback while Moore was thinking about trading his helmet for a whistle. The next thing Chris Petersen knew
Taven Bryan Color Rush Jersey , Moore was in charge of Dak Prescott as quarterbacks coach of the Dallas Cowboys not too long after sitting third on the depth chart behind the 2016 NFL offensive rookie of the year."When I heard that, I think, 'Really? You're sitting next to the guys and now you've got the chalk and you're telling them exactly what to do?'" said Petersen, now at Washington after coaching Moore at Boise State. "It's not like he played for a long, long time in the NFL. I think all those things just speak to how rare he is and how special he is."Nobody close to Moore is surprised he ended up in coaching. They've been saying that about him since he was winning high school state championships under his dad, Tom Moore, in Washington. The only surprise is that his younger brother, Fresno State receivers coach Kirby Moore, beat him into coaching by several years.That's because Kellen Moore's NFL career lasted six years despite him playing just three regular-season games after going 50-3 as the starter at Boise State.Two years ago, Moore went into training camp as the backup to Tony Romo before breaking an ankle in practice. Because of that injury, Prescott became the starter when Romo hurt his back in a preseason game.The Cowboys ran off a franchise-record 11 straight wins that season, forcing Romo to concede the job to Prescott before retiring to go into broadcasting. Moore was a backup again, this time behind Prescott, before losing that job to rookie Cooper Rush last season.Retirement was on Moore's mind when the Cowboys decided not to bring back Wade Wilson, who coached Dallas quarterbacks the previous 10 years. Moore, who turned 30 in July, decided the time was right."There's nothing like playing," said Moore
Authentic Nick Nelson Jersey , who started two games at the end of a lost 2015 season marred by Romo's twice-broken collarbone. "Certainly wasn't planning on something like this opening. When the opportunity presented itself, felt like it was a really good opportunity. Hard to turn down."As for running meetings so soon after sitting next to Prescott in the QB room, the understated Moore shrugs."You talk a little bit more in meetings. That's about it," he said. "I think simply it's a collaborative effort in that room. We're all trying to achieve the same things. One quarterback plays at a time. Do everything you can to help that guy succeed."Moore's transition has been eased by his relationship with offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, who had the same job in Detroit when the Lions signed Moore as an undrafted free agent in 2012.He never took a regular-season snap with the Lions, and came to Dallas a year after Linehan was hired. They share roots in Washington state 鈥?their hometowns are 15 miles apart 鈥?and a reserved demeanor that Linehan believes plays well with most quarterbacks."They didn't even blink," Linehan said of Moore's teammates-turned-pupils. "The respect is there, the whole just understanding that that's not an easy transformation for a lot of people. But they also knew that Kellen, there's nobody that takes more diligent preparation and notes and prepares as a player."Moore can relate to his head coach, too, since Jason Garrett did the same thing 13 years ago. The former backup to three-time Super Bowl winner Troy Aikman in Dallas, Garrett ended with playing career with Tampa Bay and Miami in 2004. In no time 鈥?two weeks, Garrett said 鈥?he was Nick Saban's quarterbacks coach with the Dolphins."Oftentimes as players, we sit back and we have all the answers but someone else is running the show," Garrett said. "When you click into being a coach, you have to have the answers from A to Z. And you have to be really thorough on how you teach all different guys in the room and all different guys on the field."The most important guy is Prescott, but even that won't really be new to Moore. Since his injury him sidelined all of 2016, Moore was a de facto coach for a first-year player navigating the sudden success of a 13-win season before the Cowboys lost to Green Bay in a divisional playoff game.Moore said that season got him to thinking about the next phase of his career. And because of that season
Eagles Elite Jerseys , Prescott doesn't feel much of a change."Obviously he's being vocal. He's being more of a coach," Prescott said. "He's always been there teaching me the game, teaching me different things about the defense and the offense. But now that's his job. He's done a great job in the film room, on the field."While agreeing that the move is unusual, Petersen also sees it as logical."He has paid attention like a coach," Petersen said. "He's so laser-focused on the mental part of things. He knows that system inside and out. It's not like he's learning a new system and all this. He can tell them exactly like this is what you do. I think it's pretty smart by the Cowboys."And not surprising to Petersen, or anyone who knows his former quarterback, that Moore went for it.Damon Harrison isn't a big fan of change, so it might be a little surprising the massive defensive tackle is enjoying playing in the New York Giants' new 3-4 scheme. Harrison is having fun playing in the middle of the line flanked by second-year pro Dalvin Tomlinson and third-round draft pick B.J. Hill.While there are fewer linemen in the formation, players say the defense is much more aggressive than the old 4-3 scheme. The linemen have gone from playing a two-gap responsibility to attacking one-gap."It just takes me back to my first years in the league," the 29-year-old Harrison said Wednesday before practice. "It's kind of like a Rex Ryan-type defense. It's a lot of attacking, it's not sitting around waiting, trying to read and see the other guys on the offense are doing - it's playing defense with an offensive mentality."In the formation, Harrison tends to shade on either side of the center, while Tomlinson and Hill pick a gap between the guard and tackle.What also makes James Bettcher's defense interesting is the linemen also can rotate, so are not going up against the same opponent each play.When the linebackers and defensive backs join the rush, it adds to the confusion.While the Giants (3-13) struggled last season, Harrison was again outstanding. He has started every game for five straights seasons
http://www.buccaneersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-ryan-jensen-jersey , including the last two with the Giants. He finished with 76 tackles, second on the team, and he is clearly one of the leaders on defense, even though he shies away from calling himself a leader.Besides learning a new defense, Harrison said he is learning about a new coaching staff and a lot of new players, led by linebackers Kareem Martin, Alec Ogletree and Connor Barwin along with Hill and veteran tackle A.J. Francis."It's a few holdovers, but other than that, it's new faces," said Harrison, who is entering his seventh season after starting with the Jets. "Everybody's trying to learn everybody, to figure out what makes that person tick, what makes them go. It's kind of refreshing. I told you in the past, I'm not a guy who likes change, so it's a real difficult time for me."Tomlinson, who also started every game last season, said he and Harrison talk about the new defense constantly. They don't hesitate to point out mistakes to each other."It's different, but it is pretty similar for the most part
Nick Chubb Browns Jersey ," Tomlinson said of the schemes. "For the interior guys, we pretty much have the same job. Stop the run and be aggressive."Tomlinson said the linemen can flip-flop positions on any play, depending on what the offense shows and the defensive alignment."We try to disguise everything to almost look the same," Tomlinson said. "When everything looks the same, you don't know what you are getting from us and what to expect. We can bring someone from anywhere and surprise them every time."The new defense also has quick forced Harrison to change his style and his look a bit, a hint he might be dropping weight from his 355-pound frame."You go to change the body type to be able to do Coach Bettcher is asking of the defensive line, which is to get up the field and attack, and anybody who knows me and likes me, that's not something that's been a strong point in my game," Harrison said. "I can do it. I like to kind of use it as a change up every now."NOTES: The Giants returned to practice after having a day off. ... S Landon Collins intercepted Eli Manning's pass that seemed to be tipped by linebacker B.J. Goodson in a two-minute drill. ... Third-year pro Kalif Raymond, who had one catch in six games with the Giants last season, has been showing flashes in training camp, including a couple Wednesday..