Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett announced on Monday morning that quarterback Kellen Moore will start the team's game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
Moore, a 26-year-old southpaw, completed 15-of-25 passes for 158 yards and a touchdown against the New York Jets last Saturday, his first appearance in his NFL career.
“He just deserves an opportunity,” Garrett said, via Todd Archer of ESPN.com. “He did some good things in the ballgame, provided a little bit of a spark for us, made some plays in the passing game, moved the ball. He made some mistakes. Hopefully he’ll learn from those mistakes. But we think he gives us the best chance to help us move the ball, score some points and win a football game.”
While this is certainly fantastic news for Moore, it is incredibly hard to believe that it has taken him this long to get this opportunity.
______________________________________
A few years ago, my uncles and I were having a discussion about which quarterback had the best career in recent college football history. Being diehard Texas fans, it didn't take them long to offer their selection: Vince Young.
Personally, being a diversified fan who doesn't have one clear-cut favorite team, it was a more difficult decision. A slew of names immediately went through my mind, such as Young, Robert Griffin III, Tim Tebow and Case Keenum, to name a few.
However, there was one player who I continued to fall back on as the choice. This individual won an NCAA-record 50 games as a starting quarterback, was the starting signal-caller in every game for four years for an elite team, played in two BCS bowl games and was a few points away from never losing a game.
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
That guy is Moore, who led Boise State to an incredible 50-3 victory from 2008-2011. His three losses came to TCU by one point in his freshman year, by three points to Nevada in a heartbreaking loss his junior year, and then to TCU again by one point in his senior year.
In other words, had the Broncos found a way to score one more time against TCU the first time, had kicker Kyle Brotzman been able to make a chip shot field goal against Nevada, and if not for a crucial fumble late in the game as well as a missed field goal as time expired against TCU his senior year, we could be looking at an undefeated quarterback.
Those things didn't happen, obviously, but what did happen was that over the course of four years, Moore solidified his reputation as a great leader, a proven winner and one of the calmest and most poised quarterbacks that college football has ever seen.
But despite the incredible success that he enjoyed throughout his illustrious collegiate career, Moore has not yet been given an opportunity in the NFL. He went undrafted in the 2012 draft, but he was signed by the Detroit Lions shortly after.
“Very frustrating process, but a great outcome in the end,” Moore told the Idaho Statesman after he signed with the Lions the first time in 2012. “Going into it, you felt very comfortable and confident that you’d get an opportunity to get drafted. Bottom line is it didn’t happen. But it’s kind of funny you end up where you’d love to go in the first place.”
Since then, he has been through it all. He was cut, signed and then cut by the Lions, and then this year he was signed, cut, re-signed and then promoted by the Cowboys.
Despite his lack of NFL success, Moore should still be admired for his college excellence. He exhibited unparalleled accuracy as a Bronco, completing nearly 70 percent of his passes in his career - including an NCAA-leading 74.3 completion percentage in his senior year - and compiling a phenomenal 142:28 touchdown-to-interception ratio.
Otto Kitsinger III/Getty Images
His college career should be remembered for his uncanny ability to thread the needle on seemingly every pass, while displaying tremendous moxie and leadership that allowed him to lead Boise State to countless come-from-behind victories.
To date, his professional career has not been very memorable, and realistically, it could easily stay that way. After all, he is only 6'0", does not have an overly strong arm, and does not possess standout athleticism.
But ultimately, that should in no way overshadow the outstanding college career that he had. Winning 50 games is a record that could easily never be broken, and Kellen Moore engineered arguably the best four-year run of any quarterback in history.
That is something that cannot be taken lightly. He had an amazing college career, and it is only fitting that he gets a chance to start in the NFL. He is being thrust into a difficult situation, but he has plenty of experience in positions just like that.
He has always been undersized and underrated, and in my opinion, has one of the best - if not the best - bodies of work at the college level in history.