Chiefs: Moore is More

Laddie Morse

Someone said recently that Trent McDuffie was not getting the attention he deserved, but in my mind, that player is WR Skyy Moore. Yes, I’ve been touting him at the Chiefs number one WR by years end, but for good reasons, as he’s been consistently performing at a high level this offseason and preseason.

An analyzer of College Film named “Androo” took Skyy Moore’s game when his team, Western Michigan, played Northern Illinois and he had 12 receptions for 206 receiving yards and 4 TDs. The person doing this video had projected Moore to go by pick #26 to the Bills or the Titans (were his best fits), but here’s his video breakdown of that game, a game he called, “Skyy Moore Might Be THE GUY in Kansas City:”

He states later that he thinks Skyy Moore can be the Chiefs best WR in two years, but as you know, I’m speeding up that timeline.

On the most recent Chiefs depth chart, Moore was listed as WR#3 so he hasn’t had that far to jump to become #1. Here’s a look at three incompletions thrown to Moore in the preseason and it’s not the incompletions I’m focusing on here, it’s the routes and the way he’s used.

Those are routes I’d expect to see QB Patrick Mahomes send Moore out on early in his rookie career. Very likely, this weekend vs the Cardinals. Before Moore was drafted,an assistant coach at Western Michigan, Eric Evans, said:

“He has elite intangibles. The things that make Michael Jordan great in terms of being a competitor, the Tom Bradys of the world being great because of his competitiveness and his work ethic, Skyy has it. And I think that it factor will help him have just an incredible NFL career.”

Intangibles huh? That’s a likely reason that Brett Veach and his scouts kept an eye on him, then eventually selected him as the 54th overall player (a second round pick) in this years draft back in April. Here’s Daniel Harms of RGR Football in a piece he calls: “SCARY Skyy Moore Putting Packers DBs In Harms Way!”

Beyond Football

Skyy Moore is also a good guy on a personal level. He gives his off time to some of the youths he meets:

The Quicks

You may ha e heard me refer to some players as having, r not having, “The Quicks”… and what I mean by that is side-to-side quickness. Tyreek Hill had the best Quicks I’ve ever seen and although Skyy Moore is weighs 10 pounds more than Hill, otherwise he’s the same size and has close to Hill-type Quicks. That’s why I was surprised to here Dave Toub, the Chiefs Special Teams Coach, announce that Mecole Hardman would be taking the punt returns (and Isiah Pacheco will be taking the Kick Off returns). However, that may mean that Moore is more in the plans for the offense than Hardman is right now. Well, for the first game anyway.

The Release

Skyy Moore has a great release, meaning, he can get off the lien of scrimmage with the best of them without a DB destroying his route. How does he do this? With quick jab steps that free him up to go on either side of the DB any time he wants.

The Hands

Skyy Moore‘s has hands that came in at a whopping 10.25 inches during measurements in Indy during the combine. That’s the largest pair of hands of any wide receiver at the combine. It’s a rare sight to see him drop a ball.

The Legs

Andy Reid said Skyy Moore has legs like a running back. During Training Camp, the Chiefs tried lining Moore up in the backfield several times and I’d expect to see that alignment this coming Sunday.

That’s a formation the Chiefs used to run with Tyreek Hill in the backfield and I’d expect to see Mecole Hardman take some of those snaps as well. Mark Schofield of Touchdown Wire said this about Skyy Moore:

“Kansas City Chiefs rookie wide receiver Skyy Moore is turning heads at training camp. Earlier, quarterback Patrick Mahomes talked about how the rookie was earning the trust of not only the coaching staff, but Mahomes himself.”

If you want to be come known as the #1 WR on your team — and I assume Moore does — then you must develop a trust with your quarterback. In this case, that’s with Patrick Mahomes, and it looks like that already happened.

Moore was a QB in high school, but was recruited as a DB then flipped to WR once he got to Western Michigan. He’ll never be a speedy replacement for Tyreek Hill, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have #1 WR ability. What do you think of the Chiefs new rookie WR?

Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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