Why did Matt Moore go undrafted?

[mountainpantherfan]

Serious question.

Moore is 6-3, 202 pounds. He has a good arm and is accurate. For an NFL QB he has the right height but lacks a little in weight.

In college, Moore had a good career with good numbers and a very impressive senior year ending in a very entertaining bowl game. While Oregon State doesn't run a typical pro-style offense, it's similar and is considered by most scouts to be a pro-style system.

So, why did he go undrafted? I've tried to look for some scouting reports from the 07 draft but didn't really find anything that was very useful. The only tidbit that I found was a "scouting report" that was submitted by a scout named Rob Rang on Scouts.com a couple of days before the Seattle game in 2007.

http://sea.scout.com/2/711296.html

Matt Moore possesses the blend of arm strength, accuracy, and mobility teams are looking for in a developmental prospect, and his talents belie his undrafted status. He showed significant improvement throughout his career; engineering impressive victories over USC, Oregon, and Missouri as a senior while passing for 3,022 yards and a TD to INT ratio of 18-7.

Despite his statistics and impressive wins, scouts were concerned with Moore's lack of prototype size. Moore's 6-4, 193 pound frame makes him susceptible to injuries at the NFL level, and he has a history of knee and concussion trouble already. If given time to gain strength and acclimate to the speed of the NFL, however, Moore has the skills to warrant development. He reads the action quickly and can make all of the NFL throws. He is mobile enough to buy time in the pocket and allow his receivers to work themselves free from coverage and has demonstrated an ability to raise his level of play in big games.

So the only knock on the guy was his weight? I can see that dropping him into the 2nd day but undrafted? Anyone have any insight on this?

[Jase]

He actually does lack in arm strength a bit.

[CatMan72]

The concussion trouble might be enough to have scared teams away?

[Doc Holiday]

he had concussion trouble?

[rayzor]

he didn't play football the whole time in college and, in fact, left college and the game to play pro baseball in 2004. got drafted by the Angels.

went back to college at oregon state where he finished.

had he stayed playing the game he might have gotten drafted.

good question is why was tony romo not drafted and what did dallas see in both these guys?

[Mr. Scot]

he didn't play football the whole time in college and, in fact, left college and the game to play pro baseball in 2004. got drafted by the Angels.

went back to college at oregon state where he finished.

had he stayed playing the game he might have gotten drafted.

good question is why was tony romo not drafted and what did dallas see in both these guys?

Or why did Tom Brady drop to the sixth round while a guy like Tim Couch went first overall?

Granted, some teams are better at it than others, but the draft is still something of a crap shoot at heart. Teams can put in loads of research and still whiff, while others can get lucky and steal a star.

[Urrymonster]

Per nfldraftscout.com

Positives: Has a tall, lanky frame with room to carry at least another 20 pounds of bulk...Has long limbs, a bit high-cut, but shows tapered muscle definition in his lower frame and adequate muscles in his arms...Shows good mobility stepping in and out of the pocket and demonstrates decent arm strength throwing on the move...Despite not playing baseball since high school, he was selected in the 22nd-round of the 2004 major league baseball draft...Has good quickness running out of the pocket, showing the agility, change of direction and slide to pick up valid yardage with his feet...Shows good stop-and-go action on the moving, setting his feet well before firing the ball...Looks fluid in his pass setup and has a loose arm with a tight over-the-top delivery...Throws a catchable ball when he steps into his throws...Has the field vision to read defenses, and while he will force the ball and make questionable decisions he is efficient at hitting his receivers in stride...Puts his body behind his tosses, demonstrating proper weight transfer... Has enough arm strength to even put zip on the ball when throwing off his back foot...He will rush a few throws, but it is not out of panic, as he generally remains cool under pressure...Had a much better command of the huddle at Oregon State than he did at UCLA...Has the strength behind his throws to generate good zip on out passes and keeps the receivers within their routes with minimal adjustment...Slides to avoid and buy time in the pocket and has the agility to escape the bull rush...Showed better anticipation on curls and crossing routes as a senior, and was also more effective on three- and five-step timing routes...Does a good job at the pre-snap making check downs...Scans the field quickly and was much better at locating secondary targets as a senior (used to lock on to his primary target too long in 2005, resulting in 19 interceptions compared to seven in 2006).

Negatives: Makes questionable decisions, but shows most of his inconsistencies when throwing from the outside hashes...Not the type who runs at the first sight of pressure, but will try to force the action when the pocket collapses rather than throw the ball away...Generally throws over the top, but will revert to slinging it sidearm, and this led to 12 of his 19 interceptions in 2005...Must do a better job of seeing defenders before firing the ball into tight places...Needs to take a little bit off his short tosses, as they come out hard, making it difficult for his receivers to field them without breaking off their routes...Most of his troubles happen when throwing off his back foot...Mobile quarterback, but makes questionable decisions, running right into spots...Is quicker in his pass set now, but still needs to speed up his drive back from center...Rhythm-type passer who gets into stretches where he sprays the ball all over the place...Durability could be an issue, as he has had several knee injuries and concussions in the past.

Compares To: JOSH McCOWN-Detroit...Like McCown, Moore is a tall, lanky passer with decent mobility and arm strength. He settled down as a a senior, doing a better job of making progression reads, but will still try to force the ball when pressured. His frame is too frail to withstand NFL punishment, and he needs to work on his drive back from center, but late in the draft someone could find a project that could eventually pan out. He's just not ready for prime time -- yet.

[Fireball77]

I don't know, I liked him when he was a junior in college. I would have drafted him. Not HIGH mind you, but maybe 5-6.

[mountainpantherfan]

Per nfldraftscout.com

Thanks Urry!

That was a lot more detailed than the one I was able to find. Seems like his weight and that making him injury prone was a big factor. All of the negatives are issues that every young QB will have and even some vets so those wouldn't bother me that much. Actually those negatives seem similar to what I remember hearing about Matt Ryan.

The reason I asked this question was because I wanted to know what issues he had coming out of college and be able to compare them to how he is playing now. It would be neat to come back and reference this thread during the preseason when he will actually get some playing time.

[Kurb]

B/c he isn't that good..

[thefuzz]

Senior year, passing for only 18 TD's and 7 INT's.

Most drafted QB's usually blow up the competition their Junior or Senior years. He did not.

Although 3,000 yards is a pretty high number.

[mantal]

B/c he isn't that good..

When I hear comments like this, I always think back to his first NFL completion when he threw a 45 yard perfect strike to Colbert, (which he actually caught) in tight coverage. When he went to the sidelines, Delhomme told him in the 100 times he has run that play he has never thrown that pass and Moores reply was "He was open". I kinda like that kid...

[Kurb]

You think I'm serious....

[mantal]

You think I'm serious....

April Fool's day is over Mr...