Pittsburgh Steelers OT Dan Moore Jr. finds himself in a position many NFL players ultimately face. The team continues to add competition to his position, and he’s clinging to a starting job by a thread. He may not have a much more secure grip on a roster spot altogether. And part of that is because of his seeming lack of versatility.
To hear Moore talk, he makes it clear that left tackle is the only position he wants to play. But if he loses his starting job to Broderick Jones and Troy Fautanu, he needs to do more than that. The only one-position backup you can afford these days is a center; a tackle must be able to play both left and right. Even Mike Tomlin seems to acknowledge this relative to Moore’s potential demotion.
But what about playing guard? Many college tackles end up kicking inside, based on skill set and/or team need. With his starting job under threat, can Moore expand his resume to include a basic competence at guard? Ray Fittipaldo isn’t exactly counting on it.
“I’ve attended 90% of the practices since Dan Moore arrived in Pittsburgh. I have never once seen him line up at guard”, he noted in his latest chat session. “If they felt like he had that capability I think they would have at least tried it in a practice by now”.
This feels like a “never say never, but never” moment, of course. Sure, the Steelers could kick Moore inside, or try to, but I don’t see it happening. They moved Willie Colon to guard after starting him at right tackle for several years, after all, so there is precedent. Yet the team didn’t even talk about Moore playing right tackle prior to the draft.
But it’s probably even harder to go from tackle to guard than it is to go from left to right tackle. Even if you can keep some of the same footwork at left guard, you are adapting to a whole new repertoire, otherwise. And given Moore’s apprehension about playing right tackle, I don’t imagine him celebrating a move to guard.
The thing is, though, you do what you have to do to keep a job. Moore has a really good chance of facing a demotion thanks to Jones and Fautanu. Surely he understands that he can’t be just a backup left tackle. He needs to have some comfort lining up at right tackle, as well. The ability to play guard as well merely sweetens the pot.
Moore’s best option may be to find his way to another team. If somebody out there loses their starting left tackle, Moore instantly becomes a viable trade target. Beggars can’t be choosers under those circumstances, and he is an experienced starting left tackle.
Can Dan Moore Jr. be more than that, though? Will necessity force him to fully embrace lining up at other positions? I don’t expect we’ll see him at guard any time soon, certainly not in Pittsburgh. If I am him, though, I am certainly keeping an open mind about it.
