When Chris Mortensen mentioned in SportsCenter draft preview shows that Mike Munchak had nearly lured Tom Moore to Tennessee as offensive coordinator, I figured the Colts would have let him go if he really wanted to.
It should have set off a bigger alarm bell.
Tuesday when I saw this mention that Moore has been invited to visit with the Jets to talk about red-zone scoring, I realized I’d missed something. It’s the second time he’s been identified as the Colts' "former offensive coordinator" instead of as their current senior assistant.
And what are the odds the Colts let Moore talk about a job with a division rival and let a conference foe approach him to talk strategy?
Zero.
Sure enough, Moore’s name is no longer on the team web site’s coaching roster and I've confirmed in a couple places that he’s no longer with the team. It's a change to the staff that officials have not yet been asked about.
It’s something I certainly should have asked Bill Polian about when I’ve had the chance.
It’s not uncommon for the Colts to make moves with no announcement and allow them to be discovered later -- something that’s taken too long for me to do. Perhaps Moore didn’t want any fanfare with his departure, it would fit with what I know of him. We do not know if it came against his wishes, if it was a mutual deal or if the team wanted him to stay and he chose to walk away.
Moore was instrumental in the creation and perfection of the Colts’ offense run by Peyton Manning. Last year, Clyde Christensen officially took over as offensive coordinator, with Moore reduced to offensive assistant. A reduction was significant, but it's nothing compared to a departure.
Mortensen’s report said Moore ultimately told Munchak he couldn’t make the commitment the Titans deserved.
That makes it sound as if the 72-year old coach no longer wants to live a full-time football life. More power to him if that's the case.
But remember, Howard Mudd made a declaration like that at the end of the 2009 season. And a little more than a year after he retired, he said yes to Andy Reid’s offer to join the Eagles’ staff for 2011.
As of now, at least for 2011, one of the NFL’s great offensive minds has taken a seat.