Kellen Moore was hired to coach the New Orleans Saints after he guided the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl win, but there haven't been nearly as many fireworks since he began running his own team. Going from an offensive coordinator responsible for calling plays to the leader of an entire staff and a 53-man roster has overwhelmed other coaches before. With the offense slowing down week by week, does Moore view his play calling as part of the problem, and would he consider giving up those duties? That was one of the questions the Saints coach faced during Moore's postgame press conference.
"Just got to focus on, uh, doing a better job in that department, obviously. We're just not getting it done in those situations and I got to find a way to do a better job," Moore said. He didn't comment on the second part of the question, as to whether he would consider handing off play calling responsibilities to an assistant. He's going to keep steering the ship.
At least he's aware of the areas he must improve. Speaking with the media on Monday Moore said that he has to "create more opportunities to be in play action and screen game." To the question of whether he fundamentally likes using play action, Moore dryly responded: "Love it." The Saints only executed a single pass using play action against the Minnesota Vikings, so he must love saving it for special occasions. They didn't run a single screen in Week 5 and rank last in the NFL with six completed screens through five games. New Orleans does rank sixth in run pass option rate (13.9%) and eighth in pre-snap motion (60.8%), but Moore isn't combining those wrinkles with a diverse array of plays to spread out the defense and target mismatches in coverage. There just hasn't been a method to his approach.
Those are the kinds of trends that lead to questions about giving up play calling. It's not really clear who would take that job if Moore was open to it; offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier hasn't done it since he was coaching the Florida Gators back in 2017. Quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien did it at the Senior Bowl but that's hardly the same thing. It might just be Moore at the wheel for however long he's got left. If he can't figure out how to call an effective offense, it won't last long.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Kellen Moore dodges question on whether he'll hand off play calling