Panthers QB Moore fitting into role of starter

By Darin Gantt - daringantt@carolina.rr.com

CHARLOTTE -- The accidental quarterback will get a chance to finish the Carolina Panthers season today, and perhaps set the stage for something more next year.

Third-year backup Matt Moore was reluctantly given the reins a month ago, and after a shaky start has solidified his chances to compete for the starting job next year. Whether that's with incumbent Jake Delhomme, some collection of newcomers or both remains to be seen.

But what's become clear is that Moore has changed the image of himself over the last month, going from affable backup to accepted piece of the puzzle with two straight quality starts.

“I've seen a lot of progress out of him,” running back DeAngelo Williams said.

“He's been in our offense three years now, I want to say, and he had the opportunity when Jake went down a couple years to step in at the tail end. I think he played well then. He knew our offense already and when Jake went down this year, the first game, he had to get his rhythm back.

“But the last couple weeks, getting his rhythm, stepping in and playing well, scrambling when he has to scramble. He has the potential to be really, really, really good.”

Suffice it to say Moore didn't inspire that level of confidence in his teammates going into this season.

He looked good in his 2007 mop-up duty, winning two games against playoff teams with a stripped-down playbook and few responsibilities. But then came a regression and an injury in 2008 that left him largely forgotten going into this season. Delhomme's struggles were significant this year, but even with eight touchdowns and 18 interceptions, it took a broken middle finger to get Moore on the field, an indication of the level of faith the Panthers had in both quarterbacks.

But over the last two weeks, Moore has changed the game.

Entering the fourth quarter of the Minnesota game, he had completed 51 of 88 passes for 560 yards in 2009, with two touchdowns and two interceptions for a passer rating of 75.0.

But in the fourth quarter of the Vikings game and last week's thrashing of the Giants, Moore was 20 of 27 for 331 yards, with five touchdowns and no picks for a near-perfect 154.5 rating.

It's heady stuff for the 25-year-old Moore, who laughed last week about his own discomfort in the spotlight. The signature moment of the open locker-room period for the media on Wednesday is generally the quarterback talking, but last week, center Ryan Kalil had a huge crowd around him while Moore stood hanging around with the two guys there to interview him.

Moore has taken this entire ride in stride, seemingly unfazed at what is happening around him and to him. He shrugs through most answers, careful not to offend friend and mentor Delhomme when asked the inevitable questions about the future of the position — a future he figures far more prominently into now than he did a month ago.

“If that's the case, that's great,” Moore replied when asked about competing for the starting job in 2010. “There's always going to be competition in training camp. You've just got to keep playing well, keep executing and let the chips fall where they may.

“There's always going to be competition, regardless of who's there or who's going to be brought in or what. So it's going to be a chance to make things happen and you've just got to take advantage.”

That is Moore's way of saying “Don't ask me,” but his teammates said they've been impressed by his poise over the last month.

Kalil jokes that he has seen plenty of Moore, back to the days when Moore's Oregon State team upset Kalil's Southern Cal squad. But going back to his senior season at Oregon State, Moore has won consistently, with victories in eight of his last nine in college and a 5-2 mark in his pro starts.

“The bottom line is what he puts on tape and how he wins,” tight end Jeff King said. “That's anybody, whether it's Matt Moore or Hunter Cantwell or whoever it is. ... I don't know what Bill Belichick was thinking when he put Tom Brady in there, but he went with the hot hand, and the guy turned out to be a pretty good player. It's happened before with a lot of guys like that. I think there's a lot of factors that go into it. But (Moore) has made the most of his opportunity like we all hope to do. That's the bottom line, and he definitely hasn't played bad.

“In his mind, he can look forward and say ‘Hey, I can play in this league, whether it's for the Carolina Panthers or 31 other teams. That's how we all look at it when we have success. Very few guys play all the years they want to play with the same team. We know every week's a job interview and we have to approach it like that.”