2013 NFL Draft: Scouting Report: Sio Moore
Oct 15, 2011; East Hartford, CT, USA; Connecticut Huskies linebacker Sio Moore (3) celebrates after making an interception against the South Florida Bulls during the second half at Rentschler Field. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports
Today We have the next scouting report to get you prepped for the draft. Lets take a closer look at UConn Linebacker Sio Moore. Moore visited the Ravens facility 2 weeks ago.
What He Does Well
Moore flows to the ball. He doesn’t always have the best ability to forecast plays, but he does do a very good job reading and reacting in the moment and finding a way to be around the play. Moore has terrific closing speed and burst. He didn’t time as well as he plays on the field, but that isn’t much of a concern because i can see his game speed every time I turn on the tape. Moore is also extremely flexible, almost to a fault. During his time at UCONN Moore lined up at all 3 linebacker spots, defensive end, defensive tackle, corner and safety. because of that, NFL teams have had trouble deciding where to put Moore. In the Ravens scheme I see him as a strong side inside backer. Moore could potentially be a third round pick and a day one starter. He has solid pass rushing skills, but I dont want him doing that full time in the NFL. his real strength lies in his coverage ability. He was asked to drop into coverage 10-15 snaps per game last year(at least in the games I watched(NC State, Pitt, Rutgers)), in the games I watched, I only saw him allow 3 completions. That is pretty good for a front 7 guy. It is also worth noting that on each of the three allowed receptions, Moore was in very good position, but it was just a very good pass. Moore fits in with what i am calling the new wave of NFL ILBs, fast, smaller and better in coverage than traditional linebackers.
Where he needs Work
He spends way to much time on his back. When Moore was asked to pass rush on the edges or set an edge in the run game, it was about 50-50 as to whether he would make a big play or end up completely out of the play or on the ground as a spectator. He is very bad to commit the cardinal sin of pass rushing and allow himself to get pushed way behind the quarterback(I had a coach that used to say “if you end up back there you might as well go buy a ticket because you’re just watching the game now”). That bad habit means he has an unprecedented number of plays where he makes no impact at all. Much of this will be fixed by a position change that allows him to be just a situational pass rusher up the middle, but it still brings into question his aggressiveness when pursuing the play. He seems to prefer running around blockers rather then engaging and breaking the block to move forward to the ball. This is probably in large part a coaching issue that can be resolved. Also, like I said before, a move inside to ILB will hide this weakness on nearly all plays. He also tends to dive or reach a little more than i would like on his tackles. Again, that is another highly coachable weakness.
Conclusion
Moore is way to talented to be drafted as late as he is projected to go. If the Ravens could snag him in the third round, it would be a tremendous steal and i think he would be a favorite to start at ILB to start the season. Moore has some solid leadership traits and a knack for being in the right place at the right time. He would be a very good selection for the Ravens. His floor as a pro is being an elite special teams player. If the Ravens miss out on the first round linebackers, Moore would be a great option later on in the draft.
below is a video of Sio Moore against Pitt. You will notice that Moore doesnt have a huge number of splash plays, but he is in on almost every play and always seems to be close to the ball. You will also notice what i talked about above, which is moore plays basically every position on the defense.