ALLEN PARK — Kellen Moore, a former Detroit Lions backup quarterback, is finalizing a deal with the New Orleans Saints to become their next head coach.
NFL Network reports Moore has informed the Philadelphia Eagles, who he just helped lead to a Super Bowl title as offensive coordinator, and the Saints have informed the other candidates of their pick.
Moore was one of Matthew Stafford’s backup quarterbacks for three seasons in Detroit. The former Boise State legend never appeared in a game for the Lions.
“I think each and every step of the way, the NFL’s really challenging, really hard, you don’t know how many opportunities you’re going to have to be in this situation, and so I was fortunate,” Moore told the Detroit Free Press of his time with the Lions last week.
“I was around some great coaches, some great people in Detroit, my first experience in the NFL. It was so much fun. So much fun. We had our challenges. We got to the playoffs one year. You learn from each and every one of those guys.”
He then finished his playing career with the Dallas Cowboys, where he also kick-started his coaching path by becoming their quarterbacks coach. Moore later took over as offensive coordinator in Dallas and has since worked as offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Chargers and, most recently, the Eagles.
With Moore’s hiring in New Orleans, the head-coaching carousel has come to a close in the days following the Super Bowl. The Lions lost their offensive and defensive coordinators to the coaching cycles, with Ben Johnson taking over in Chicago and Aaron Glenn getting the gig with the New York Jets.
Other hirings included Mike Vrabel (New England Patriots), Brian Schottenheimer (Dallas Cowboys), Pete Carroll (Las Vegas Raiders) and Liam Coen (Jacksonville Jaguars), in addition to Moore, Johnson and Glenn.
