NFL Draft watch: ‘Skyy’s the limit’ for Western Michigan WR Moore
Editor’s note: The Kansas City Chiefs selected WR Skyy Moore with the No. 54 pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft on April 29.
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (BVM) – Western Michigan head football coach Tim Lester has seen many of his players make it to the NFL from Kalamazoo. For each of those players, he could tell any NFL executive what to expect from them: the positives, the negatives, what they bring to the table and what their shortcomings might be.
However, when it comes to Skyy Moore, Lester has little doubt that his wide receiver will not only make it, but thrive in the NFL.
“I have zero, probably my first kid ever, I have zero reservations on whether he will be successful at the next level,” Lester said.
Lester has had that confidence in Moore since before he was at Kalamazoo. The Broncos began recruiting Moore while he was a quarterback and a defensive back for Shady Side Academy. He was a two-time Allegheny Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a Defensive Player of the Year. As quarterback for the Bulldogs, he rushed and passed for 1,000 yards each in back-to-back seasons and Western Michigan knew he was too talented to pass up.
“I don’t know if he’s going to be a wide out, I don’t know if he’s going to be a DB, I just want him on my team,” Lester said.
The Broncos recruited Moore as an athlete so that they could be flexible in deciding where he would eventually play. Leading up to his freshman year, the plan was to have him play corner because that was where he could make the biggest impact as soon as possible.
Moore was a talent that needed to just be on the field. It didn’t matter where because as long as Moore was on the field, he was going to make a difference.
“I knew he was one of the freshmen that had a chance to play as a true freshman,” Lester said. “I felt like he’d pick up whatever side of the ball he was on. We felt like the place that he could probably impact our team the most was as a corner, that’s why he’s number 24.”
That all changed, though, when one of the Broncos’ wide outs left for Michigan State. It left a hole in Western Michigan’s wide receiver room and it was decided that Moore would fill that hole. He got the call before he was about to head to Kalamazoo and by the time he landed, he was a wide receiver.
“We moved him to wide receiver and, shoot, he was all-conference three years in a row so the rest is history,” Moore said.
His freshman year, the Broncos also lost their top wide receiver D’Wayne Eskridge to a season-ending injury which meant Moore was out on the boundary going up against the opposing team’s best corner. Moore thrived, catching 51 passes for 802 yards and three touchdowns.
Since then Moore has consistently gotten better. In just three years, he has already gotten to the point where he is projected to be an early second round selection in the NFL Draft. When he entered the draft, there was already some excitement about the 5-foot-10, 195 pound wide receiver from Kalamazoo, but the combine is where his stock really started to rise.
Moore ran a 4.41 40-yard dash, had a 34.5” vertical and a 125″ broad jump. He also had the largest hands of any wide receiver at the combine at 10.25” and his wingspan measured in at 73⅝”. Moore was able to silence most of the doubts anyone had about the 5-foot-10 wide out and according Lester, he did it in similar fashion to fellow Bronco alum Greg Jennings.
“It was a very similar situation to 15 years ago when Greg was here as far as the only ailment people had was questioning his speed until they saw it,” Lester said.
There is no question about Moore’s speed now and when that speed is added to his measurements as well as his film, it’s no surprise why his draft stock has been rising.
Moore had the second-lowest career drop rate of the wide receivers in the draft at 3.3%. Scouts and analysts have also loved his elite yards after catch and ability to break tackles. But to truly appreciate Moore’s talents, one has to realize that the intangibles that have set him up for a second round selection in the draft are the things he struggled with in college.
“Now I read his reports and the two things people love about him are his yards after catch, his explosive play ability and how good he is off the jam,” Lester said.
That is a credit to Moore’s work ethic. For a guy who had played quarterback and defensive back in high school to become one of the best wide receivers in the country in just three years required purposeful hard work. Moore wanted to know what he needed to work on and then wouldn’t stop until he had mastered it.
“He’s only been playing wide out for three years,” Lester said. “It’s amazing you say this is what I think you need to work on and he’s like, ‘OK.’ Then he goes into the lab and comes back six months later ready to go and that’s the type of work ethic he has.”
Following his breakout freshman year, Moore continued to improve as a sophomore. In a COVID-shortened season and playing alongside the Seattle Seahawks 2021 second round pick D’Wayne Eskridge, he still put up good numbers in the slot. That all led up to his junior season when he went back out to the boundary and had his best season yet. Moore had 95 receptions for 1,292 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Along with his stats, Moore was also the quintessential team player. He loves football and wanted to do anything he could to help the team.
“You learn a lot about a wide out when you ask him to go down and block somebody,” Lester said. “Like go out there and take out a linebacker and he had no qualms about going in there.”
That is due to Moore’s approach to the game. He is a professional and that mentality has allowed him to thrive as a wide receiver.
“He’s been a pro since the moment he got here,” Lester said. “Since the moment I met this kid he has approached it like it’s a job. You’re not going to have to worry about him; he’s going to be zero problems for anyone.”
Moore will also be a quick learner. He has the mind of a quarterback and is extremely smart. Moore was able to pick up a position he had never played before quickly and Lester is confident he will be able to pick up anything an NFL team throws at him.
“He will never be limited by his brain,” Lester said. “He is super smart. He can play multiple positions, you can throw a lot at him, you can give a lot of option routes to him. He thinks like a quarterback because he played it.”
At the end of the day, the most exciting aspect about Moore is that all of this can be said about a wide receiver that only started playing the position three years ago. In that time, he has worked his way into the upper echelon of the position and is likely an early draft pick.
It may be corny, but an expression has never been more suitable to describe a player.
“I definitely think the sky’s the limit, literally,” Lester said.
