Moore’s request, came on a day when he was excused from practice and sent home for what the team called a “personal day.” Coach Robert Saleh told reporters on the field that Moore’s absence was due to a family matter.
According to sources, Moore’s absence was directly related to his discontent with his utilization; one source claimed that he had spoken it to other organization members. It got so bad that Saleh and the offensive coordinator, Mike LaFleur, decided Moore should leave the facility for a day to calm down and collect himself.
According to a source, the Jets are not exploring a trade. The deadline for NFL trades is November 1.
Moore, a second-round selection in 2021, is the second-wide receiver for the Jets to submit a trade request in the last two months. After the preseason, 2020 second-round pick Denzel Mims put in his request.
Mims said on Thursday to a source, “As of right now, it’s still on the table.”
If the Jets elect to bench Moore, Mims, who was a healthy scratch in the first six games, may be forced into Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos.
Although Moore’s annoyance had been growing for weeks, it wasn’t made known until Sunday night. Moore tweeted his thoughts a few hours after they defeated the Green Bay Packers by 27–10 in a game where he had no designated targets.
I’ll be quiet and tell you that I don’t understand either. “If I say what I genuinely want, I’ll be the selfish man… we won. Grateful! Huge blessing! All I ever wanted. Butter is sweet for me.
Moore didn’t show up on Wednesday to respond to the remarks. He tweeted two mysterious messages on Thursday, just before the Jets hit the practice field. Love my teammates was the first tweet, and “God, I need guidance” was the second—both of which have now been deleted.
Moore, who had potential as a rookie, hasn’t had a good season thus far, with only 16 catches and no touchdowns.
Moore has had conversations about the subject with Saleh and LaFleur. On Monday, Saleh supported Moore’s character about the tweet but said, “Sometimes errors happen.”
We have open discussions, LaFleur stated on Thursday. LaFleur declined to specify why Moore isn’t receiving more opportunities, just saying, “We’re going to keep it in-house.” Despite running the most routes (215), he is sixth on the squad in total catches, according to source.
LaFleur said of the receivers, “We want those guys to be ultracompetitive and want the ball. “He’s a major part of it,” the coach said. “We’re going to do what we feel is football games is to score points and win them.”
“We adore him. I know how essential he is to this team. We’ll do all we can,” quarterback Zach Wilson said. “We’re winning games, having a lot of fun, and we’ll keep learning and developing and letting him know I need him.”
According to Wilson, Moore’s output has decreased, who also explained that the Jets haven’t been throwing as much lately—only 39 attempts over the last two games.
Wilson stated, “I’m not trying to avoid him or anything like that because he’s a fantastic player. We always discuss routes and ways to improve things each week. Being patient and having faith in the process is key. I only had ten completions last week, but we won the game, so it’s beautiful. I adore him and hope he knows how important he is to our team.
The Jets (4-2) have had their most successful start since 2015 after winning three consecutive games. They have significantly improved from the previous year, ranking 10th in scoring and 17th in total yards.
When asked if Moore is opening up, LaFleur dodged the question, stating, “A lot of elements go into it,” but declined to elaborate, citing competitive concerns.
Moore’s close buddy, wide receiver A.J. with the Philadelphia Eagles Brown, gave his opinion on the now-deleted tweet. “One of the strongest individuals I know. Tough situations don’t endure; tough people do. We smile in the face of hardship because we know God is doing the battling. Love you and see you soon,” Brown tweeted with a photo of himself and Moore.