WRs Coach Rob Moore Not Surprised One Player has 'Looked Really Good'
NASHVILLE – Rob Moore knows what it is like to change teams and understands the challenges that come with such a move.
As a result, the Tennessee Titans wide receivers coach is not necessarily surprised by what he has seen from wide receiver Adam Humphries thus far in training camp.
“Adam’s looked really good,” Moore said Wednesday. “Obviously, anytime you go from being in one scheme to another, that second year is usually advantageous to you because you’re usually more familiar with the offense, more familiar with the players you’re playing with, the quarterback. All those things get factored in.”
Humphries joined the Titans as a free agent in 2019 after four seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He caught 37 passes for 374 yards and two touchdowns, his worst numbers since his rookie year.
An ankle injury that caused him to miss four games was a significant factor in the decline, but he does concede that the adjustment to new surroundings likely played a part as well. Then there was the fact that the Titans changed starting quarterbacks (from Marcus Mariota to Ryan Tannehill) after six games. More than half his receptions (21 of them) came in the six games Mariota started.
Now, he is healthy and comfortable and ready to contribute bigger numbers.
“It’s the second year in this same offense with [coordinator] Arthur Smith and second year working with (Ryan) Tannehill,” Humphries said recently. “It's a lot better working with someone that knows your skillset, the way you run your route, as opposed to coming in fresh and not knowing much about each other.
“It’s great to come back in year two and have that blanket of comfortability with the guys in this locker room and our coaching staff.”
Moore went from the New York Jets to the Arizona Cardinals halfway through his 10-year NFL career (1990-99) as a wide receiver. He had three 1,000-yard seasons in a four-year span (1994-97). The exception was 1995, his first season with the Cardinals. The next year he set a career-high with 17.5 yards-per-reception average and in 1997 he earned All-Pro recognition for the only time and led the NFL with 1,584 receiving yards.
He did not predict any such honors for Humphries, but has plenty of reason to believe things will be better in his second season with the Titans.
“I would say he seems to be a little bit more comfortable,” Moore said. “But he understands the expectations that we have of him, and I think he’s working to live up to those.”
