Cooper Rush beat out Kellen Moore for a backup job and now he's playing for him

While there are a lot of opinions outside the Dallas Cowboys about the team's decision to hire the recently retired Kellen Moore as the new quarterback coach, there is uniformity among his disciples.

Backup quarterback Cooper Rush, who beat out Moore in 2017 to become starter Dak Prescott's understudy, ultimately sending Moore into retirement and into coaching, said he is excited about the move, as is Prescott.

"The best thing about it is we have a good relationship," Rush said while working out Wednesday at the Michael Johnson Performance Center in McKinney. "He will be very easy to work with. Both me and Dak trust him a lot. I know he is excited about it and so am I."

“I know he is really excited about it. I love Kellen and so does he. Kellen has that good relationship with us. He communicates things really well. He will simplify whatever needs to be simplified and give us the best chance.”

Rush's words are similar to Prescott's, who spoke about Moore during a media blitz at the Super Bowl.

Prescott said he was not only all behind the move but that he pushed for it.

Moore began training camp in 2016 as the No. 2 quarterback behind Tony Romo and in front of Prescott before suffering a season-ending injury. Moore watched Prescott blossom in the starting role when Romo went down in the preseason. The following year, in 2017, Moore was placed on the practice squad.

“I'm a big fan of Kellen Moore,” Prescott said. “I pushed for that, and I know he helped me so much throughout the season, both seasons actually. He's just so smart. I told him when he became a college coach and I had a kid, my son had no choice of who he was going to play for. I'm excited I get to play under him now and I'm excited for him to take this role as a coach and I know he'll be really good at it.”

Prescott said the relationship they have formed over the past two years is key. He truly believes Moore will help him become a better quarterback.

“It will help a lot,” Prescott said. “We have a great relationship. The moment he became quarterback coach, we shared a message and I told him exactly the things I wanted to push me and challenge me, and I know he's going to do that. He's so smart, he knows the game so well, he can only benefit me.”

This story was originally published February 14, 2018 at 3:58 PM with the headline "Cooper Rush beat out Kellen Moore for a backup job and now he's playing for him."