Rockets: Should Daryl Morey pursue a career in the NFL?

With NFL personnel believing that former Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey would be successful in the NFL, it’s worth wondering whether Morey should take a stab at running an NFL franchise.

Former Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey made a rapid transition from a mathematician with a keen eye towards advanced analytics to one of the brightest minds among executives in the NBA. Under Morey, the Rockets made the playoffs for eight consecutive seasons and posted a record better than .500 for 13 consecutive seasons, leading him to nab the 2016-17 Executive of the Year award.

Morey developed a penchant for constantly working the Collective Bargaining Agreement, as he pulled off innovative ways to complete trades, leading the NBA league office to foil some of his plans at times.

With Morey’s quick ascension to one of the best GM’s in the league, many began to speculate what lies ahead for him, in lieu of his decision to step down from his post as the general manager of the Houston Rockets.

Could the National Football League be next for Morey? As it turns out, several NFL experts and executives believe Morey would thrive at the helm of an NFL front office, as stated by Lance Zierlein of nfl.com.

To be clear, I am not hearing the Texans are interested in @dmorey , but what I AM saying is that NFL personnel people I’ve spoken with in the past believe he could absolutely do the job with capable evaluators around him.

— Lance Zierlein (@LanceZierlein) October 15, 2020

Should former Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey pursue the NFL?

Morey has proven to be able to apply schools of thought from different sports and craft his own version of it in basketball, as he adopted “Moreyball”, taking a page out of the book of Bill James, the baseball pioneer who is largely responsible for introducing advanced statistics to the sports sector. Considering the manner in which Morey familiarized himself with the NBA’s CBA, there’s no reason to think he wouldn’t be able to do the same in the NFL.

Morey would have significantly less responsibilities in the NFL, as he wouldn’t need to scout players overseas, unlike the job of an NBA executive. In addition, Morey wouldn’t have to scour the league for assistant coaches, like he’s done with the Houston Rockets, as NFL head coaches essentially compile their own staff. Morey’s desire to swing for the fences to reel in superstars would also make him successful in the NFL, although his ability to circumvent the rules and exploit loopholes would likely be gone.

There have been executives that have taken the cross-sport approach, such as Cleveland Browns chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta, who first began working for the MLB’s Cleveland Indians in 1996, before shifting to the Browns in 2016. Like Morey, DePodesta became known for having an analytical approach towards sports, as he became notorious for being one of the first executives to implement analytical principles of sabermetrics into the mainstream.

It’s important to note that Morey hasn’t expressed a desire or interest to work in the NFL, as we’ve heard his decision to take time away from the NBA was fueled by his desire to spend more time with his family, as his college-aged kids are in a gap year. But it’s still fun to envision him running the front office in a different sport.