Jay Moore was locked into an uncomfortable nowhere land. He had hoped to be selected Saturday during the first three rounds of the NFL Draft. That was the plan anyway. Then day lapsed into night, and nothing. Nobody called. The silence was awkward, disconcerting. Party postponed.
He didn’t have to wait long Sunday for a jolt of positive energy.
With the fifth pick of the fourth round — the 104th selection overall — San Francisco chose Moore, the 6-foot-5, 280-pound former Nebraska defensive end from Elkhorn. He said he should fit well in the 49ers’ 3-4 defensive scheme, probably as an outside linebacker and pass-rush specialist
“I was really uptight Saturday night, to be honest,” Moore said from Elkhorn. “I sat in the hot tub for 45 minutes to try to relax, just because I was so nervous. I was really kind of disappointed that I wasn’t picked as high as I wanted.
“But, you know, now the Niners have me, and it’s exciting.“
Moore said he was somewhat shocked to get the big call Sunday morning from first-year San Francisco defensive coordinator Greg Manusky, who spent the past five seasons as linebacker coach for the San Diego Chargers (who also use a 3-4 scheme).
On the other hand, Moore noted that the 49ers had a lot of coaches and officials on hand at the Senior Bowl in January in Mobile, Ala. In fact, Moore burned Central Michigan tackle Joe Staley — one of the Niners’ two first-round choices Saturday — for at least one of his three sacks in the annual all-star game.
“It was a good battle with Staley the whole time,” Moore said.
Moore now will battle for playing time at outside linebacker with, among others, 6-5, 240-pound Manny Lawson, a 2006 first-round choice from North Carolina State. The 49ers also drafted a linebacker in the first round this year, taking inside backer Patrick Willis of Mississippi, the 2006 Butkus Award winner.
A starter at Nebraska for two-plus seasons at the “open” end position, Moore last season led the team with 17 tackles for loss and ranked second in sacks with six behind Adam Carriker’s seven.
Carriker, Nebraska’s standout “base” end, was selected in the first round Saturday by the Rams.
Also on Saturday, the Green Bay Packers selected former NU running back Brandon Jackson in the second round while linebacker Stewart Bradley went to Philadelphia in the third round.
Former Nebraska quarterback Zac Taylor and tight end Matt Herian are expected to sign free agent deals with Tampa Bay. Defensive linemen Ola Dagunduro (Dallas) and Barry Cryer (San Diego) also have hooked up with NFL teams.
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