Alvin James "A. J." Moore Jr. (born December 15, 1995) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford, Mississippi, Oxford. The first was the Ole ...

Early life

Moore was born and grew up in

Bassfield, Mississippi Bassfield is a town in Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 192 at the 2020 census, down from 254 at the 2010 census. Geography Bassfield is located in southeastern Jefferson Davis County at (31.497090, -89.74 ...

, and attended Bassfield High School. He played both safety and running back for the Yellowjackets. As a senior, Moore was named first-team All-State by ''

The Clarion-Ledger ''The Clarion Ledger'' is an American daily newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi. It is the second-oldest company in the state of Mississippi, and is one of the few newspapers in the nation that continues to circulate statewide. It is an operating ...

'' after he made 132 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks on defense and also rushed for five touchdowns as Bassfield went 15–1 and won the Class 2A state championship. He was a childhood friend and high school teammate of future Texans teammate Cornell Armstrong.

College career

Moore played four seasons for the

Rebels A rebel is a participant in a rebellion. Rebel or rebels may also refer to: People * Rebel (given name) * Rebel (surname) * Patriot (American Revolution), during the American Revolution * American Southerners, as a form of self-identification; ...

, appearing in 39 games. Over the course of his collegiate career he accumulated 132 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 2 forced fumbles, and 5 passes deflected. As a senior, Moore started all 12 of the Rebels' games at nickleback and registered 48 tackles, as well as a sack, a fumble recovery, and three passes deflected.

Professional career

New England Patriots

Moore signed with the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

on April 30, 2018. He was waived by the Patriots at the end of the preseason as part of the team's final roster cuts.

Houston Texans

Moore was claimed off waivers by the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

on September 2, 2018. He made his NFL debut on September 9, 2018, during the Texans season opener against the Patriots. In his rookie season Moore appeared in all 16 of the Texans regular season games, playing exclusively on special teams and making a team-leading 11 tackles and recovering one fumble. In 2019, he played in all 16 of the Texans regular season games, appearing mostly on special teams but also playing 19 snaps on defense, with 14 total tackles and also played in both of the team's postseason games with one special teams tackle. Moore was named a team captain by the Texans for the 2020 season. He was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury on September 28, 2020. He was activated on November 14, 2020. In Week 13 against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

, Moore recorded his first career sack on

Philip Rivers Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Chargers franchise. He played college football for the ...

during the 26–20 loss. The Texans placed a

restricted free agent A restricted free agent (RFA) is a type of free agent in some sports leagues, such as the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), and National Basketball Association (NBA). Such players have special restrictions on the term ...

tender on Moore on March 17, 2021. He signed the one-year contract on April 7. He was placed on injured reserve on September 2, 2021. He was activated on October 2, 2021.

Tennessee Titans

On March 21, 2022, Moore signed a one-year contract with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. He was placed on injured reserve on September 13, 2022. On July 26, 2023, Moore re-signed with the Titans. He was waived on August 20.

Personal life

Moore has an identical twin brother,

C. J. Moore Calvin J. "C.J." Moore (born December 15, 1995) is an American professional American football, football safety (gridiron football position), safety. He played college football at Ole Miss Rebels football, Ole Miss. Early life Moore was born and ...

, who was also a defensive back on the Ole Miss football team and played for the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

. They played in the same defensive backfield for the Rebels.

References

External links

Ole Miss Rebels bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moore, A. J. 1995 births Living people American twins American identical twins Identical twin males People from Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi Players of American football from Mississippi American football cornerbacks American football safeties Ole Miss Rebels football players New England Patriots players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen Tennessee Titans players