Riley refuses to run from his reality.
For as long as he can remember, Riley Moss was told what he can’t do, can’t be. It started in high school.
“I was going to have to switch to receiver.”
Next came Iowa.
“They moved me to safety. That lasted maybe a week and they realized that I was actually athletic and could play outside. I was telling them that. They finally figured it out. Bless their hearts,” Moss said. “That to me is the rewarding part of what I do. If it was easy or expected, it would not be as fulfilling.”
Entering his fourth season, the 26-year-old is no longer just an anomaly, the cute little story as a white cornerback in the NFL.
Well, he still is the latter. Something he does not take lightly because he has seen it inspire kids who have told him, “they believe they can play any position and reach the league.”
Moss has shown he is a starter. But he can be better. Play to his potential, and he will get paid as a free agent, either with Denver or elsewhere.
The way he has started training camp, a huge cha-ching awaits in his future.
“He competes his tail off. I love that about him. He has those traits where it’s a short mindset, short memory,” coach Sean Payton said. “He’s moving around really well right now.”
Moss knows he will no longer be pardoned for his penalties, excused for only having a pair of interceptions over the past two seasons.
The days of being an underdog are over. He is ready to run with the Mastiffs on this defense.
Time to go prove it.
“When I find myself talking crap, I am unable to get to the next play,” Moss said. “I can still be a little cocky and chirp a little here and there. I know what I need to do. I just have to do my job.”
Moss has opened eyes over the past week. He continues to ace his assignments, and earlier in the week made one of the best plays of camp by wrestling the ball away from Courtland Sutton for a pick.
This was supposed to be the summer that first-round pick Jahdae Barron pushed Moss for his job. That book has not closed. But there is nothing to indicate that Moss will relinquish any snaps to Barron or anyone else.
Quite the opposite. He is showing why he is worthy of being known as someone besides the Other Guy in the pairing with All-Pro Pat Surtain II.
The improvement can be traced to his parents and his upbringing.
Mark Moss, his father, is a self-made man, evolving from guidance counselor and principal to the chief operating officer of the Ankeny (Iowa) Community School District. Beth, his mother, is a nursing instructor at a Des Moines college.
Riley’s obsessive competitiveness comes from her.
“We were doing one-on-ones in high school and she broke her finger when I was guarding her,” Moss said, shaking his head. “I still give her crap about that.”
His work ethic goes back to dad.
“He is blue collar. Came from nothing and went to college,” Moss said. “They are educators in every way.”
Moss followed their lead this offseason. He spent a week in Fort Lauderdale working with teammate Ja’Quan McMillian and Surtain’s personal coaches, wanting position specific training.
He studied the tape, knowing he had to reduce his mistakes.
Last season, he led all NFL defensive backs with eight pass interference penalties.
A few were rubbish.
“The refs were very trigger happy when it came to the flags with him,” said safety Talanoa Hufanga.
Several, Moss acknowledges, were deserved.
Moss put his head down, and his eyes up. Watch Moss’ technique during practice and there is an obvious difference. He is tracking the ball, instead of simply playing the receiver.
“It comes from experience, from learning. I am in better position,” Moss said. “It takes time. I got into the habit of not doing it. Early in my career I got pushed off on a back shoulder throw so I wasn’t turning in for the ball. Now, I am trusting myself to go up and get it.”
This is who he was at Iowa. The scheme, however, is nothing like what the Broncos play. He lived in zone coverage, and knocked receivers off their routes well beyond the five yards allowed in the NFL.
“It’s funny, everybody wanted to go after him, and we did,” said Valor Christian coach Mike Sanford, who worked for the University of Minnesota in 2020 and 2021. “And he picked us off. Playing so much press man now, he is finding that good balance of confidence down the field and stickiness without being overly grabby.”
For Moss, it is a mindset. He is growing comfortable playing with emotion without becoming emotional.
“A big focus this offseason was being mentally stable, being where my feet are and not worrying about anything else. I know myself better than anybody. I am able to play my best and grow when I don’t think ahead or worry about what happened yesterday,” Moss said. “I have trust in God. Whether it is bad or good, it is going to mold me into the person he wants me to be. So, I can sleep well at night. There’s no stress.”
Moss has long exceeded expectations others had for him. But not his own. Same goes for the Broncos defense. We all know they are talented. That is not going to work anymore. Not if they want to win a Super Bowl.
“I think takeaways are a big thing. So is not allowing ego and what we did last year to interfere with anything. Being open-minded and being willing to grow. The biggest killer could be believing we were good enough. We weren’t, obviously,” Moss said. “That is the mindset we have to have.”
Hufanga has seen Moss live it. They repped together leading up to training camp, mining in the minutiae
“The details, he works really hard. A lot of people kind of discredit it because it’s the white cornerback. I’m not gonna say that, but that’s what everybody else says,” Hufanga said. “But he is probably actually one of the most athletic corners I’ve ever been around.”
The biggest season of Moss’ career, one that could set him up for several years, is inching closer. Moss knows what is at stake.
On Wednesday afternoon, humility has defined our conversation in the fieldhouse.
But his wry smile screams something else. Like, bring it.
“Time,” Moss said, “to let my play do the talking.”
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