Insider: Old-school Moore behind Colts' new-age offense

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INDIANAPOLIS -- When Tom Moore walked into a side room at the Indianapolis Colts practice facility for an interview, it was hard not to think the obvious.

This is the offensive mastermind of the Colts, the man behind the curtain, the Wizard of Ahs? Did somebody send the team plumber instead?

Tom Moore and Peyton Manning may be collaborating on a record-breaking season.(Getty Images)

At 65, Moore is an old man in a younger man's profession, his graying hair and worn face showing the signs of someone who has been coaching in the NFL for 27 years. If Central Casting wanted the stereotypical throwback coach, Moore would be it.

You almost expect him to pull out a whistle during the interview and tell you to speed up the questioning.

He doesn't have the look NFL owners want to trot out when they hire a coach, not in this era where image sells and when, sadly, how a man looks can be a detriment to his getting a job. Age will almost certainly keep Tom Moore from ever becoming an NFL head coach, and that's a kind of discrimination nobody ever talks about or fights to overcome.

"I don't worry about it," Moore said. "My job is offensive coordinator. My job is to be the best I can be at whatever I'm doing. Everything else takes care of itself. Everybody has aspirations. But I don't feel cheated. I've been very, very lucky. I've worked with great head coaches, great assistants and great players. I'm 65, and nobody's had more fun than me."

There is no letup in Moore. He works the same hours as all the younger coaches, maybe even more. So how much longer can he go?

"Forever," Moore said. "Why not? How many people can say they're doing what they want to do for as long as I've done it. I like what I do. Why would I walk away?"

What's not to like? Moore is the best offensive coordinator in football, the man who makes Peyton Manning and the Colts offense go. He pulls the strings for an offensive attack run by the best quarterback in the game, a man on pace to shatter some of the biggest passing records in history.

Want a reason? OK, aside from having Manning, Edgerrin James and Marvin Harrison.

Fearlessness.