When the Miami Dolphins offense takes the field Thursday night, they'll do so with Matt Moore under center. Jay Cutler has been officially ruled out for the game.
Dolphins officially rule Jay Cutler (ribs) out for TNF
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) October 25, 2017
Cutler reportedly suffered cracked ribs against the Jets last week. Moore played fairly well in relief of Cutler, completing 13 of 21 passes for 188 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Cutler, of course, struggled badly through the early weeks of the season, but was in the midst of what was shaping up to be his best performance of the year before going down (12 of 16 for 138 yards, two touchdowns and an interception).
Moore has extensive experience filling in for injured Dolphins quarterbacks, going 8-7 as a starter and appearing in 24 games since 2011. He led the Dolphins to a 2-1 record down the stretch of last season when Ryan Tannehill was hurt, and actually fared pretty well during the Dolphins' playoff loss to the Steelers. (Most of his production did come after the Dolphins fell behind big early in the game, but he had good numbers.)
There has been a groundswell of support in recent weeks for the idea that the Dolphins might just be better off with Moore as their quarterback than Cutler, given Cutler's performance so far, and now the backup will get a chance to prove that that is indeed the case starting Thursday night.