It was the NFL Draft decision heard ‘round the world as quarterback Dante Moore officially announced he will be returning to Oregon for the upcoming season and forgo professional aspirations – at least for now.

So what’s the feeling of the people around him?   And what went into the decision?  Here’s what I’ve learned since Moore went public with his decision.

Speculation as to whether Moore would enter the 2026 NFL Draft has been all over the map.  It first seemed a lock he would return to Eugene slowly moved in the other direction after it was apparent the quarterback would be the first or second player selected in the draft.

With that came a guaranteed four-year contract expected to be in the range of $55 million, if not more. It was a decision Moore thought long and hard about.

I’m told his thought process remained the same and there was no single intangible that pushed the needle in any direction. According to those I’ve spoken with who are part of his team, the feeling just two days ago was Moore would enter the draft, but the mood changed over the past 48 hours.

The lack of starts on the college field – Moore has a combined 20 starts at UCLA and Oregon – played a major factor in his decision.  The quarterback made mention of this after the Oregon loss to Indiana in the college football playoffs.

I’m also told that concern about who would select Moore was a factor in his final decision.  The quarterback was projected as the second or possibly first pick of the draft, choices held by the New York Jets and Las Vegas Raiders, respectively.  And while there’s a chance one of those teams – primarily the New York Jets – could still end up drafting Moore in 2027, the quarterback had a choice in the matter this year.

The one-sided loss to Indiana also played a part in the decision, as one would expect.  Moore started the game by throwing a pick-six on the first play and was unable to move the Ducks’ offense for most of the first half.  He’ll now return to the college field in 2026 as a Heisman Trophy candidate, if not the favorite, and will have another opportunity to win a national title.

Sources say Oregon did not come in with a last-minute deal in an attempt to entice Moore to stay on board this upcoming season.   His total deal with the school and outside endorsements will be in the eight-figure area.

In recent weeks, I’ve written and reported the deal will pay Moore in the range of $12 to $15 million this year.  While I was not given an exact amount, what Moore will make playing college football this season, I was told his contract will exceed any deal ever signed by a college athlete.

There are risks for Moore going back to play college football one more season.  Injury aside, the program recently signed quarterback Dylan Raiola away from the Nebraska Cornhuskers and those around Moore tell me if the quarterback gets off to a slow start in 2026 or struggles at any point in the season, he could be benched in favor of Raiola.

That means a lot of pressure on Moore entering the season but as correctly pointed out by his team, it’s good pressure which they expect the quarterback to rise above.

Check out the second episode of the ES DraftCast, where we discuss Moore’s decision in-depth.