Since the day the Cowboys announced Mike McCarthy would be replacing Kellen Moore as the play-caller in 2023, speculation has run rampant through Cowboys Nation with some believing the Dallas offense will shift one direction while others believe in the exact opposite.
Deciphering between legit nuggets of information and press conference propaganda has not been easy. Until, of course, McCarthy addressed reporters in training camp and provided more clarity on the run-pass balance.
“Anytime you make a change in the play-caller or the coordinator it’s just going to be different, McCarthy said. “If you look at our time here in 2020, we went about it a certain way offensively, but we had a philosophy shift after 2020. You know, we needed to run the ball more. So 21 to 22, to me, is the vision of how I see the offense playing so it’s important to build off what we accomplished the last two years, but our personnel is a little different too so you got to factor that in.”
Based on the now infamous statement “I just want to run the damn ball,” many have inferred the Cowboys want to be more run-heavy than they’ve been in the recent past. They see a return to the glory days, when the run sets up the pass and ball control is cherished.
But McCarthy’s words here indicate otherwise. He plainly states the last two seasons are “the vision for how I see the offense playing,” in regard to the run-pass balance.
How much did the Cowboys run the ball last season?
Second most in the NFL. Only Atlanta had more runs than Dallas last season. Factoring in the loss of Ezekiel Elliott and his 231 carries in 2022, it’s safe to say the Cowboys couldn’t be more run-heavy even if they wanted to.
It’s possible Tony Pollard could cover some of the workload left by Elliott, but the fifth-year RB has never even logged 200 carries in his career. To expect him to suddenly morph into a bell cow may be unrealistic.
Depth players like (recently suspended) Ronald Jones, Malik Davis and Rico Dowdle could chip in to pick up the slack, but that’s a lot of projection for a group of players who could just as easily be camp casualties. Rookies Deuce Vaughn and Hunter Luepke could surprise and be major contributors, but even that’s a lot of speculation early in camp.
So, when McCarthy said “but our personnel is a little different too so you got to factor that in” it indicates, if anything, the Cowboys may be less run-heavy than they’ve been the last two seasons under Moore.
Again – In his own words, his vision is to run the ball with the frequency of the last two years. The thing that could change that would be personnel limitations this season (indicating they may not be able to run quite as often).
Situational running (e.g., short yardage, preserving leads, etc…) seems to be the wedge that divided his philosophy with Moore’s and the primary change onlookers should expect from the Cowboys play calling in 2023.
The front office recently admitted this is a QB-driven league as well. They know the league today is much different from when the Cowboys last won a Super Bowl.
Recent statements should be comforting to anyone worried about the future of the Cowboys’ offense in 2023.
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