CFZ Texas Coast, 70% the same, and the 2023 Offense

[CCBoy]

I just hope that Jones becomes a real draw upon opposing linebackers and safeties.

 

[blueblood70]

I think Schottenheimer plays a bigger role than most are assuming. I think this means more PAP which is good because I always thought it fit Dak. The quick read and step and throw seems to be one of the things Dak (at least IMO) seems to do really well. While PAP isn't exactly quick because of the fake, my point is that after the fake it is usually a quick decision. I want quicker drops and get the ball out. I also like Dak rolling. For whatever reason, he doesn't seem as comfortable as most QBs doing the classic (watch Brady) step up in the pocket. It probably goes back to his more mobile days or maybe just how strong the DTs are in our division. I think a lot of this new generation of QBs learn not to step up and trust the pocket, but to get outside and use their legs. So when you halfway do this it often just leads to throwing off balance and without good footwork and also tends to take away half of the field. I am excited for a slightly simpler offense. I think we have the talent and I think we need to put Dak in the best position we can to succeed. He has done it before and can do it again. Obviously a good OL and running game is a huge part of that as in obvious in Philly and was here a few years back

Some of those are true but I think maybe you're missing a big point you keep bringing up the fact that Prescott should step up more and trust the pocket when you don't realize that there's a reason that fans seem to be judging our line by how many sacks they didn't give up...

when those are the reasons sacks were not giving up, Prescott had to take off early had to throw on the run, also had to throw early before the routes were finished.

the offensive line was bottom 10 in pass rush win rate, meaning it was making the quarterback have to make quicker decisions and yes that is taking off sideways and running which by the way he's one of the top passers in the league throwing on the run and against the blitz and now we see again very good with deep passes.

I mean the guy in this zone seems to be hated on a lot fans think he's trash they say the opposite of what actually is a fact but this is what I'm saying you need to fix the offensive line not only the passing routes in the run game but the line is the been the biggest issue in the playoffs against the better stronger defensive lines in the front sevens.

it's a fact they're not giving Prescott enough time, they're not opening holes, for the running back they're not physical enough maybe all these changes are gonna help but you keep focusing on helping dak stay in the pocket more well you better only be focusing on the line because he has to trust the line it's one of the dirtiest pockets I've ever seen,

most games there isn't an umbrella there isn't a natural pocket anywhere, there just doesn't seem to be any consistency along the offensive line against the better defenses that's the problem it's not just the pass game. it's also in the run game they're not opening holes we can get away with over 17 games but when you get into the playoffs you are seeing some of the best defenses especially against the 49ers that's our Achilles heel and I'm going to point to the line it's been the line for a very long time all the way back to the 2018 Rams game and then you had all the penalties in the 2021 game you didn't have a run game last year and they were not keeping their blocks long enough they were getting beat early the quarterback can feel this and that's why he takes off a lot but we didn't fail because he was on the run but that last statement that you said is a good O line and a run game is it important.

 

[JohnBoy]

Some of those are true but I think maybe you're missing a big point you keep bringing up the fact that Prescott should step up more and trust the pocket when you don't realize that there's a reason that fans seem to be judging our line by how many sacks they didn't give up...

when those are the reasons sacks were not giving up, Prescott had to take off early had to throw on the run, also had to throw early before the routes were finished.

the offensive line was bottom 10 in pass rush win rate, meaning it was making the quarterback have to make quicker decisions and yes that is taking off sideways and running which by the way he's one of the top passers in the league throwing on the run and against the blitz and now we see again very good with deep passes.

I mean the guy in this zone seems to be hated on a lot fans think he's trash they say the opposite of what actually is a fact but this is what I'm saying you need to fix the offensive line not only the passing routes in the run game but the line is the been the biggest issue in the playoffs against the better stronger defensive lines in the front sevens.

it's a fact they're not giving Prescott enough time, they're not opening holes, for the running back they're not physical enough maybe all these changes are gonna help but you keep focusing on helping dak stay in the pocket more well you better only be focusing on the line because he has to trust the line it's one of the dirtiest pockets I've ever seen,

most games there isn't an umbrella there isn't a natural pocket anywhere, there just doesn't seem to be any consistency along the offensive line against the better defenses that's the problem it's not just the pass game. it's also in the run game they're not opening holes we can get away with over 17 games but when you get into the playoffs you are seeing some of the best defenses especially against the 49ers that's our Achilles heel and I'm going to point to the line it's been the line for a very long time all the way back to the 2018 Rams game and then you had all the penalties in the 2021 game you didn't have a run game last year and they were not keeping their blocks long enough they were getting beat early the quarterback can feel this and that's why he takes off a lot but we didn't fail because he was on the run but that last statement that you said is a good O line and a run game is it important.

Holy run-on sentences Batman! But I agree with everything you've said there. This O-line needs help. Quite a bit of help, really. I'd love to believe it's just been unlucky injuries these last few years, but I really doubt that's it. Some of these guys are just getting old (Tyron, Zack). Two more are good (Biadasz, Steele) but truly not great. I suspect we are looking at a similar or even worse performance this year. Sure hope I am wrong about that...

 

[blueblood70]

Holy run-on sentences Batman! But I agree with everything you've said there. This O-line needs help. Quite a bit of help, really. I'd love to believe it's just been unlucky injuries these last few years, but I really doubt that's it. Some of these guys are just getting old (Tyron, Zack). Two more are good (Biadasz, Steele) but truly not great. I suspect we are looking at a similar or even worse performance this year. Sure hope I am wrong about that...

talk to text can be dangerous.. LOL

but yes once the injury started happening steel went out then we had injuries along the left guard center we are flipping flopping players all around trying to get the best out on the field.

it literally hurt the run game and the pass game...


I don't know why fans just kind of skip over it they act like oh they didn't give up a lot of sacks so they must have been great but not from what I saw they literally had a hard time keeping a clean pocket it's why Prescott broke his hand on a follow through because the pocket wasn't clean, also he had his jersey grab from behind caused an interception, had his hand hit on another follow through causing interception, balls being tipped at the line because they were being stood straight up caused interceptions having to rush throws that kind of thing..

too me its the OL against the better Ds that were the biggest issue.

 

[CowboyRoy]

Was going to put this in another thread but that had devolved into a typical morass. I figured I would break this out so we could talk about the offense as a whole as opposed to whether or not a particular player is going to fail in it.

Changes on offense we know they are making:

Pass protection. MM early on after the season and canning Moore said pass protection was changing without going into specifics. MM recently said the RB are going to be used more here when our base 6 and 7 man protections have always used the RB already. This has me confused.

Verbiage: Apparently, Moore used the verbose old school Coryell call language. They are describing all of the options for all the routes and such in those calls. That is being reduced. Presumably, they are going to use the system where you give route combinations and similar concepts one word names. That way by calling combinations on both sides of the field plus the protection you can take Moore's 60 word barrage and reduce it to 3 words. Think they are doing it this way because of the next thing we know which is:

Option routes are out, route combinations are in: that was the narrative early but having heard a lot from the receivers this offseason, it is clear that they still have options on their routes but they are treated more as add ons as opposed to core features like they were previously. Instead the focus is on how the offense is designed to play off the defense to get each other open.

Simplify: This is a common term tossed out by all of the coaches and players. It speaks to the above point but it also speaks to how incredibly complex and diverse Moore was on run offense. Looking back, it certainly seems that Moore was willing to do anything to try to run the ball. We had the middle and outside ZBS stuff but we played a lot of the doubles/gap/combo/man looks, we played a lot of trap and pulling power stuff, and we even used the old school draw. At one point he had installed the counter tre with some play action off of it. Sturm has an excellent piece behind a paywall at the Athletic that details a lot of this. I appears that he is going in the direction of what plays they do best and what plays they are likely to emphasize. During the year he similarly breaks down formation use and you can see where Moore similarly used all kinds of formations.

I look at it from a broader sense and from the vantage point of what Schottenheimer did in Seattle. Seattle ran only a few formations and 95% of their runs were inside/outside zone and counters. All runs and passes came out of all formations and all had a bevy of playaction looks to take advantage of how the defense is playing them. Throw in the new verbiage and this is how you simplify. I'm not saying they are going to pick those runs, I am just saying they are going to pick a few runs and focus.

Detail: Various players have described a situation where there are fewer plays but they are "detailing" the heck out of them. I can think of plenty of categories to detail but the specifics will change how the offense functions.

There is a common refrain that they are keeping 70% of the offense but I think that belies what they are doing to change the offense.

All of it means nothing if your Oline cant block properly. Bring in all the skill position talent you want, bring in all the creative offensive changes you want, fire the old guys, do whatever you want. If the Oline cant open holes in the run game and they cant pass block well enough to run your routes, it doesnt matter.

And so MM wants to use the RB's more in pass blocking does he? Is that why he drafted Deuce?

 

[CowboyRoy]

It goes back to the Garrett days because every OC we've had since the Garrett days used some form of the scheme he installed based on his philosophy. His philosophy comes out of those 1990s teams that he was a part of where some of our offensive players said of the defenses they faced, "They know what's coming, but they can't stop it." Garrett believed in emphasizing execution and winning your assignment straight up. He wanted his Cowboys to be like the 1990s Cowboys, but it's almost impossible now to build teams that are solid from top to bottom and can just win with execution. Moore's main change to Garrett's philosophy was creating some mismatches with movement.

Garrett never had any schemes. The clown took all his stuff from other coordinators he coached under.

 

[McKDaddy]

Certainly some things need to change. Don't really care what those changes are early in the season BUT you can't stop there. They must continue to evolve and master. If we just change a little, it will probably help a lot early on but teams will figure all that out. As the season progresses you have to be able to add additional wrinkles and evolve if you want to keep a strategic edge.

 

[CowboyRoy]

talk to text can be dangerous.. LOL

but yes once the injury started happening steel went out then we had injuries along the left guard center we are flipping flopping players all around trying to get the best out on the field.

it literally hurt the run game and the pass game...


I don't know why fans just kind of skip over it they act like oh they didn't give up a lot of sacks so they must have been great but not from what I saw they literally had a hard time keeping a clean pocket it's why Prescott broke his hand on a follow through because the pocket wasn't clean, also he had his jersey grab from behind caused an interception, had his hand hit on another follow through causing interception, balls being tipped at the line because they were being stood straight up caused interceptions having to rush throws that kind of thing..

too me its the OL against the better Ds that were the biggest issue.

It doesnt happen often on here, but its really refreshing to actually hear a poster understand whats really going on. The Oline is without a doubt 100% the biggest issue. And I hear many of these posters gloss over the issue daily.

Most fans skip over the issue because they either dont understand or they have an agenda. Others are just QB challenged and think everything is the fault of the QB. You can look all over the NFL with prime examples of what happens to the best QB's in the NFL with poor Oline play.

Mahomes 3 or 4 years ago against Brady in the SB lost 2 Olineman in the playoffs right before the SB. His Oline couldnt block for him in the SB and he couldnt even score a TD. 9 points in the SB that year and lost.

KC goes out of their way to make the Oline fix a #1 priority. KC Oline is ranked #2 behind Philly this year and they play off the chain in the SB and they win.

Tom Brady? His last year in New England the line is terrible. Many think Brady has gotten old finally and lost it. (I laugh) He goes to Tamps with a very good Oline and they win the SB. Last season the Tampa Oline was decimated and they couldnt block. The Tampa run game goes nowhere and they have one of the worst offenses in the NFL. Get crushed by the Cowboys in the playoffs and Brady retires.

OR you could just look at the Oline here in Dallas during Dak's career. Not rocket science. The Oline is the #1 ingredient for offensive success and consistency in football. There will always be exceptions.

 

[shabazz]

I can live with throwing if it isn’t 3rd and goal on the 2 yard line and you go empty back set.

That absolutely drives me crazy!

Takes away play action in which Dak does well with

 

[EGTuna]

I don’t care what they call it, they just need more routes designed for YAC, which has been largely absent from this offense during Moore’s run. Lamb and Gallup (pre-injury) are both excellent with the ball in their hands. Please utilize that.

 

[reddyuta]

I don’t care what they call it, they just need more routes designed for YAC, which has been largely absent from this offense during Moore’s run. Lamb and Gallup (pre-injury) are both excellent with the ball in their hands. Please utilize that.

they couldnt even use Turpin in the offense because they couldnt block for him at all.Turpin would be so dangerous in the 49ers offense.

 

[JohnBoy]

talk to text can be dangerous.. LOL

So true, lol. It's getting better, but yeah mine is terrible.

 

[TheMarathonContinues]

That absolutely drives me crazy!

Takes away play action in which Dak does well with

Handicap your QB is crazy to me and watch he goes to the Chargers and all of a sudden his warts are gone. Kellen is gonna coach his *** odd and learn from the mistakes he made here. I already see it.

 

[MyFairLady]

I can live with throwing if it isn’t 3rd and goal on the 2 yard line and you go empty back set.

The very best thing Dak used to do is run the QB draw out of this very set.

 

[Coogiguy03]

It sure seemed like there was a lot of confusion among the WRs last season. Maybe it was because the lingo/terms were too numerous, and the overall pass offense was too complex?

How hard can running

 

[TheMarathonContinues]

The very best thing Dak used to do is run the QB draw out of this very set.

That's fine on 1st down. Maybe 2nd. But if you've failed the 1st two downs and on 3rd down go empty backs i'm not for it. I'm not even for running the QB anyway in that situation.

 

[MyFairLady]

We will run an offense around what Dak wants to do, not what Dak should do. Jerry says so.

 

[noshame]

I think KM had this offense tailored to Daks abilities. I can't wait to see MMs additions.

 

[VACowboy]

Think the old Seattle offense when Wilson was back there. That is exactly what Schott ran. A few plays run out of several formations.

With lots of motion.

I am a big fan of the stretch/counter/playaction offensive core.

ME TOO. I love the Mike Shanahan offense.

 

[charron]

Every play caller OC or Dc has tendencies in what they call. The Cowboys have been good offensively for a long time with Romo, Dak, Linehan, Garrett, Moore and all the combinations there of.

What matters is:
Are the Players on the same page, how efficient is the offense, can they score TD's? And Ultimately how do they perform in the playoffs?