The new season is approaching. With a new year, the hope is that better things will be on the horizon for the Dallas Cowboys. The front office has added some talent with a new draft class, some new free agents, and a handful of players acquired via trade.
The team will also roll with a new coaching staff that features the in-house promotion of Brian Schottenheimer. It also includes the return of Matt Eberflus, who will take over the defense after serving as the team’s linebacker coach from 2011-2017. And finally, the team poached offensive line coach Klayton Adams from Arizona and hired him as their new offensive coordinator.
Recently, ESPN’s Ben Solak ranked all the coaching staffs in the NFL, and this is where the Cowboys landed…
29. Dallas Cowboys
Head coach: Brian Schottenheimer (first-year head coach)
Offensive Coordinator: Klayton Adams (first-year offensive coordinator)
Defensive Coordinator: Matt Eberflus (former head coach, former defensive coordinator)
One of the reasons for the team’s poor showing is attributed to Schottenheimer’s track record as a play-caller.
Schottenheimer called plays in 12 of those 14 seasons, but if we look at all 14, his average success rate on offense is 42.9% — the league average last year was 43.5%. His offenses score an average of 1.85 points per drive — the league average last year was 1.91. As far as expected points added per play, Schottenheimer’s offenses literally average out to 0.00.
The bad review didn’t solely fall on Schotty. Solak wasn’t too thrilled about Eberflus as the defensive coordinator either, with a problem that Cowboys fans have become all too familiar with.
Eberflus’ defenses tend to look strong against bad opponents but struggle against elite quarterbacks. Simple scheme — easy to find space.
The team has always fared well against lesser talent, only to be hit with a rude awakening when they are put to the test. This isn’t exactly the ringing endorsement we were hoping for.
There is some optimism. The team’s new offensive coordinator has a reputation for developing an effective rushing attack, which is something the Cowboys offense sorely needs.
Previously the Cardinals’ running game coordinator, Adams has a deep bag of quirky rushing schemes. An injection of creativity on the ground could be big for Schottenheimer’s offense.
There are seven teams with a new head coach this season, with two teams, the Las Vegas Raiders (Pete Carroll) and New England Patriots (Mike Vrabel), hiring former head coaches. Of the five teams with brand-new head coaches, only Jacksonville (Liam Coen) and New Orleans (Kellen Moore) finished worse than Dallas.
The NFC East group finished as follows:
32. New York Giants (Brian Daboll, entering fourth year as HC)
29. Dallas Cowboys
13. Washington Commanders (Dan Quinn, second year with Washington)
8. Philadelphia Eagles (Nick Siranni, fifth year with Philly)
Obviously, we are entering uncharted waters with this new staff in Dallas. While the Yelp reviews weren’t great when Schottenheimer was hired, he has started to grow on fans. If he can transform this team into a physical group that showcases more discipline on the field, that would be a nice step forward. If he can improve the offense with more motion, cut splits, and make run and passing plays appear the same, it will give that unit a fighting chance.
Ultimately, we won’t know until we see what this produces on the football field, but if this new coaching staff manages to follow through with their plan, they have the talent to make a little noise.
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