Inefficient run game has made Cowboys one-dimensional

Ralph Vacchiano

NFC East Reporter

The Dallas Cowboys made a statement on their first drive in Miami on Christmas Eve, after marching down the field with ease. They were at the Dolphins’ 1 when they ran an option pitch to running back Tony Pollard, who ended up getting helicoptered inches short of the goal line.

On the next play, they dusted off rookie running back Hunter Luepke and tried plowing him up the middle, only to see him and quarterback Dak Prescott somehow fumble the ball.

So yes, the statement was made, even though it wasn’t the one they thought they were making: The Dallas Cowboys are still a one-dimensional team because they just can’t effectively run the ball.

That’s been the story with them all season long, though the Cowboys (10-5) have mostly gotten away with it because Prescott has mostly played like an MVP. But in those key times when they need it, especially against good teams, and especially on the road, they have not mastered the art of complementary football. That was supposed to be an emphasis for Mike McCarthy this season, especially after he famously proclaimed in the offseason that “I want to run the damn ball.”

But the Cowboys are running less — on only 42.2 percent of their plays, compared to 47.6 percent last season, in part because when they need it, the running game just isn’t there.

It’s not that they’re terrible on the ground. They rank 12th in the NFL with 115.2 yards per game, which isn’t far off where they were last season (135.2 yards, ninth in the league). It’s more about how they get those yards. They were able to get them with some power last season when Ezekiel Elliott (876 yards) and Pollard (1,007) were a formidable 1-2 punch.

But then the Cowboys let Elliott go, assuming Pollard could lead the way by himself, which sure looks like a miscalculation. Pollard, still only 11 months removed from breaking his leg and needing surgery on his ankle, just hasn’t gotten the job…

Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/inefficient-run-game-has-made-cowboys-one-dimensional

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Publish date : 2023-12-27 20:07:01

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