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Decoding McCarthy - Getting into that bag
The Cowboys deployed a tiny personnel grouping that we didn't see coming.
BOB STURM
SEP 19, 2023
Cowboys fans have been curious. Very curious about what sort of offensive scheme changes we will see with the transition from Kellen Moore to Mike McCarthy.
Why did they change the architect of this offense when the team ranked so highly in so many categories for many years? Was it broken? Or did they just let the next offensive genius go to Los Angeles because they made another mistake?
In this space, each Tuesday, we evaluate the offense from a tactical and scheme perspective. This is an offensive overview that will take you through the statistical scorecard of that week’s game and then show you specific clips of the All-22 to show you what they are doing tactically. Some weeks its great, other weeks it is to show concerns, and most weeks it is a little bit of both because football is an imperfect game. You just are trying to beat the team across from you.
Game No. 2 of the new regime finally started to un-peel the onion. We know that most of the significant offensive pieces did not play at in the preseason and the Giants season-opening game was one where the game was over before it started. Therefore the wisdom in digging deep into the bag of tricks was preserved for another day.
But, this test would be legitimate because you were playing a defense that is to be feared. They have many elite pieces and very few holes. They are stout and have been built in the image of Robert Saleh who is credited with the build that the San Francisco 49ers use to this day. In some ways, this is a dress rehearsal for Week 5 in Santa Clara with the Cowboys old nemesis. That showdown game will have to wait because while pursuing the 49ers and Eagles may be the ultimate goal for this team, to overlook any opponents along the way can render those matchups meaningless in the chase for playoff seeding if you aren’t careful.
We would be looking for some answers in this Week 2 for the offense. I think we were given many.
Let’s take a look and show you some film:
The big picture above demonstrates many good signs about this offense on Sunday. Yes, the red zone conversion rate of 33% is unacceptable and will be a point of emphasis now, despite this team leading the NFL in that stat last year. But, overall, without Brandin Cooks and Tyler Smith – two significant pieces to this unit – they were going to be playing shorthanded. But, we would want to see a game plan that revealed some sharp ideas of how to attack an opponent that would be looking for an upset and capable of getting one. You might have thought the Jets were doomed to lose every road game this season without Aaron Rodgers, but remember, they won four straight last season to start the year on the road. At Cleveland, at Pittsburgh, at Green Bay (against Rodgers, of course), and at Denver. Unfortunately, that Denver game was where they lost Breece Hall from their offense and their fortunes would end there. Coming into Sunday, they had never lost a road game with Hall on the roster.
The recipe was basic for the Jets with him. Run the clock, control the game, and win the turnover battle.
So, Dallas, with a smart offensive room decided to flip the script on that idea and to out-do the Jets at their own game. We will, of course, cover the defense’s role in this tomorrow, but here we want to examine how Dallas would smartly ground and pound the Jets into a fine powder.
Below, let’s look at the drive chart and see FIVE different drives that all ate up 12 plays or more, five minutes of clock or more, and four first downs or more. Those are energy-sucking drives that rest a defense and put an opponent in a vice. It is full game control, which is something Mike McCarthy has done for years. Drive the entire narrative of the game and do not relinquish the steering wheel until it is over.
These are “big boy drives” that require great third-down conversions but also effectiveness in both the run and pass. Diversity in personnel groupings and a handle on how to not let the defense feel control. Last year, Dallas averaged 1.8 drives of 10+ plays, so to roll out five in this game alone should show what they want to be about. They want to control games. Not necessarily run the ball, but just be in charge of the tempo and the pace. Move the chains and get everyone involved. Pull all the levers of the game when you wish to do so.
The thing I enjoyed so much were drive No. 2 and No. 5. Because these were drives where Dallas decided to show us something brand new — 10 personnel.
Notice below the different groupings used on Sunday. Nine different groupings is a very high number and 83 snaps is absurd. Sixty-five is about average in a NFL game. The Cowboys dominated possession and the clock. The Jets felt like they never got to touch the ball. That is what McCarthy loves. A clean game of keep-away? What coach wouldn’t love that.
Courtesy NFL Next Gen Stats
Ok, back to 10 personnel where Dallas made that their second-most used grouping on Sunday with 13 snaps. Is that a lot? Well, they now lead the NFL in 10 personnel in 2023 through two weeks. It is quite a lot.
From 2019-2022, the Cowboys used 10 personnel a total of 28 snaps in 4 full seasons out of 4,449 total plays. Basically never. There was a time in 2020 they broke it out once or twice, but like so many things, it comes and it disappears for years. But, on Sunday, in those two drives – one that was a 3-and-out and one that was for a touchdown – Dallas decided to make it a big part of their menu.
10 personnel is one RB (Deuce Vaughn was the feature back in this grouping) and four WRs. CeeDee Lamb (88), Michael Gallup (13), Jalen Tolbert (18), and Kavontae Turpin (9). Brandin Cooks will replace one of these four receivers when he is healthy, but I would not automatically assume it is Turpin. I think Dallas is eager to get their many tiny weapons on the field at the same time and drive defenses nuts with the amount of stress they can put on you in the open field.
In our Game-Day chat that you paid subs are all invited to join us to watch the games together, I asked if there was a name given to this grouping:
Shortstack, nano, and Rabbit 10 all work for me. “Killing me smalls ball,” is probably a bit wordy but plenty amusing. I am sure someone will ask McCarthy about the concept and we will get it named, but this is possibly too good to be true from a standpoint of wondering if this is going to be a new piece of the offensive diet. Get Deuce Vaughn (5-foot-4, 179 pounds) and Kavontae Turpin (5-foot-9, 155 pounds), two return guys known for unreal speed and elusiveness and use them together to unveil a potential air-raid type attack. Then, play up-tempo and prevent the opponent from subbing out if you use it for a full series. Trap them on the field and keep going fast.
Which they did.
Here are the 13 snaps and you can see almost (one snap was not) the entire usage of this package was for Drive No. 2 and Drive No. 5 on Sunday. Was it a new part of their diet or was it just subterfuge to put the whole league on notice? I am quite interested.
We will look for more in our film study on 10 personnel and look at the Shortstack package. Now, on to the QB evaluation:
DAK PRESCOTT NEXT GEN THROW CHART
Prescott played tremendous football. His accuracy was great and his decision-making was excellent. Obviously, he had one moment he wants back (see below), but to have 40 pass plays, you figure there will be a bust. Also, our issue with the Kellen Moore offense the last two December/January stretches was that the easy offense was nowhere to be found. It is the architect’s job to help your QB succeed. Bake in some easy yards and easy offense. Get him some lay-ups so that every shot isn’t a contested 3-pointer. Well, notice how many green dots are in the flats as quick-hitters where your weapons do the heavy lifting.
This is what we have wanted to see.
In the interest of time and because I want to show you a bunch of film today, I will not get deep into the woods on the offensive line. Terence Steele was not great in pass protection (where he struggles) and Tyron Smith was fantastic. The Cowboys could really use Tyler Smith back, but G-C-G held up pretty well. But, I thought this offensive performance was excellent and I am not at all worried about the Cowboys getting cautious up double-digits in the red zone. This group has proven its quality in the red zone so I have few concerns there in the big picture.
To the film!
1Q - 13:02 - 3rd and 2 - DAL 45 - D.Prescott pass short left to C.Lamb to NYJ 49 for 6 yards
This is a straight RPO out of 11 personnel early in the game. There was a lot of college offense in this game-plan, which we are here for. As you can see if you pause it at the 0:05 mark, when Dak gets the ball, he is just reading out his 3 receiver side and counting the defenders. It is 3rd and 2, so he has a little bubble to Lamb or a give to Dowdle. If the Jets have the pass covered with at least 3 defenders, it will be a run. If they only have 2 and everyone else is sitting run, then the pass happens. Also, I imagine there is a backside option with the nub TE at the bottom of the screen which might even include a Dak run. I love this 3rd down option to let the QB play point guard and get easy conversions. It takes CJ Mosely way too long to get Lamb down as he is well past the sticks.
1Q - 12:31 - 1st and 10 - DAL 49 - D.Prescott pass deep left to C.Lamb to NYJ 24 for 25 yards
Next snap is this beauty. 2x2 and middle field open. Jets are in Quarters and this is a double-move slant and go to Lamb vs DJ Reed. Reed is called for defensive holding but this is where you want Prescott and Lamb to be. They need to have a relationship that makes this play a go-to move which will then open everything else up between the two. It is vital for Prescott to have “his guy” that he can always find when everything is tough. Let’s look at the end zone view below.
Tyron Smith vs Carl Lawson is great. Lawson is getting push and then Tyron just vices him down. Meanwhile, Dak puts the ball in a perfect spot. I am sure his critics will be watching this film, but this is why Prescott is highly thought of in the league. He can and does put these throws where they need to be a ton more than he is credited locally.
1Q - 0:54 - 1st and 12 - DAL 3 - D.Prescott pass short middle to C.Lamb to DAL 34 for 31 yards, FUMBLES (A.Gardner), recovered by DAL T.Biadasz at DAL 36.
Ok, this was a magnificent drive that started with a false start and the Cowboys were starting at their own 3-yard line. 13 personnel as they are showing run and then pass out of it beautifully as we know Cover 3 in run situations is a given to stop the handoff. Here there is not even a play-action fake as Dak just drops and fires the in-breaking slant and hits Lamb perfectly in the window. Lamb looks like he might be off but then fumbles the ball as Sauce Gardner pried it loose. Luckily, Tyler Biadasz is on the case again. Let’s look at this from behind Dak.
Loaded box. Dak hits the back throw and boom. Right on Lamb’s chest. Now, watch this clip again and just watch Biadasz. It is awesome work from 63 here. This is why hustle matters. Small details, but get down there because once every 100 times you do it, you might have a ball that needs you to recover it.
2Q - 6:32 - 2nd and 9 - Dal 26 - D.Prescott pass deep left to C.Lamb to DAL 46 for 20 yards
Ok, this is our 10 personnel drive. Shortstack is on the field and here we have Cover 3 versus two go routes and two hitches on the outside. I know this is Prescott to Lamb and Lamb takes a big hit that injures the single-high safety, but look at Turpin. I promise this will happen again and when it does, Turpin is going 74 for a touchdown because safeties are always going to cheat to Lamb. Nothing wrong with the read, but Turpin is gone, too. We will come back to that down the road. I promise.
2Q - 5:47 - 2nd and 3 - NYJ 47 - D.Prescott pass incomplete short right to C.Lamb (Gardner)
Ok, it is 10-7 here and the stadium just saw Garrett Wilson score on a long touchdown play to tighten this thing up. The stadium sounds a little nervous and this is the very next drive. This will be the 3rd straight play they throw it to Lamb and while I encourage you to keep throwing it to him, you have to know that the Jets are getting tired of this plan. Cowboys show the slant/flat combo everyone loves about McCarthy so much! But, one thing we know about slant/flat is that you cannot be late on the flat. The moment you hitch or double-clutch your throw, you have to get off of it. Instead, Dak hesitates and then throws it anyway and Sauce pounces. To Dak’s credit, the ball location is high and outside to make it safer, but let’s not do that again. Yikes.
2Q - 5:20 - 1st and 10 - NYJ 38 - D.Prescott pass incomplete short right to C.Lamb
Now remember, the Cowboys have stayed in 10 personnel this entire drive. They do not want to sub, because the point is to try to hold your opponent hostage as they try to figure out how to matchup with a number of bad matchups. What makes this work is you show that you are willing to run out of 10 personnel which is where the big runs can happen. You are attempting to cause defensive chaos. But, that means your littles have to do things that are probably not fun. Like here, watch the Cowboys try the boot with Lamb coming across. If this works perfectly, it is Dak and Lamb versus one defender and you put him in a choice where he is wrong. But, part of this means Kavontae Turpin (9) needs to block big Michael Clemons of Texas A&M and Hard Knocks fame (72). It went about as well as you would imagine and Prescott actually does a very nice job almost connecting with Lamb again.
2Q - 5:12 - 2nd and 10 - NYJ 38 - D.Prescott pass short right to D.Vaughn to NYJ 27 for 11 yards
Next play, still 10 personnel. Now, you come back to the Deuce Vaughn screen. Again, this is all the same drive and you have plans on using alignment, personnel, tempo, and concepts to knock this heavyweight defense off balance. As a nerd of the tactics, this is playing my song. Zack Martin and Tyler Biadasz get out in space and one more block from your WR (Jalen Brooks is on for Lamb) and that is going to the house. Caught the Jets in a blitz perfectly. Well done.
2Q - 4:40 - 1st and 10 - NYJ 27 - D.Vaughn right end to NYJ 14 for 13 yards
Next play again. This is all the same 10 personnel drive. Up tempo and a pretty quick snap. I think – not sure – that Jalen Tolbert is supposed to be leading Vaughn here and the speed of the play left Tolbert behind? You certainly would prefer your lead blocker to actually be in the lead and not trailing the ball. Nevertheless, Vaughn is shot out of a cannon and on his path in a blink. This time, Brooks does a wonderful job of getting his seal and it is another big play that looked like a potential TD. One more play and 10 personnel was done for the day. No snaps of 10 in the 2nd half at all.
But, I do want to show you three more plays because this is so much fun.
3Q - 10:35 - 2nd and 4 - NYJ 18 - K.Turpin right end to NYJ 12 for 6 yards
This is just to show you the “easy offense” of this build. Here, we show the ability to attack the flats with throws from behind the line of scrimmage. In this case, it is a lateral, so it counts as a run. But, this gets a play-maker in space and another easy 1st down. It is Turpin on the run when he gets the ball. Remember that for below.
3Q - 2:05 - 2nd and 7 - DAL 34 - D.Prescott pass short right to R.Dowdle to NYJ 49 for 17 yards
I really enjoyed this, despite my lack of enthusiasm for fullbacks in modern football. If the Cowboys want to carry a fullback, I will assume it is for special teams, but I also know that McCarthy has always had a fullback and it it makes him happy, it is fine.
He had Hunter Luepke doing some interesting things Sunday, but this one was easily the most enjoyable for me. I am not sure I have ever seen a FB-Lead swing pass where they are in 22 personnel and Dak shows that same slant to Lamb on the backside, then pivots back to hit Rico Dowdle in space with his FB leading the way. 17 yards on that concept is really impressive and Dowdle’s juice was easy to notice, too. Ideas everywhere you look!
4Q - 15:00 - 1st and 15 - NYJ 30 - D.Prescott pass short left to C.Lamb to NYJ 9 for 21 yards
And now, to top it off, they use that orbit motion of Vaughn to mimic the play to Turpin from the 3rd Quarter. Once that eye candy draws the Jets to Vaughn in the flat, they simply use it to free up Lamb behind them on some sort of wheel route for yet another 21 yarder. In total, five explosive plays of 20+ yards and four were to Lamb.
I know most left Sunday with a negative perception of the offense because of the red zone, but I don’t really get it. I thought the offense showed so many new toys and wrinkles that I left very excited about what might be ahead. There are weapons all over this offense. To show me all of this without Brandin Cooks is truly magnificent work. I look forward to seeing more next week.
The Cowboys deployed a tiny personnel grouping that we didn't see coming.
BOB STURM
SEP 19, 2023
Cowboys fans have been curious. Very curious about what sort of offensive scheme changes we will see with the transition from Kellen Moore to Mike McCarthy.
Why did they change the architect of this offense when the team ranked so highly in so many categories for many years? Was it broken? Or did they just let the next offensive genius go to Los Angeles because they made another mistake?
In this space, each Tuesday, we evaluate the offense from a tactical and scheme perspective. This is an offensive overview that will take you through the statistical scorecard of that week’s game and then show you specific clips of the All-22 to show you what they are doing tactically. Some weeks its great, other weeks it is to show concerns, and most weeks it is a little bit of both because football is an imperfect game. You just are trying to beat the team across from you.
Game No. 2 of the new regime finally started to un-peel the onion. We know that most of the significant offensive pieces did not play at in the preseason and the Giants season-opening game was one where the game was over before it started. Therefore the wisdom in digging deep into the bag of tricks was preserved for another day.
But, this test would be legitimate because you were playing a defense that is to be feared. They have many elite pieces and very few holes. They are stout and have been built in the image of Robert Saleh who is credited with the build that the San Francisco 49ers use to this day. In some ways, this is a dress rehearsal for Week 5 in Santa Clara with the Cowboys old nemesis. That showdown game will have to wait because while pursuing the 49ers and Eagles may be the ultimate goal for this team, to overlook any opponents along the way can render those matchups meaningless in the chase for playoff seeding if you aren’t careful.
We would be looking for some answers in this Week 2 for the offense. I think we were given many.
Let’s take a look and show you some film:
The big picture above demonstrates many good signs about this offense on Sunday. Yes, the red zone conversion rate of 33% is unacceptable and will be a point of emphasis now, despite this team leading the NFL in that stat last year. But, overall, without Brandin Cooks and Tyler Smith – two significant pieces to this unit – they were going to be playing shorthanded. But, we would want to see a game plan that revealed some sharp ideas of how to attack an opponent that would be looking for an upset and capable of getting one. You might have thought the Jets were doomed to lose every road game this season without Aaron Rodgers, but remember, they won four straight last season to start the year on the road. At Cleveland, at Pittsburgh, at Green Bay (against Rodgers, of course), and at Denver. Unfortunately, that Denver game was where they lost Breece Hall from their offense and their fortunes would end there. Coming into Sunday, they had never lost a road game with Hall on the roster.
The recipe was basic for the Jets with him. Run the clock, control the game, and win the turnover battle.
So, Dallas, with a smart offensive room decided to flip the script on that idea and to out-do the Jets at their own game. We will, of course, cover the defense’s role in this tomorrow, but here we want to examine how Dallas would smartly ground and pound the Jets into a fine powder.
Below, let’s look at the drive chart and see FIVE different drives that all ate up 12 plays or more, five minutes of clock or more, and four first downs or more. Those are energy-sucking drives that rest a defense and put an opponent in a vice. It is full game control, which is something Mike McCarthy has done for years. Drive the entire narrative of the game and do not relinquish the steering wheel until it is over.
These are “big boy drives” that require great third-down conversions but also effectiveness in both the run and pass. Diversity in personnel groupings and a handle on how to not let the defense feel control. Last year, Dallas averaged 1.8 drives of 10+ plays, so to roll out five in this game alone should show what they want to be about. They want to control games. Not necessarily run the ball, but just be in charge of the tempo and the pace. Move the chains and get everyone involved. Pull all the levers of the game when you wish to do so.
The thing I enjoyed so much were drive No. 2 and No. 5. Because these were drives where Dallas decided to show us something brand new — 10 personnel.
Notice below the different groupings used on Sunday. Nine different groupings is a very high number and 83 snaps is absurd. Sixty-five is about average in a NFL game. The Cowboys dominated possession and the clock. The Jets felt like they never got to touch the ball. That is what McCarthy loves. A clean game of keep-away? What coach wouldn’t love that.
Courtesy NFL Next Gen Stats
Ok, back to 10 personnel where Dallas made that their second-most used grouping on Sunday with 13 snaps. Is that a lot? Well, they now lead the NFL in 10 personnel in 2023 through two weeks. It is quite a lot.
From 2019-2022, the Cowboys used 10 personnel a total of 28 snaps in 4 full seasons out of 4,449 total plays. Basically never. There was a time in 2020 they broke it out once or twice, but like so many things, it comes and it disappears for years. But, on Sunday, in those two drives – one that was a 3-and-out and one that was for a touchdown – Dallas decided to make it a big part of their menu.
10 personnel is one RB (Deuce Vaughn was the feature back in this grouping) and four WRs. CeeDee Lamb (88), Michael Gallup (13), Jalen Tolbert (18), and Kavontae Turpin (9). Brandin Cooks will replace one of these four receivers when he is healthy, but I would not automatically assume it is Turpin. I think Dallas is eager to get their many tiny weapons on the field at the same time and drive defenses nuts with the amount of stress they can put on you in the open field.
In our Game-Day chat that you paid subs are all invited to join us to watch the games together, I asked if there was a name given to this grouping:
Shortstack, nano, and Rabbit 10 all work for me. “Killing me smalls ball,” is probably a bit wordy but plenty amusing. I am sure someone will ask McCarthy about the concept and we will get it named, but this is possibly too good to be true from a standpoint of wondering if this is going to be a new piece of the offensive diet. Get Deuce Vaughn (5-foot-4, 179 pounds) and Kavontae Turpin (5-foot-9, 155 pounds), two return guys known for unreal speed and elusiveness and use them together to unveil a potential air-raid type attack. Then, play up-tempo and prevent the opponent from subbing out if you use it for a full series. Trap them on the field and keep going fast.
Which they did.
Here are the 13 snaps and you can see almost (one snap was not) the entire usage of this package was for Drive No. 2 and Drive No. 5 on Sunday. Was it a new part of their diet or was it just subterfuge to put the whole league on notice? I am quite interested.
We will look for more in our film study on 10 personnel and look at the Shortstack package. Now, on to the QB evaluation:
DAK PRESCOTT NEXT GEN THROW CHART
Prescott played tremendous football. His accuracy was great and his decision-making was excellent. Obviously, he had one moment he wants back (see below), but to have 40 pass plays, you figure there will be a bust. Also, our issue with the Kellen Moore offense the last two December/January stretches was that the easy offense was nowhere to be found. It is the architect’s job to help your QB succeed. Bake in some easy yards and easy offense. Get him some lay-ups so that every shot isn’t a contested 3-pointer. Well, notice how many green dots are in the flats as quick-hitters where your weapons do the heavy lifting.
This is what we have wanted to see.
In the interest of time and because I want to show you a bunch of film today, I will not get deep into the woods on the offensive line. Terence Steele was not great in pass protection (where he struggles) and Tyron Smith was fantastic. The Cowboys could really use Tyler Smith back, but G-C-G held up pretty well. But, I thought this offensive performance was excellent and I am not at all worried about the Cowboys getting cautious up double-digits in the red zone. This group has proven its quality in the red zone so I have few concerns there in the big picture.
To the film!
1Q - 13:02 - 3rd and 2 - DAL 45 - D.Prescott pass short left to C.Lamb to NYJ 49 for 6 yards
This is a straight RPO out of 11 personnel early in the game. There was a lot of college offense in this game-plan, which we are here for. As you can see if you pause it at the 0:05 mark, when Dak gets the ball, he is just reading out his 3 receiver side and counting the defenders. It is 3rd and 2, so he has a little bubble to Lamb or a give to Dowdle. If the Jets have the pass covered with at least 3 defenders, it will be a run. If they only have 2 and everyone else is sitting run, then the pass happens. Also, I imagine there is a backside option with the nub TE at the bottom of the screen which might even include a Dak run. I love this 3rd down option to let the QB play point guard and get easy conversions. It takes CJ Mosely way too long to get Lamb down as he is well past the sticks.
1Q - 12:31 - 1st and 10 - DAL 49 - D.Prescott pass deep left to C.Lamb to NYJ 24 for 25 yards
Next snap is this beauty. 2x2 and middle field open. Jets are in Quarters and this is a double-move slant and go to Lamb vs DJ Reed. Reed is called for defensive holding but this is where you want Prescott and Lamb to be. They need to have a relationship that makes this play a go-to move which will then open everything else up between the two. It is vital for Prescott to have “his guy” that he can always find when everything is tough. Let’s look at the end zone view below.
Tyron Smith vs Carl Lawson is great. Lawson is getting push and then Tyron just vices him down. Meanwhile, Dak puts the ball in a perfect spot. I am sure his critics will be watching this film, but this is why Prescott is highly thought of in the league. He can and does put these throws where they need to be a ton more than he is credited locally.
1Q - 0:54 - 1st and 12 - DAL 3 - D.Prescott pass short middle to C.Lamb to DAL 34 for 31 yards, FUMBLES (A.Gardner), recovered by DAL T.Biadasz at DAL 36.
Ok, this was a magnificent drive that started with a false start and the Cowboys were starting at their own 3-yard line. 13 personnel as they are showing run and then pass out of it beautifully as we know Cover 3 in run situations is a given to stop the handoff. Here there is not even a play-action fake as Dak just drops and fires the in-breaking slant and hits Lamb perfectly in the window. Lamb looks like he might be off but then fumbles the ball as Sauce Gardner pried it loose. Luckily, Tyler Biadasz is on the case again. Let’s look at this from behind Dak.
Loaded box. Dak hits the back throw and boom. Right on Lamb’s chest. Now, watch this clip again and just watch Biadasz. It is awesome work from 63 here. This is why hustle matters. Small details, but get down there because once every 100 times you do it, you might have a ball that needs you to recover it.
2Q - 6:32 - 2nd and 9 - Dal 26 - D.Prescott pass deep left to C.Lamb to DAL 46 for 20 yards
Ok, this is our 10 personnel drive. Shortstack is on the field and here we have Cover 3 versus two go routes and two hitches on the outside. I know this is Prescott to Lamb and Lamb takes a big hit that injures the single-high safety, but look at Turpin. I promise this will happen again and when it does, Turpin is going 74 for a touchdown because safeties are always going to cheat to Lamb. Nothing wrong with the read, but Turpin is gone, too. We will come back to that down the road. I promise.
2Q - 5:47 - 2nd and 3 - NYJ 47 - D.Prescott pass incomplete short right to C.Lamb (Gardner)
Ok, it is 10-7 here and the stadium just saw Garrett Wilson score on a long touchdown play to tighten this thing up. The stadium sounds a little nervous and this is the very next drive. This will be the 3rd straight play they throw it to Lamb and while I encourage you to keep throwing it to him, you have to know that the Jets are getting tired of this plan. Cowboys show the slant/flat combo everyone loves about McCarthy so much! But, one thing we know about slant/flat is that you cannot be late on the flat. The moment you hitch or double-clutch your throw, you have to get off of it. Instead, Dak hesitates and then throws it anyway and Sauce pounces. To Dak’s credit, the ball location is high and outside to make it safer, but let’s not do that again. Yikes.
2Q - 5:20 - 1st and 10 - NYJ 38 - D.Prescott pass incomplete short right to C.Lamb
Now remember, the Cowboys have stayed in 10 personnel this entire drive. They do not want to sub, because the point is to try to hold your opponent hostage as they try to figure out how to matchup with a number of bad matchups. What makes this work is you show that you are willing to run out of 10 personnel which is where the big runs can happen. You are attempting to cause defensive chaos. But, that means your littles have to do things that are probably not fun. Like here, watch the Cowboys try the boot with Lamb coming across. If this works perfectly, it is Dak and Lamb versus one defender and you put him in a choice where he is wrong. But, part of this means Kavontae Turpin (9) needs to block big Michael Clemons of Texas A&M and Hard Knocks fame (72). It went about as well as you would imagine and Prescott actually does a very nice job almost connecting with Lamb again.
2Q - 5:12 - 2nd and 10 - NYJ 38 - D.Prescott pass short right to D.Vaughn to NYJ 27 for 11 yards
Next play, still 10 personnel. Now, you come back to the Deuce Vaughn screen. Again, this is all the same drive and you have plans on using alignment, personnel, tempo, and concepts to knock this heavyweight defense off balance. As a nerd of the tactics, this is playing my song. Zack Martin and Tyler Biadasz get out in space and one more block from your WR (Jalen Brooks is on for Lamb) and that is going to the house. Caught the Jets in a blitz perfectly. Well done.
2Q - 4:40 - 1st and 10 - NYJ 27 - D.Vaughn right end to NYJ 14 for 13 yards
Next play again. This is all the same 10 personnel drive. Up tempo and a pretty quick snap. I think – not sure – that Jalen Tolbert is supposed to be leading Vaughn here and the speed of the play left Tolbert behind? You certainly would prefer your lead blocker to actually be in the lead and not trailing the ball. Nevertheless, Vaughn is shot out of a cannon and on his path in a blink. This time, Brooks does a wonderful job of getting his seal and it is another big play that looked like a potential TD. One more play and 10 personnel was done for the day. No snaps of 10 in the 2nd half at all.
But, I do want to show you three more plays because this is so much fun.
3Q - 10:35 - 2nd and 4 - NYJ 18 - K.Turpin right end to NYJ 12 for 6 yards
This is just to show you the “easy offense” of this build. Here, we show the ability to attack the flats with throws from behind the line of scrimmage. In this case, it is a lateral, so it counts as a run. But, this gets a play-maker in space and another easy 1st down. It is Turpin on the run when he gets the ball. Remember that for below.
3Q - 2:05 - 2nd and 7 - DAL 34 - D.Prescott pass short right to R.Dowdle to NYJ 49 for 17 yards
I really enjoyed this, despite my lack of enthusiasm for fullbacks in modern football. If the Cowboys want to carry a fullback, I will assume it is for special teams, but I also know that McCarthy has always had a fullback and it it makes him happy, it is fine.
He had Hunter Luepke doing some interesting things Sunday, but this one was easily the most enjoyable for me. I am not sure I have ever seen a FB-Lead swing pass where they are in 22 personnel and Dak shows that same slant to Lamb on the backside, then pivots back to hit Rico Dowdle in space with his FB leading the way. 17 yards on that concept is really impressive and Dowdle’s juice was easy to notice, too. Ideas everywhere you look!
4Q - 15:00 - 1st and 15 - NYJ 30 - D.Prescott pass short left to C.Lamb to NYJ 9 for 21 yards
And now, to top it off, they use that orbit motion of Vaughn to mimic the play to Turpin from the 3rd Quarter. Once that eye candy draws the Jets to Vaughn in the flat, they simply use it to free up Lamb behind them on some sort of wheel route for yet another 21 yarder. In total, five explosive plays of 20+ yards and four were to Lamb.
I know most left Sunday with a negative perception of the offense because of the red zone, but I don’t really get it. I thought the offense showed so many new toys and wrinkles that I left very excited about what might be ahead. There are weapons all over this offense. To show me all of this without Brandin Cooks is truly magnificent work. I look forward to seeing more next week.
