Since Brian Schottenheimer’s hiring as the Dallas Cowboys’ new head coach, he and the team’s leadership have repeatedly emphasized a strong commitment to the run game.
Executive vice president Stephen Jones highlighted the team’s vision of creating a balanced offense, describing the goal as a desire “to marry” the run game with the passing attack.
Schottenheimer, who boasts 14 years of experience as an offensive coordinator, is no stranger to running successful ground games.
Though he hasn’t always been the play-caller, his offenses have ranked first in rushing twice during his career.
In 2009, Schottenheimer’s Jets offense led the NFL in rushing, with running back Thomas Jones amassing 1,402 yards. In 2018, Schottenheimer’s Seahawks offense finished as the top rushing team, powered by a trio of running backs – Chris Carson (1,151 yards), Mike Davis (514 yards), and Rashaad Penny (419 yards).
Speaking at the NFL Scouting Combine, Schottenheimer explained his approach to building an offense…
“I think offensively you try to build it based on what your guys do well,” he said. “I got in trouble for letting Russ [Wilson] cook a little bit back in Seattle.”
Schottenheimer made it clear that, despite his past pass-heavy approaches, the key to a successful offense is still rooted in the run game.
“At the end of the day, you have to be able to run the football. We’ve made a commitment that we want to be great on both sides of the line of scrimmage. That’s a huge part of it,” he said.
“The way I say it, ‘When teams know you’re going to run the ball, you have to be able to run the ball and conversely stop the run.’ Again, depending on how the roster is filled and how it’s constructed, we want to be able to feature our guys and what they do well, and we want to be multiple.”
In 2024, the Cowboys struggled with their rushing attack, experimenting with a running back by committee approach before settling on Rico Dowdle as the primary back.
Dallas ranked 24th in rushing attempts (429), 27th in rushing yards (1,705), and dead last in rushing touchdowns (6).
With the draft on the horizon, speculation has linked the Cowboys to Boise State’s standout running back Ashton Jeanty as well as North Carolina star rusher Omarion Hampton.
One thing is for sure: the Cowboys will need multiple capable running backs, especially with Dowdle set to hit free agency and Ezekiel Elliott now gone.
While the Cowboys may not yet know exactly who will fill their running back room, Schottenheimer outlined what he’s looking for in a dependable back.
“You want a guy that’s got vision. You want a guy that has contact balance,” Schottenheimer said.
“The fronts that we’re seeing, the fronts that we’re facing, require guys to be able to make hidden yards, whether there’s a free safety in the hole or there’s a linebacker or a defensive lineman coming off the point of attack, you’ve got to have a guy who is willing to run through arm tackles.”
In addition to physical toughness, Schottenheimer believes a running back’s ability to contribute in the passing game is crucial.
“I do believe that you have to have the ability to catch the ball coming out of the backfield. Why do I say that? If a team wants to commit to stopping the run, there’s ways they can try to do that,” he said,
“We don’t want to take an elite runner or a position like that out of the game, so if a team is doing a nice job stopping the running game, you want to be able to get them involved throwing it to them.”
Schottenheimer concluded, “That doesn’t mean they have to play like a receiver, but they have to be able to run routes coming out of the backfield and have the ability to separate and run after the catch is important.”
While Schottenheimer outlined an interesting and well-detailed approach for the Cowboys, the line that caught most people’s attention the most was of course the Russell Wilson remark.
What are your thoughts on Schottenheimer’s comments?
Under his guidance, do you think the Cowboys will be able to get back to their old run-first identity???
