Dallas Cowboys: 5 Obstacles to success in 2018

5. Playing Conservative

The Cowboys have a very conservative offense. Their offense look similar to the Denver Broncos style offense from the 1990s. They run a lot of zone plays with a power back with great vision.

The Cowboys have spent a lot of resources creating this offense. They have three first round picks on the line plus La’el Collins who could have been a first round pick before drama led to go undrafted. The offensive line has melded together well. They are a very athletic group that zone blocks better than any team in the league. Ezekiel Elliott was a first round pick that solidifies the run game as the most dangerous in the league.

But offenses have to be balanced. The loss of Dez Bryant along with what most consider to be a weak wide receiver group could make the Cowboys a one dimensional team. If the Cowboys do not have a plan for how to open up the passing game, teams will begin to play the run first and shut the Cowboys down.

The “don’t mess with what works” approach only works until it doesn’t. When it stops working, the Cowboys will want to have a plan in place.

Last season, they experimented with RPO’ as a means of getting receivers open in space. There will need to be more plays designed to force defenses to respect the pass and not double down on run defense.

If the Cowboys fails to expand their offense, their one dimensional play could be an obstacle to success in 2018.