Why Eagles coordinator might follow ex-boss’s ‘run the damn ball’ advice against the Cowboys

During the 2023 NFL Combine, Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy spoke to reporters about the new direction the offense was taking after the team and their former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who is now with the Eagles, decided to part ways after a disappointing season that saw them lose in the divisional round to the San Francisco 49ers. McCarthy criticized Moore’s play-calling during the season, saying it had a negative impact on the defense, despite the offense finishing 11th overall with 354.9 yards per game.
“I’ve been where Kellen’s been,” McCarthy said at the time, according to Dallas Morning News reporter Michael Gehlken. “Kellen wants to light the scoreboard up, but I want him to run the damn ball so I can rest my defense.”
Two seasons later, Moore is in charge of an offense that is running the ball effectively, especially since the bye week. Relying on the league’s second-best rushing attack with 174.8 yards per game, Moore now has a chance to beat McCarthy and his old team for the first time when the Eagles and Cowboys face off Sunday afternoon at AT&T Stadium.
When talking about the success of the run game, Moore said it was a product of being able to succeed in picking up yards on first and second down, thanks to the running of Saquon Barkley. According to Stathead, Barkley is averaging 5.8 yards per run on first downs this season (589 yards on 102 attempts) and 6.5 yards on second downs (287 yards on 44 attempts), effectively making third down attempts more manageable. The Cowboys defense is tied for 14th in average rushing yards allowed on first down (4.6 yards per rush) and 16th in second down rushing average (4.4 yards per rush).
“When you are running the football as successfully as we have been in a couple of these games – not every single time, but when we have those successes, hopefully we can build on them and continue to attack the defense in that manner,” Moore said.
The run has also opened up the passing game, with defenders taking a step or two closer to the line of scrimmage trying to stop Barkley, opening windows for quarterback Jalen Hurts to throw to and give wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith space to not only make the catch, but pick up yards after the catch, leading to big gains.
Having worked closely with McCarthy, Moore is trying to avoid being predictable against someone with whom he spent four seasons in the coaching room. Moore has already faced the Cowboys once since leaving the team he played and coached for, meeting them last season with the Los Angeles Chargers. In that game, Moore’s offense totaled 272 yards, but the Chargers were only able to gain 53 yards on the ground in the Cowboys’ 20-17. Looking for a different result, Moore acknowledges there will be familiarity between the two but it will not be too much of a factor once the game starts.
“For a lot of coaches and players, they all have overlap,” Moore said. “We’ve all worked together in some capacity, so no different than a lot of guys that go to different places. Obviously, there’s familiarity. There’s some of that, but at the end of the day, once you get in the game, you play the game, and some of that stuff kind of takes care of itself. I’m excited about the opportunity because it’s a big division game and all that fun stuff.”
Moore is also serving as a source of information, helping defensive coordinator Vic Fangio prepare to face quarterback Cooper Rush. Rush has been pressed into service after starter Dak Prescott injured his hamstring last Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons. Moore knows Rush well, as the two were teammates for a season before Moore became the Cowboys’ quarterbacks coach in 2018 and later the offensive coordinator in 2019.
“Occasionally, you may ask him something here or there about the quarterback,” Fangio said. “But he’s been out of there now two years. I’m sure things have changed.”
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Chris Franklin may be reached at [email protected].