Cowboys could shift to more ground-oriented attack

Feb. 12, 2009 By Eric Edholm

Despite the below-par rushing totals of the two Super Bowl contestants this season, running the ball is still a patterned mode for success in the NFL. The league’s top nine rushing teams all finished .500 or above and had a combined record of 97-47. So it should surprise no one if you see the Cowboys become more of a running team in 2009. With Marion Barber, Felix Jones and Tashard Choice all taking the spotlight at various times, the Cowboys only ranked 21st in rushing yards per game but 12th in yards per carry — a higher average than the Ravens, who ranked fourth in rushing yards. Only seven teams had fewer rushing attempts than the Cowboys (401), or just 25.1 per game, and only nine teams had fewer rushing TDs than the Cowboys’ 12. With a healthy Jones and a proven Choice, who had only 19 carries through Week 12, those totals should go up. There is one school of thought inside Valley Ranch that the team should be more run-oriented, and not surprisingly those are the people who would favor letting WR Terrell Owens go, which almost would force Jason Garrett’s unit to be more of a chain-moving outfit than a quick-strike offense.