Dallas Cowboys: Proof of the power of Kellen Moore can be seen through Jason Witten

Going into the 2019 season, many had justified concerns over the Dallas Cowboys’ offense. Dissatisfaction about play-calling was leaking internally for an entire year. Former All-Pro receiver Dez Bryant was the original complainer. Subtle complaints continued with receivers Ryan Switzer, Cole Beasley, Allen Hurns, Brice Butler, and even Amari Cooper.

Cowboy fans were tired of predictable plays, jet sweeps, stop routes, tight end packages, and staled red-zone efforts. Finally, the Cowboys front office took action and fired former offensive coordinator Scott Linehan. A collective sigh of relief was followed quickly with a collective what now.

The answer to the termination of Linehan left a mixed bag of emotions. Current offensive coordinator Kellen Moore was the replacement to Linehan. Some felt that head coach Jason Garrett was playing safe politics with Moore and others thought that the Moore hire was genius from the start.

Social media debates lasted literally until kickoff of Dallas’ Week 1 game against the New York Giants. Moore answered the call significantly with the apparent quality changes. The obvious was way more play-action passes, pre-snap motions, attacking through the air, and creativity in the red zone.

The less obvious Moore value is what this article addresses. The bigger elephant in the room was the over-usage of All-Pro tight end Jason Witten and whether or not Moore would have the power to run his system. It is only one game to go on, but the answer is yes, he does have the power.

Analytical Cowboy fans know that Witten was overused in the Linehan system. Before Witten retired, his average snap percentage hovered around 97 to 98 percent of total snaps for the year. As Witten was aging, Father Time was making him less of a vertical threat in the Linehan offense. Snaps on third-and-long were just not logical offensive scheming anymore.

Against the Giants this past Sunday, Witten only received 66 percent of snaps. 66 percent compared to 98 percent is perfect for situational usage of the future Hall of Fame tight end. The change signals two significant upgrades from Moore.

First, less snaps for Witten signals that trust in Moore is legitimate. He is not a puppet placeholder for an outdated Linehan/Garrett system. The Moore vision will have full implementation without reservation.

Second, less Witten snaps signals that Moore will be way more fluid than Linehan and scheme personnel to better counter opposing defenses. Witten has warranted clout with the Dallas Cowboy organization and would never bet against himself. The fact that Moore’s system talked Witten off the field a bit says a lot about the trust that everyone has in him.

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