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FRISCO, TX — Close doesn't pay the bills. That's what rookie 11th-overall pick Caleb Downs said going into the Dallas Cowboys matchup against the Washington Commanders, before the team successfully bounced back against the bitter division rival; and Downs' mic drop also applies to the offensive side of the ball in 2026.
Yes, it's very true that Dak Prescott and the Cowboys offense had a fairly outstanding recovery game in Week 2, hanging 37 points on the Commanders with only eight possessions, Prescott torching Washington with four touchdowns to surpass Tony Romo as the franchise's all-time leader in passing touchdowns.
Aided by the efforts of CeeDee Lamb and Jake Ferguson, along with critical catches by George Pickens and Ryan Flournoy, the lethality of the passing attack was on full display but, and this is equally important to acknowledge, the rushing attack is still sitting on bricks in the parking lot.
And that's what I aim to try and figure out going into Week 3, when the Cowboys will have no choice but to try and help their ailing run defense by controlling the time of possession — to keep All-Pro Derrick Henry and former league MVP Lamar Jackson on the stationary bike for as much as possible throughout the four quarters at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
So, respectfully, what the hell is going on with the Cowboys' rushing attack?
Look Up Front, Not Out Back
This isn't a Javonte Williams issue, folks.
I feel it prudent to go ahead and put that on front street (that colloquialism applies here, so stick with me here) to swiftly put to bed any and all speculation that the lack of rushing offense in Dallas is somehow due to Williams — it isn't. This is the same running back that ran for more than 1,200 yards with 11 touchdowns on 4.8 yards rushing in 2025, career highs in every category.
He hasn't suddenly lost his vision, quickness, explosiveness or physicality, and [one of] the biggest culprits jumped out at me in real-time, watching the first two outings, and most certainly when I began diving into the tape. There are things happening that continually set Williams up to fail on any given handoff, and it, surprise surprise, begins with what's happening — read: what's not happening — with the offensive line.
"We're not doing a great job blocking." - Brian Schottenheimer
That means for as much as owner and general manager Jerry Jones wants to inject more CeeDee Lamb and KaVonte
T.J. Bass is a very capable backup that can, in spots, step in to save the day at multiple interior positions on the Cowboys offensive line. Taking nothing away from his proven ability to do exactly that, he is simply not Tyler Smith.
To be fair to Bass, no one in Dallas is comparable to what Smith has become for Dallas; and maybe former first-round picks Tyler Booker and Tyler Guyton (the former having a very good rookie season in 2025, and the latter off to the best start of his career in 2026) could eventually get there, but until they do, they aren't yet, and that's basic science.
A Party in the Backfield
Smith is an All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowler that serves as the anchor and enforcer for the offensive line and, without him, it feels as if the identity and leadership is missing, and nothing could be more evidential than the number of times Williams has defenders in his face once he takes a handoff or a toss from Prescott.
Seriously, these numbers are NSFW.
Week 1 - Contacted Behind Line of Scrimmage
- 6 times on 12 carries (50%)
Week 2 - Contacted Behind Line of Scrimmage
- 7 times on 12 carries (58.3%)
Note: These numbers were confirmed in my film sessions.
On 13 of 24 carries this season, Williams has had defenders in the backfield with him.
This metric was bad in the loss to the Giants and actually got worse in the win over the Commanders, not better, meaning Prescott should be given that much more appreciation for willing the offense and the team as a whole to a 1-1 record; and that communication and chemistry on the offensive line are moving in the wrong direction.
By the way, All-Pro linebacker Frankie Luvu wasn't even in the game on Sunday, so there's also that.
The number of times defenders got their hands on Williams behind the LOS in Week 1 tied for the second-highest rate since he signed with the Cowboys in 2025, and the Week 2 statistic is poor enough to take over the No. 1 spot for most times he's been contacted in the backfield in a Cowboys uniform (per NextGen Stats).
In stark contrast, through his two games against the Commanders last season, Williams was met behind the line only 31.% percent of the time (10 times out of 32 carries) and averaged 7.2 yards per carry on 22 attempts when he had time to hit the first level of the defense and beyond (158 yards with 2 rushing touchdowns).
Holes In the Wall
By now, some of you are thinking, "If he's so physical, just break the tackles!"
Turn off First Take for a moment, pause your flashbacks of what you claim to have done at Polk High in the 1970s when you allegedly rushed for four touchdowns in a single game, and let's take a walk together.
As a runner, Williams has forced four missed tackles through two games and, counterpoint, Williams isn't being forced with consistently trying to break just one tackle in the backfield, which would be a red mark for the O-line, in and of itself.
Far more often than not, there are multiple defenders getting their hands on him in the backfield, so how many defenders should he be asked to run through before getting to the line of scrimmage?
Two …? Three … ?? Don't be unserious.
Listen for a moment at how that sounds, and then ask yourself if you want Williams around for an entire season or not, seeing as that amount of additional, unnecessary and controllable contact can wear down even the most durable running backs in the NFL over the course of 17 games. Additionally, Williams isn't the only running back in the room struggling to get going.
"The run game usually takes a little bit of time. And I'm certainly not pleased with it, but it does take a little bit of time to kind of get it going with some new pieces in there." - Brian Schottenheimer
Through eight quarters of football to begin the 2026 season, no running back in Dallas has taken a handoff or a toss for more than 10 yards or greater — Prescott being the only one to do it. The record-setting quarterback is also the second-leading rusher on the team, behind only Williams, and with only 40 yards rushing entering Week 3.
Williams' longest run thus far has been for nine yards, his 25-yard run against the Commanders completely negated by an offensive holding call against George Pickens, something that absolutely had to make Williams' heart sink into his intestines.
Even when he finally gets the blocking he needs, he actually doesn't, and you'd probably assume the Giants and Commanders are stacking the box to get those extra bodies in the backfield, but you'd be wrong.
'Box' Score
You'd undoubtedly be surprised to discover the Giants didn't often add any extra players to the box to account for Williams, despite his ability to change the game, and it's because they felt their defensive front could more easily handle the Cowboys blocking up front in the absence of Tyler Smith.
In the end, they were correct, winning in their decision to challenge Dallas to block up their front while often taking a defender out of the box, though that arrogance didn't work out as they'd hoped, so they put the seventh defender back in the box.
They neutralized Williams with only seven.
Boxes Faced vs. Giants (% of reps)
- Light box (6 or fewer) - 41.7%
- Neutral (7) - 33.3%
- Stacked (8+) - 25%
Rushing Success Rate vs. Giants
- Light box - 80% SR: 5 attempts, 29 yards, 5.8 ypc, 0 run stuffs
- Neutral - 25% SR: 4 attempts, 10 yards, 2.5 ypc,, 1 run stuff
- Stacked - 33.3% SR, 3 attempts, 2 yards, 0.7 ypc, 1 TD, 1 run stuff
The Commanders saw that plan work and refused to stack the box at all, not a single time and, even without Luvu on the field, effectively shut down the rushing attack in Dallas.
"We have to execute it. We have to block better, get more movement. We have to press the hole better. > ... It's all of us, and it comes down to our ability to execute better." - Brian Schottenheimer
Prescott had to continually throw the offense out of this rut, the same thing he tried to do in New York, and it would've worked at MetLife as well, if not for critical drops and an attempted throwaway that fell short and into the hands of a defensive back.
Boxes Faced vs Commanders (% of reps)
- Light box - 25%
- Neutral - 75%
- Stacked - 0%
Rushing Success Rate vs. Commanders
- Light box - 33.3% SR: 3 attempts, 11 yards, 3.7 ypc, 0 run stuffs
- Neutral - 33.3% SR: 9 attempts, 19 yards, 2.1 ypc, 5 run stuffs
The lighter box from Washington yielded better results, as it should, but it was still more than a yard per carry shy of what Williams averaged throughout last season and nearly four yards fewer than what he did against the Commanders a season ago when Tyler Smith was leading the offensive line in front of him.
But my overarching opinion is that even without Smith, it's not that there's suddenly a lack of talent up front, but rather a disruption in chemistry that's not been resolved yet.
GOTI In the Air, NOT-y on the Ground
Being one-dimensional isn't the Cowboys' goal, but that's exactly what they are before stepping onto the field in Rio. Even the Greatest Show on Turf enjoyed watching Marshall Faulk average nearly 1,400 yards per season from 1999 through 2001.
That's not what the Cowboys need from Williams, per se, but they do need him to have an opportunity to do more than be on pace for only 603 yards (his current situation).
The disconnects within the offensive line in Dallas will mostly fade away when Smith returns, able to return to the field as early as the Week five matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but, considering that is a Thursday Night Football game on a short week, a return in Week 6 against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field seems more realistic — barring a setback.
Of course, that's an important NFC matchup that pits the Cowboys [currently] struggling offensive line against a familiar face in Micah Parsons as he also returns to the field from injury.
Perfect timing, sure, but the head coach Brian Schottenheimer and offensive coordinator Klayton Adams know full well they don't have the luxury to just coast in that area of their offense until Smith gets healthy to potentially save the day.
It's an issue that has to be sorted through far sooner than later.
"We have to be better." - Brian Schottenheimer
It will ensure Williams and Co. have a clean backfield and run lanes to affect the game to set up the play action for Prescott and, as mentioned earlier, keeps Henry and Jackson off of the field to minimize exposure of a defense that is both battling injuries and working through growing pains.
A good rushing attack travels, and is far more weather-proof, to boot.
For one game this season, Prescott and his elite stable of aerial weapons were able to overcome the lack of a run game but, in the other contest, they made mistakes that showed they were human and, in the process, needed a ground attack to stabilize them and to help them with time of possession (they had only two possessions in the entire second half against the Giants).
Remembering the reason for the loss is as key as enjoying the reason for the win, in that few things ensure consistent success in the NFL more than a rushing attack that keeps defenses up at night.
Maybe the Cowboys will be close to getting back on track with the run game against the Ravens, but close doesn't pay the bills.
