In the 2025 preseason the Dallas Cowboys played things purposely close to the vest as new head coach Brian Schottenheimer knew they had a degree of mystery to their offense. Schottenheimer had been a silent partner in the previous administration, bowing to Mike McCarthy's play calling as he himself worked in the background.
No one knew what an unbridled Schottenheimer offense looked like and the first-year head coach liked it that way. So, when the regular season came along and Schottenheimer finally flipped the safety switch off, opponents were caught completely off guard. It was a welcomed outcome after years of relative transparency and predictability.
As Schottenheimer enters his second season at the helm in Dallas, he's tasked with repeating his offensive success without the element of surprise in his back pocket. The only way to do that is to evolve and adapt.
Many of the same fundamental philosophies as last season will guide him this endeavor. Schottenheimer values personnel groups and formations that look the same but can attack in a variety of ways. Instead of running the ball every time the offense goes 21 or 12 personnel (two running backs or two tight ends, respectively), he wants the offense to be equally as deadly passing the ball. He wants blocking schemes to be less predictable and route combinations to be less obvious. Doing different versions of what they did last season should provide a certain degree of evolution for the offense.
Schottenheimer specifically spoke of increasing his usage of two running back sets (21 personnel) in 2026. He needn't look any further than San Francisco where Kyle Shannahan has made a reputation with his effective use of it. There are plenty of inspirational forces around the NFL that the Cowboys head coach can look to.
In 2025 the Cowboys ran 21 personnel 88 times for a usage rate of 7.86% according to Sumer Sports. They used both 21 and 22 personnel at a rate above league average already, but could certainty stand to use it more and do so creatively. Using fullback Hunter Luepke more often in 2026 could expand on those numbers if Schottenheimer is willing to get creative in his playcalling. Luepke is an effective runner and a deceptively good pass catcher, so the sky is the limit for Schottenheimer.
It's hard to say exactly how Schottenheimer will evolve the Cowboys offense, but it's safe to say it will remain on-brand in nature. What's important is he knows the value of deception and is actively working to make his offense unpredictable. That's not something we can say about many of the past offensive minds in Dallas over the years.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys offense snuck up in 2025, but now they will have to evolve
