Why the Eagles should love what they’re getting in former Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore
Kellen Moore is the new offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles. This might be good or terrible news for Dallas Cowboys’ former play-caller, depending on your opinion. He was popular right away, but he became the latest scapegoat when outcomes failed to meet expectations in the postseason.
He will now be drawing plays in Philadelphia. While some Cowboys supporters appear to be chuckling at Philly’s choice, others are less than delighted. Moore is well-regarded among Cowboys insiders as an offensive coordinator.
Before we start making jokes about how this will backfire on the Eagles, let’s take a look back at how well Moore performed in Dallas.
DEBUT SEASON
Moore became the Cowboys offensive coordinator in 2019 after spending just one year as their quarterbacks coach. In his debut season, he helped the Cowboys offense put up 6,904 total yards. It was the most yards in franchise history, and the fifth-most in NFL history. His offense was in great company as it was up there with Peyton Manning’s record-breaking season with Denver and the Rams’ Greatest Show on Turf.
The 49ers’ need for another last second miracle deserves a deep rewind.
Moore had everything clicking on offensively. Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, and Randall Cobb became the first three Cowboys receivers to have at least 800 yards receiving. This season is often ignored because the Cowboys ended 8-8 overall, but it wasn’t due to the offense. They finished second in the league for offensive DVOA.
The Cowboys had a terrible special teams (last in DVOA) that season, with Brett Maher missing 10 field goals. Six of their eight losses that year were by a single score, with Maher missing field goals in the majority of them. If they’d had reasonable kicking efficiency that season, their ultimate record could have been very different. Regardless, Moore’s first season as offensive coordinator saw the unit perform admirably.
CHANGING DAK
There was a time not so long ago when people viewed Dak Prescott as a bus driver. His yards per passing attempt started to drop and he was labeled as a dink-and-dunk quarterback.
The moment Moore took over the play-calling, things changed. Prescott started airing the ball out as his yards per attempt and yards per game both skyrocketed. It was at that point that we realized what type of quarterback Prescott could be.
Things dropped again in Moore’s last season in 2022. Many contributing factors played a role including play-calling, Dak’s performance, and a lack of offensive weapons including WR2 Noah Brown. Even still, Prescott’s turning point aligns when Moore stepped in and cut him loose.
WHEN IT ALL COMES TOGETHER
Moore had a successful initial season, but was dealt a setback when Prescott was lost for the season the next year, in 2020. However, once Dak was healthy again, the Cowboys’ offense went off. CeeDee Lamb and Amari Cooper spearheaded a strong receiving attack in which the Cowboys lit up opponents. The Cowboys lead the league in both points scored and yards gained that year. They lead the league in both categories for the first time in 50 years, since winning the Super Bowl in 1971.
Stats are just stats, and people want wins, but it’s hard to look past how efficient the Cowboys’ offenses have been under Moore. Of the top seven total yardage outputs in the history of the NFL, Moore’s Cowboys show up twice.
RUN GAME MYTH
Moore gets accused of being a little too pass-happy after coming from a heavy pass Boise State team in college. It’s true, he does love to air it out, but that is not to say he’s not effective in the running game. Moore brought a lot of clever outside zone runs to the Cowboys’ offense, but he showed that he could beat you a lot of different ways.
Strangely, despite Mike McCarthy’s commitment to be more committed to the run game, the offense struggled to run the ball this season. Their 4.1 yards per rushing attempt was the lowest this squad has gone in the last ten years. When opponents crowded the line of scrimmage, the Cowboys had no response. Furthermore, the lack of explosive plays meant that defenses didn’t have to respect the big play and could group more defenders across the center.
FINAL THOUGHTS
We can talk about how Moore’s offense struggled against better teams or how they didn’t show up in the postseason, but that is also the epitome of the Cowboys offense we just witnessed this past season. Maybe those shortcomings aren’t as Moore-dependent as we thought.
However, over his four years with the Cowboys, the offense ranked second overall in both points and yards gained. What’s amazing is that they were without Dak Prescott for 17 games over three seasons. Even with Andy Dalton, Garrett Gilbert, Ben DiNucci, and Cooper Rush, Moore’s Cowboys offense has been the league’s second-best.
Hopefully, he will not be the answer in Philadelphia, but if he is, Cowboys fans who have seen Moore’s work in recent years will not be surprised.
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