The Dallas Cowboys ‘fastball offense’ key to continued success

It’s pretty safe to say the Dallas Cowboys offense got back on track last week in their 56-14 dismantling of the Washington Football Team. While they were winning games leading up to the big event, their efficiency of their offense was severely lacking.

Sunday indicated they fixed their issues and are primed for a New Years push. But if they want to sustain their success they will have to continue to do the things that worked so well against the WFT.

Aggressive play-calling, QB scrambles, creative play-design, and health will all be needed to stay on track. But we can’t underestimate the impact tempo and conditioning play as well.

The Dallas Cowboys need to continue their quick pace and keep using the fastball offense in their plans.

No single element pushed the Cowboys offense out of its funk. As we just explained, there were a number of things Dallas changed which played a part in revitalizing the defense. But today we’re going to focus on the tempo of things and explain why it helps a team like Dallas so much.

The Dallas Cowboys “Fastball” Offense

By running a hurry-up offense (aka fastball offense) the Dallas Cowboys keep the tempo brisk. This helps Dak Prescott process things more instinctively and more opportunistically. You see, Dak is a guy who likes to weigh the risk and reward of a situation. He’s prone to slip into conservative play if he’s given time to think about things.

This usually good trait has been limiting the Dallas Cowboys explosive plays as of late. Why make risky throws while trying to score 40 when you’re pretty sure 20 points will do?

Last week against the WFT, Dak seemed to shift gears with the increased tempo. He seemed to be more along the lines of, Who cares how much I need? I’m going to put up 40 in the first half simply because I can, dang it. 

The fastball offense also has an obvious impact on the defense. Instead of being able to substitute in and out every play, players are forced to stay on the field longer than they normally would. Additionally, the rest in between snaps starts to decline. Don’t underestimate the impact this has on a defense used to a slower pace.

In the clip above you can clearly see how gassed the defense is. Does that look like a unit that’s going to offer much of any resistance? That’s what the fast tempo does, it forces defenses to play before they’re ready.

While it’s fine to have Dak take his time at the line, assess the defense, and call the perfect play against a set look, it’s not as good as catching a defense off-guard and exploiting a weakness. It’s easy money and who doesn’t like easy money?

The fastball offense isn’t the solution to everything just like it’s not sustainable all game long, but it deserves a heavy role in the Dallas Cowboys game plan because it gives Dallas advantages in multiple areas of the game.