When the Dallas Cowboys got inside their opponent's 20-yard line last season, alarms went off for defensive coordinators. With Dak Prescott throwing the football and Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard carrying the rock, a touchdown was almost guaranteed.

Kellen Moore's offense had its share of issues. But converting trips to the red zone into six points was almost a guaranteed certainty. In fact, they led the entire NFL in red zone touchdown scoring percentage.

In a recent article, I listed the Top 5 red zone offenses of the 2022 season and the secrets to each of them. Let's dive into the Cowboys' secret and why I believe it could be in jeopardy in 2023.

Below is my breakdown from the full list: 

Their secret: The Cowboys were exceptionally good at running the football inside the 20, thanks to their extreme versatility. According to Sports Info Solutions, the Cowboys led the NFL in rushing success rate in both gap scheme runs and zone scheme runs.

Kellen Moore, now the OC for the Los Angeles Chargers, also made sure to use personnel groupings with three and even four tight ends to catch NFL defenses by surprise.

Could the Cowboys' red zone offense be in trouble?

In many ways, the Cowboys offense is the biggest question mark the team faces in 2023. With Mike McCarthy calling the plays on gameday, things will look different even if the official position of the team is that the change will be very limited.

Spoiler alert: It won't.

But there's one particular area that stands out that could jeopardize the offense's success inside the 20-yard line and that's the look of the Cowboys' running game.

As noted above, Moore's attack led the league when using gap scheme runs and zone scheme runs. In other words, a big part of what made Moore's attack special inside the 20 is that it featured extreme levels of diversity. Defenses didn't really know what was coming.

With McCarthy and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer calling the shots, that is expected to change. Both coaches have suggested the Cowboys will be specializing in running an outside zone scheme over anything else. Specializing in just one type of run scheme will be a departure from what the offense did last year.

While Moore preferred the large Cheesecake Factory-esque menu of plays, the 2023 Cowboys will likely use fewer concepts but will run them better. 

While that could diminish the team's unpredictability in the red zone, it's a tradeoff that could work out in their favor in the big picture. After all, Moore's rushing attack wasn't nearly as efficient outside of the 20. 

Ultimately, McCarthy & Co. will do things their way even if the base of the offense is built on Moore's previous work. A key to turning this into a positive transition will be all about the Cowboys remaining a menace near the end zone. 

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