Where Are the Running Lanes? The Cowboys Have a Run-Blocking Problem to Solve

The Dallas Cowboys scored 37 points Sunday.

Dak Prescott threw four touchdown passes. CeeDee Lamb went over 150 receiving yards. The offense looked explosive, efficient and, for long stretches, exactly like the unit Dallas hoped it would have in 2026.

There was just one thing missing.

Somewhere between the offensive line and the line of scrimmage, the running lanes seem to have disappeared.

Through two games, Dallas has rushed for just 135 yards. The Cowboys managed 69 yards on 18 carries in the season-opening loss to the New York Giants, then followed that with 66 yards on 21 attempts against Washington. That's 39 rushing attempts for 135 yards — an average of just under 3.5 yards per carry.

And while running backs always get their share of attention when the rushing numbers look like that, this doesn't appear to be simply a running-back problem.

It may be time to look at what's happening before the ball carrier ever gets a chance to make something happen.

Running Into a Wall

Brian Schottenheimer provided perhaps the best description of the problem after the loss to New York.

Discussing the Cowboys' difficulty establishing the run, Schottenheimer said there was too much penetration early and that Javonte Williams was essentially running into a wall. Dallas did make adjustments after halftime, but the damage had already been done.

That's an important distinction.

There is a difference between a running back failing to find an available hole and a running back receiving the football only to discover that the hole never existed.

Against the Giants, Dallas averaged 3.8 yards per carry. Williams had only 25 yards on nine first-half attempts, and film review showed examples of missed blocks contributing to unsuccessful runs.

Then came Washington.

Different opponent. Different outcome.

Same basic problem.

Dallas ran 21 times for 66 yards — just 3.1 yards per attempt. Williams finished with 30 yards at 2.5 yards per carry.

The Cowboys won by 17 points, which made the problem considerably easier to overlook.

It didn't make it disappear.

Pass Protection and Run Blocking Aren't the Same Thing

This is where evaluating the offensive line gets interesting.

The Cowboys aren't simply getting beaten on every snap.

In fact, there have been encouraging signs in pass protection. Dallas didn't allow a sack in the opener, and Prescott had the time necessary to dismantle Washington's secondary in Week 2. One early statistical snapshot after the Giants game had Dallas ranked 10th in pass-block win rate but only 26th in run-block win rate.

That's a very different diagnosis from saying, “The offensive line is bad.”

It isn't that simple.

An offensive line can protect its quarterback effectively and still struggle to generate displacement in the running game. It can handle edge rushers on passing downs while failing to consistently move defensive tackles off the spot. It can keep Prescott upright while leaving Williams with nowhere particularly useful to go.

And right now, that's closer to what Dallas appears to be dealing with.

How Much of This Is the Game Plan?

There is an important qualifier.

Schottenheimer said after the Washington game that Dallas went into the afternoon intending to throw the football quite a bit. The Cowboys didn't necessarily abandon some dominant rushing attack because it wasn't working. The passing game was part of the plan — and with Prescott completing 26 of 31 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns, there wasn't much reason to apologize for it.

When the quarterback is playing like that, keep throwing.

But play selection doesn't entirely explain 3.1 yards per carry.

Nor does it explain why, through two games, Dallas has yet to produce even 70 rushing yards in a game.

There is a difference between choosing not to emphasize the running game and being unable to rely on it when you need it.

The second one is the concern.

Dallas Has Been Here Before — in Reverse

Cowboys history makes this particularly interesting.

For much of the franchise's most successful history, the running game wasn't simply another way to accumulate yards. It dictated terms.

Tom Landry's offenses could attack defenses in multiple ways, but Dallas understood the value of controlling the line of scrimmage. In the 1990s, that philosophy became almost impossible to miss. Emmitt Smith received the headlines — deservedly — but the offensive line routinely gave him the opportunity to reach the line of scrimmage before having to perform an escape act.

That's not an argument that today's Cowboys need to recreate the Great Wall of Dallas.

They don't.

The NFL has changed, and Prescott's arm, Lamb's route running and the Cowboys' other receiving weapons should be central to this offense.

But one lesson hasn't changed much at all:

A credible running game makes everything else harder to defend.

When linebackers have to respect the run, play-action becomes more dangerous. When an offense can consistently gain four or five yards on first down, the entire playbook remains available. When third-and-2 doesn't automatically become another Prescott problem to solve, defenses have fewer opportunities to dictate the terms of the possession.

The Cowboys don't need Emmitt Smith's running game.

They need a running game the defense can't ignore.

Don't Put All of This on Javonte Williams

This may be the most important point.

Williams hasn't exactly exploded out of the gate, but evaluating a running back purely by yards per carry can be misleading when defenders are arriving in the backfield or the intended lane collapses before he reaches it.

Running backs are responsible for vision, timing, patience and making defenders miss.

They aren't responsible for blocking the defensive tackle standing in the hole.

That doesn't absolve Williams or the other backs from responsibility. There will be runs on film where a better cut could have produced more yardage, just as there will be blocks the offensive line would like back.

But through two weeks, the recurring problem appears larger than one player's stat line.

Dallas needs to create cleaner opportunities for whoever is carrying the football.

The Passing Game Can Hide It — Until It Can't

Sunday against Washington demonstrated both the Cowboys' greatest offensive strength and the danger of ignoring this issue.

Prescott was terrific. Lamb was terrific. Dallas scored 37.

Problem solved?

Not quite.

There will be afternoons when Prescott isn't completing nearly 84 percent of his passes. There will be opponents capable of taking away Lamb for stretches. There will be fourth quarters when Dallas has a lead and wants to take six minutes off the clock instead of giving the opposing quarterback another possession.

That's when the running game stops being optional.

The Cowboys don't need to become a run-first offense.

They do need to become an offense that can run when everybody in the stadium knows a run might be coming.

After two games, they haven't demonstrated that yet.

Two Games Aren't a Verdict

There is also no reason to turn two September games into a declaration about what this offensive line will be in December.

Two games are evidence.

They aren't a verdict.

Offensive-line play depends heavily on cohesion, communication and repetition. Young players improve. Combinations settle. Blocking assignments that look messy in September can become routine later in the season.

And there have already been encouraging signs from the line — particularly when Prescott drops back to pass.

But that's precisely why the run-blocking problem deserves attention now.

The Cowboys have shown they can protect their quarterback.

They've shown they can generate explosive plays through the air.

They've shown they can score 37 points without much of a running game at all.

Now they need to show they can open a hole.

Because eventually Dallas is going to face a defense that makes Prescott work considerably harder than Washington did.

And when that happens, handing the football to a running back shouldn't feel like sending him into traffic without a green light.

The passing game can carry this offense.

The offensive line needs to make sure it doesn't have to.