OXNARD, Calif. (KLTV) – Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator Klayton Adams, alongside head coach Brian Schottenheimer, put together an offense last season that finished second in the NFL in total yards.
Adams spoke with the media on Wednesday as he enters his second year in Dallas. On Monday, Adams called the plays for the offense during practice. He said it was a good step forward for him.
“It was awesome. I really came away from it feeling good and just the way that I felt like I made progress. There were a lot of things that, you know, just going into that situation, I haven’t done that very much,” Adams said. “I felt like I was able to get into a flow. And, you know, there’s plenty of things that I want to do better, but it felt like a really good step forward for me.”
One of the things Adams said he wanted to do better was knowing where CeeDee Lamb was on the field at all times.
“There’s times where I’m, you know, calling some stuff for him and I’m like, where is he? Where’s he going? So yeah, I got to do a better job of kind of knowing where he’s going to be,” Adams said. “I was just expecting him to be kind of at the point of attack on a lot of passes. And, he went and lined up where he was supposed to.”
Adams said he doesn’t feel extra pressure since Dak labeled the offense the “Greatest Offense There Is”.
“It’s something that’s very easy for me if we’re not having a great walkthrough or we don’t have a great practice to pull that out and say that, guys, that’s not what that is. So, I don’t think it’s as much of like, oh, a numbers thing or you’re going to rank here, you’re going to do this or you’re going to do that, or you’re going to be the greatest show on turf or any of these other things,” Adams said. “You better hold yourself to that standard. And we can’t be going to a walkthrough with one foot out the door because it’s an off day the next day. The foot needs to be on the floor of the car the entire time, and so I love it.”
Adams said he’s always looking at ways to evolve the offense.
“I know that one of the things that I’ve challenged myself to is like, how do we play winning football? And as I’ve gotten older and grown into higher level leadership positions, to me, it’s a little bit less about the numbers and how do you just, you know, put a tack in the win column,” Adams said. “I think that we’re set up to do that now with the way that we operate. Let’s play winning football. Let’s do the things that it takes to ensure that we win.”
Schottenheimer announced Monday that Tyler Guyton would be the starting left tackle for the Cowboys. Guyton was held out of Tuesday’s practice with an elbow issue. Adams said they’re looking for continuity on the offensive side.
“I think what we want that for all the guys is to stay out there and try to develop as good a continuity as we can. And, you know, we’re evaluating and trying to make decisions day by day based on what we’re seeing. And part of being a great competitor is being able to do it every day,” Adams said. “We go into the camp saying, this is what’s going to happen, and things go a little bit differently and we have to pivot. I’m totally good with that. You know, sometimes you got to reserve the right to change your mind.”
Adams said running back Javonte Williams, who joined the team last season, is a diverse runner.
“The guy is pretty good on direct runs and he’s hard to get down behind the line of scrimmage. But I think that he is a more diverse runner than he probably gets credit for. I think the guy does a really nice job with some of the outside zone stuff, particularly the weak side. He’s got really quick feet,” Adams said. “He’s able to get in and out of cuts really well, and he’s one of those dudes that’s not scared to run through the smoke. And that’s what you’re going to have to do…I think he’s good at a lot of things.”
Adams said he’s seen a lot of growth out of second-year running back Jaydon Blue.
“So far it’s been consistency which is really what we were looking for last year was to get a professional every day. And I think he’s had some growth in those areas,” Adams said. “I just think having the ability, you know, which not everybody does, to have like adults on your roster to say, you know, like you think Dak would do that, you know, how do you think that he’s carrying out his day? How do you think he prepared to show up today is a very positive thing for us. And so those are the things that we just got to continue to grow and look for.”
Adams said wide receiver Ryan Flournoy “just gets it.”
“He’s one of those guys that came into the NFL kind of as an adult and maturity wise. Where he’s grown is just instincts and understanding the game. And he’s a fun player because he totally understands nuance,” Adams said. “When guys get to the point where Flo is at in his career where, you know, it’s kind of like he’s developed consciousness, right? He understands, oh, this is why we’re putting that in. And so that’s, you know, one of the best things he does.”
Adams said going up against their defensive line every day in practice is only making the offensive line better.
“It’s been fun watching sparks fly with those guys in the interior that we have on defense, because those guys are big and thick and do a nice job over there too,” Adams said. “I think that the best thing for those guys is that some of the absolute best interior players that we’re going to see all year are on our team, and we get to practice against them every day. And so, you know, there’s times where we’re able to say like, hey, I told you, you can’t do that against somebody who’s an elite player because they get to practice against him every day.”
Dak Prescott is clearly the starting quarterback, but Adams said the battle for the backup position between Joe Milton and Sam Howell is heating up.
“They’re both doing an unbelievable job. And it really is a testament to how important competition is,” Adams said. “Joe’s calling plays a lot cleaner than he has in the past. He understands pass protection a lot better than he has in the past. And, being here a year, obviously with the terminology has been really good for him. And then you look at Sam, who’s a guy that started, I think he started 17 games in Washington at one point. And he’s been around a lot of offenses…it’s been really great being in the room with those guys and also listening to them support each other and help each other.”
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