When you listen to how confident and direct Brian Schottenheimer is behind the microphone, it's impossible not to buy in. While Schottenheimer will ultimately be judged by what happens on the field, the early indicators from training camp will give Dallas Cowboys fans more reason to believe in the first-year head coach.
The first practice of camp on Tuesday showed a glimpse of Schottenheimer's vision for the offense. Clips captured by reporters on the scene in Oxnard showed a ton of motion and pre-snap movement at the line of scrimmage. Schottenheimer was asked about that on Wednesday.
"We're gonna be multiple. We're gonna be under center. We're gonna be in shotgun. We're gonna run the pistol. We're gonna run some wildcat. We're gonna be very difficult to defend," Schottenheimer said, via Cowboys team reporter Patrik Walker.
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"We're gonna be multiple." That is enough to make Cowboys fans weep.
Schottenheimer said in his introductory press conference back in January that he wanted the offense to be multiple. It's one thing to say that. It is another to put it into action. Well, it took all of one training camp practice for Schotty to come through on his word.
One particular play from Tuesday's practice caught everyone's attention when CeeDee Lamb was motioned to the same side as George Pickens before the snap. (h/t to Patrik Walker again). Lamb was moving when the ball was snapped, so he already had some acceleration underneath him when he started his route. Pickens creeped open underneath on a curl route.
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That was just a glimpse into what Schottenheimer is cooking up. Pickens won't always run a curl route when Lamb is put in motion. It could set up for a host of other routes out of that set. Remember, it was the first practice of camp. Odds are Schottenheimer has more exotic ideas in the hopper.
Schottenheimer installing more motion is one thing, but he also cited potential wildcat and pistol formations. In addition, he is a big proponent of play-action. Dak Prescott has thrived in play-action sets throughout his career.
The Cowboys' offense desperately needed an injection of modern concepts. The use of motion was extremely spotty during the Mike McCarthy era. Some of the most prolific offenses in the NFL - including the Chiefs, Rams, 49ers, Lions and Packers - use a ton of motion.
It's long overdue and Schotty hasn't wasted any time.