Linehan's Philosophy Won't Change in Murray's Absence

DeMarco Murray and his Offensive Player of the Year Award are gone to Philadelphia, but the Dallas Cowboys don’t plan on changing the ultra-physical, run-first approach that led them to their first NFC East title (and their first playoff win) since 2009 last year.

Reemphasizing what head coach Jason Garrett said last week, Cowboys offensive coordinator Scott Linehan declared recently that the team’s philosophy will not change in the absence of Murray.

“Bottom line is there’s certain things we feel very adamant about is going to be important and it’s no different really, same message that we had when we kind of started with ground zero last year,” Linehan said, per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “I think if we do that and we go back to the basics and do those things well again, it will be benefit us as we move forward.”

No one in Dallas will deny that Murray is a big loss, but they believe they have the pieces in place--and the offensive line, certainly--to continue to run the ball effectively.

“A lot of it was we were run heavy,” Linehan said. “That was our mentality, but that mentality and being able to do it even when people kind of knew you were going to do it paid dividends and we’ve got to continue that.”