The Dallas Cowboys’ offense was electric last season, with the likes of CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Dak Prescott all delivering. However, even with these names, an orchestrator is needed to help them out. That is exactly what offensive coordinator Klayton Adams proved to be for the Cowboys last season. After having coached one of the best offenses in the NFL last season, he was invited to the 2026 NFL Accelerator program, which is designed to introduce promising candidates to become future head coaches and general managers to NFL team owners.

“That was a really good experience,” said Adams in an interview on the NFL Network. “It was really as much as anything. An introduction to the thought process of how are you going to instill leadership? How do you create culture?… We actually had several of the experts coming and talking to us about it… So it was great.”

The NFL accelerator program took place from May 18 to May 20. Klayton Adams, who is entering his second season as Dallas’ offensive coordinator, stood as one of 16 coaching candidates selected for the program. Apart from him, the Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde was also a part of the group. But for Adams, the intention behind participating in the program seemed clear.

“I try to think of it as all right now, I need to really double down and dig in harder on what I’m doing because I always want to keep both eyes on my job because I don’t think you get the next opportunity until you’ve mastered the opportunity that you’re in. And I just look at all the stuff that we’ve done over the last year in Dallas. And you see a lot of holes and things that we want to get better at. So that’s been my primary focus,” Adams added.

Before Klayton Adams arrived, the 2024 Dallas Cowboys ground game lacked innovation and ranked near the bottom of the league under head coach Mike McCarthy and his coaching team. But after his addition, Adams took direct control of restructuring the blocking schemes and rejuvenating the team’s rushing identity.

Under his guidance, the Cowboys’ ground game surged into top-10 metrics across the league, ranking ninth overall in rushing attacks, averaging 125.6 yards per game, and also ranked third overall in yards per play with 5.9.

“One of the biggest things is we want to take care of the football better than we did a year ago,” said Adams. “We want to protect the quarterback better than we did a year ago. We want to be better in the red zone than we were a year ago.  And so a lot of those things were not just things that we needed to answer going into the offseason. It’s like, ‘How do you dig into this and what? What is the root of some of these issues?’ And then, ‘how do we solve those problems?’ And I feel really good about the process that we’ve gone through in the offseason with our staff of really attacking those problems.”

Under Adams’ design, RB Javonte Williams and QB Dak Prescott thrived. Williams became more decisive behind the line of scrimmage, posting career highs of 1,201 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Cowboys OC transformed Prescott’s aerial attack by coupling a potent outside-zone run game with heavy play-action. However, Adams still believes there are areas to improve before the 2026 season.

To begin with, the Cowboys had one of the top offenses in the 2025 season, averaging 391.9 offensive yards per game. However, the Rams led the league with an average of 394.6 yards per game on offense. Adams is clearly aiming for the top spot in the 2026 season. Additionally, the Cowboys’ offensive line allowed 31 sacks throughout the season. Although this number seems reasonable, Adams wants overall improvement in this department as well.

As things stand, Adams’ stock is incredibly high. Earlier this offseason, the Philadelphia Eagles even attempted to interview him for their vacant coordinator role, but the Cowboys blocked the request. This eventually highlighted Adams’ importance to the Dallas-based team’s future.

Cowboys OC reveals what’s in store for QB Dak Prescott and WR George Pickens

Considering the number of sacks Dak Prescott took last season, the offensive coordinator has come up with major plans for their star quarterback. He seemingly wants to build the support around Prescott, who recorded 4,552 passing yards and 30 touchdowns, more efficiently.

“I think that the ultimate goal for him is that he’s got to play really high-level football every single week,” Adams said. “He’s done that a lot throughout his career. We got a makeup, you know, for the other areas that maybe have failed him in the past. And so I don’t think it’s about Dak trying to be Superman. I think it’s about Dak being the best version of himself and us finding ways to make the rest of the offense and the rest of the team better.”

While it may seem like Adams is only focused on improving QB Dak Prescott’s game, that is not the case. The Dallas Cowboys‘ offensive coordinator also wants to be working around all the standout players on their team, including WR George Pickens.

“I love the guy,” said Adams in the aforementioned interview. “I like being around him in the building every day. And so I’m looking forward to seeing him whenever he comes around. And he’s obviously an outstanding football player, so he’s a big part of our plans.”

The Pickens-Lamb duo was instrumental to the team’s success last season. Adams is confident that with the duo playing their second season, things are expected to only get better for the offense.

“I think the familiarity with what we’re doing can improve, and the detail of what we’re doing can always improve. But the biggest thing that I’ve learned from having two elite playmakers on the outside is the effect that you can draw to all the other parts of your offense. I think we can think we’re just scratching the surface there,” Adams added during the interview.

Traded from Pittsburgh in May 2025, Pickens comfortably stepped up when CeeDee Lamb was hampered by an ankle injury. He posted career-highs, finishing third in the NFL with 1,429 receiving yards and tying for eighth with 9 touchdowns. However, instead of keeping Pickens long-term, the Cowboys placed him under the franchise tag.

The decision guaranteed Pickens a fully-funded $27.3 million for the 2026 season, but it also raised concerns about a lack of trust towards him. Nevertheless, with OC Adams at the helm, Pickens could have another massive season and change some minds in Dallas.

As the upcoming season approaches, the Cowboys are expected to maintain the same core offense, featuring QB Dak Prescott, RB Javonte Williams, wide receivers CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, and TE Jake Ferguson. It will be interesting to see how Adams’ plans for the team unfold.