The Dallas Cowboys went from the NFL equivalent of having nothing at running back to too many options. Though no one knows whether those options are going to be quality contributors or not.
Last season, Rico Dowdle experienced a breakout season and eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards. Honestly, Dallas really didn’t have any better options. To that point, the team brought back an aging Ezekiel Elliott, who finished second on the team in the same category despite not making it through the entire campaign.
As a unit, the Cowboys finished bottom six in rushing yardage last season. To make matters worse, Dowdle left in free agency to join the Carolina Panthers.
Dallas responded by signing Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders in free agency, then drafted Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah in this year’s fifth and seventh rounds, respectively.
Williams once looked a future star before a significant knee injury ended his sophomore campaign. He hasn’t quite looked like the same explosive ball-carrier ever since. Sanders is now 28 and more of a change-of-pace option at this stage of his career. He can be effective as an outlet target.
Blue is the one option among this group with the upside to warrant a later flier. The rookie has impressive throughout training camp. He’s undersized but explosive. Although, he’s currently injured and dealing with a bone bruise in his heel, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram‘s Nick Harris.
Fellow first-year ball-carrier Phil Mafah shouldn’t be overlooked, either, because he provides a completely different skill set as a powerful, downhill runner.
The issues here is too many cooks in the kitchen with the potential to cancel out one another from a fantasy football perspective. The Cowboys should ride the hot hand each week, while will create far too much much uncertainty when considering lineup projections.
