After sitting out the top of the running back market, and whiffing at the position during the NFL Draft, the Dallas Cowboys running back room lacks a true bellcow.
Likewise, Pro Football Focus NFL analyst John Kosko lacks confidence in the Cowboys’ running backs, ranking Dallas’ backfield as the weakest in the league.
“The Cowboys were linked to multiple backs in the draft,” Kosko writes for PFF. “But came away with none. They instead re-signed Ezekiel Elliott a year after cutting him. They’ll likely utilize him in a committee approach with Rico Dowdle and Royce Freeman, which doesn’t inspire much confidence in the room.”
Dallas is essentially taking a $2 million flier on Elliott picking up in 2024, at age 28, where he left off from five starts with the New England Patriots in 2023, rushing for 645 yards and three touchdowns as a focal point of the ground game.
However, even if Royce Freeman carves out a role as a change-of-pace complementary back alongside Elliott, it’s difficult to envision not selecting a running back during the draft is going to be a decision that works out favorably for the Cowboys.
After all, Dowdle and Deuce Vaughn have combined for just 119 rushing attempts and two career touchdowns.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy expects to lean heavily into a running back-by-committee approach in hopes of overseeing a third consecutive top-five offense in 2024.
“I have more experience with that,” McCarthy told reporters of deploying a committee. “I think it’s really the times that we’re in. … Seventeen games is a lot of football — that’s a big role for those guys. Don’t get me wrong, they’d all like to carry it like the old days and have those touches, but you want those guys fresh at the most important time of the year. So, that’s all part of planning and how you look at projections of play time.”
Deploying multiple backs could help keep Elliott fresh, after logging 2,065 career rushing attempts, but how productive the Cowboys’ running game proves to be remains to be seen, especially given the limited resources Dallas has invested in the position this offseason.
Mike McCarthy Confident in Ezekiel Elliott
Since his arrival, the Cowboys have exuded confidence in Elliott’s ability to make a legitimate impact this season.
Elliott will lead Dallas’ backfield experiment, and it sounds like there’s a feeling inside the building that he’s ready to pick up where he left off.
“It’s as natural of a transition that you’ll ever see,” McCarthy told reporters on May 13. “He walked in and he had that unbelievable smile. It’s like he never left. Huge personality in the locker room. … But some things have changed for him as well — like protection systems — so he has some new learning, but it’s great to have him back.”
Whether the Cowboys add a veteran back to round out the committee — or supplant Elliott at the top of the depth chart remains to be seen, but, it sounds like Cowboys COO Stephen Jones is optimistic about what the position group can offer in 2024.
“Certainly, the way we’re looking right now,” Jones said of the RB-by-committee approach, via the team’s official website. “A lot of teams do that and do it successfully. A lot of teams have moved toward that because of the wear and tear that comes with this league. We’re not done yet, [though].”
Can Deuce Vaughn Breakout for Cowboys?
Given that Elliott and Freeman likely have the best chance to emerge as the back at the top of the Cowboys’ committee, Vaughn’s role remains to be seen.
The Cowboys’ sixth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Vaughn rushed for only 40 yards while averaging 1.7 yards per carry as a rookie.
Conventional wisdom might suggest one of the reasons the Cowboys didn’t aggressively pursue upgrading depth at running back is optimism that Vaughn has more to offer than he showed in his rookie season.
Pro Football Focus points out that Vaughn averaged just 1.52 yards before contact per carry, but that one of his 23 rushing attempts went for more than 23 yards last season.
“He sees the field clearly,” NFL Media’s Lance Zierlein wrote of Vaughn prior to the 2023 draft. “Is fearless between the tackles, possesses quality contact balance, and finds his way into the end zone as a runner and receiver. Vaughn has an uphill climb ahead of him, but his history of consistent, high-end production makes the climb to success seem achievable.”
If Vaughn shifts into a new gear in 2024, the Cowboys might be vindicated for how they approached building out the position this offseason.
