The Cowboys had Dalvin Cook in for a workout this week, and though he left without a contract, the message left by his appearance was clear: The team’s professed confidence in its running back “committee” is a lot shallower than they’d like us to believe.
After the dust settled on Tuesday’s 53-man roster cuts, the Cowboys are left with a trio of running backs that has Ezekiel Elliott at the top, with Rico Dowdle and Deuce Vaughn behind him. Hunter Luepke remains as the fullback.
That’s just not enough. At the analysis site Pro Football Focus, the Cowboys are ranked as having the worst running back crew in the NFL, and it probably isn’t even close. Elliott had a grade of 67.6 last season, spent with the Patriots before coming back to the Cowboys. That ranked 40th out of 59 running backs. Dowdle was at 66.6, which was 43rd.
Vaughn did not appear in enough plays to rank among the top backs, but his overall grade was a paltry 46.4 in 61 offensive snaps.
If the Cowboys need more, the folks at Bleacher Report have an idea: Trade for Texans runner Dameon Pierce.
Cowboys Still Need More at RB
In an article titled, “1 Trade Each NFL Team Should Propose Before The 2024 Season,” writer Alex Kay pitches the Cowboys on a trade for Houston’s Pierce, swapping out only a sixth-round pick.
Pierce is a good hidden value. And if he could be had so cheap, the Cowboys could land a gem. He had just 416 yards on 145 carries in his second season, but was terrific as a rookie.
“Whether this was a sophomore slump he can bounce back from or more indicative of his future remains to be seen, but the Cowboys should be willing to roll the dice on a resurgence.
“At worst, Pierce should provide serviceable depth behind Elliott and Dowdle. At best, he could get his career back on track and emerge as Dallas’ starter for the next several years. It’s a worthwhile gamble for a Day 3 draft pick and could be a fantastic return on investment.”
Dameon Pierce Was Disappointing in 2023
Indeed, the trade return for Pierce figures to be low, given the Texans’ need to clear up some room on the depth chart. Pierce had lost out on carries to Devin Singletary last year, and now will be behind Joe Mixon.
Coming off a rookie season in which he went for more than 1,100 yards, the Texans appeared prepared to make Pierce a key part of the offense in 2023. New offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik appreciated Pierce’s “angry” style of running, and Pierce promised more of the same.
“I don’t have good intentions, especially this year,” Pierce said during the preseason. “Slowik emphasizes that, so now I have to find ways to be even angrier.”
But as the year went on, it was Singletary who was the featured back. Pierce lost the starting job after he was injured in Week 7.
It was a surprise turn. Pierce is only 24 years old and was a fourth-round pick out of Florida in 2022. He made a name for himself as a rookie, when he rushed for a respectable 939 yards in 13 games, averaging 4.3 yards per carry. He suffered an ankle injury that held him out of the final four games of the season, or he would have easily topped 1,000 yards rushing.
Pierce totaled four rushing touchdowns and added 165 yards receiving out of the backfield, with another touchdown.
That makes Pierce, now coming off a season in which he averaged only 2.9 yards per carry and played 32% of the team’s snaps, a prime trade candidate.
The Cowboys are a team in need—Pierce has had success, and makes sense as a fit here.
