The Cowboys could look to include Hunter Luepke in more goal line work in 2024.
How many of you have the date July 24 circled on your calendar or perhaps have a countdown ticker going on your phone? If you’re unfamiliar with the significance of said date, shame on you. We all know that's when the Dallas Cowboys are scheduled to arrive in Oxnard, California for training camp and fortunately it's only a little over a week away.
As the countdown ticker continues to decrease in time, the anticipation of learning more about this year's team continues to increase. There is no shortage of storylines or position battles to focus our attention on this year, but maybe not one as intriguing as the Cowboys decision to go with a running back-by-committee this season.
Good or bad, a lot of eyes will be on Ezekiel Elliott and how he looks after his year-long absence with the New England Patriots. As things stand right now, Zeke is probably expected to share the majority of the work load in the RB-by-committee approach this season with Rico Dowdle.
We all hope Zeke is able to turn back the hands of time, but the odds are very much against that happening. That leaves us grasping at straws as to how Mike McCarthy and Company plan on finding production from the stable of RBs they currently have on the roster.
Unfortunately, there's just not much that moves the needle to be encouraged about the Cowboys rushing attack as things stand right now. Zeke has seen his production decrease just about every year, Rico Dowdle's injury history is a significant red flag, and Deuce Vaughn's small stature works against him being a significant contributor this year.
Surprisingly enough, the Cowboys current RB-by-committee situation may not be all that new for McCarthy. During his time in Green Bay he had to get creative on several occasions to find production in the running game and sometimes leaned on his fullbacks when it was necessary. Maybe he has that in the back of his mind heading into 2004.
Yes, we are talking about Hunter Luepke, the second-year player out of North Dakota State who joined the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent last year. His name isn't coming up as one taking part in the Cowboys RB-by-committee this year, but why not? He's got the skill set and athleticism to be just as productive as any other RB on the roster. Right!?
Okay, we may be overestimating Luepke's potential as a running back or receiver out of the backfield, however, that doesn't necessarily mean he shouldn't be considered part of the RB-by-committee. In fact, in times of need in the past McCarthy has turned to the fullback position to increase the production in the running game.
John Kuhn of course comes to mind as a fullback who was highly productive under McCarthy's tenure during his time with the Green Bay Packers. In his nine years in Green Bay, Kuhn rushed for 601 yards and 15 touchdowns and also amassed 557 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. That's pretty impressive and provides hope for Luepke.
While Luepke turning into John Kuhn would be the ultimate dream for the Cowboys, it's probably more realistic to compare him to Aaron Ripkowski. McCarthy turned to him in 2016 when Eddie Lacey and James Starks succumbed to injuries. Going from fullback to starting RB wasn't an ideal situation, but he did help keep the team afloat when needed.
Now, no one really expects Luepke to be the answer to the Cowboys rushing attack or even see a significant increase in his offensive touches this season. Having said that though, it wouldn't be at all surprising to see his role expand within McCarthy's system this year and quite possibly be a fallback option if/when it ever comes to that.
Regardless of how the RB-by-committee ends up playing out for the Cowboys this year, a lot of eyes are going to be on the position when they finally take the field in training camp and preseason. It might be a good idea to keep track of No. 40 when that happens, because he might just end up becoming more valuable than anyone could've predicted.
