The Dallas Cowboys find themselves in a tough spot with the running back position. With time ticking on Dak Prescott’s playing window, the time to win is right now, so the front office must decide whether to fork out the cash for a proven veteran or play it cheap and take a chance on someone else. A wrong step and the offense could take a step back, a situation the team found themselves in the year before last when they finished with the third-worst rushing totals in the league.
Javonte Williams helped
fix that last year. It also didn’t hurt that the team upgraded its offensive line coaching staff by hiring Klayton Adams and Conor Riley, but having the right guy in the backfield helped immensely. Williams was the engine of the Cowboys’ rushing attack last year, outperforming his one-year, $3 million prove-it deal. He exceeded everyone’s expectations by racking up over 1,200 rushing yards and scoring 13 total touchdowns. He took defenders for a ride so often that many of them left him an Uber review. This fifth-year veteran earned a five-star rating in the eyes of fans and put to rest any doubts that the knee injury suffered early in his career would have a lingering effect.
Williams was the workhorse out of the backfield, doing a little bit of everything. He was good at pass protection and could jump out and help as a receiver. Whatever was needed, he obliged, whether it was breaking off long runs or finishing off drives deep into their opponents’ territory. Williams’ yards after contact and goal-line success rate were near the tops of the league this past season.
Rookie running back Jaydon Blue was expected to join Williams and be a part of the team’s rushing attack last season, but things did not go according to plan. Blue was a massive disappointment, rushing for a meager 129 yards on 38 attempts, and most of that came in the regular-season finale when Williams was nursing an injury. Blue had fewer touches than Jerry Jones’ flip phone during free agency. Blue was a healthy scratch most of the year, and when he did suit up, the coaches relegated him to the bench because he struggled to give attention to the details, proving that being fast doesn’t matter if you are running around in disarray.
Last year showed that the Cowboys’ offense requires an effective back who poses a threat and keeps opposing defenses honest. Williams was rock solid, but now he’s hitting the open market, where his price tag is projected to be north of $7 million, more than doubling his previous discounted rate. If the Cowboys let him walk, they’ll need to have a plan B, but after last year’s underwhelming showing, the B doesn’t stand for Blue. Instead, they may need to peruse the running back aisle for free agents and see what other type of deals they can find.
The team won’t be able to use the draft to go after one of the better running backs because their premium draft resources will be dedicated to fixing the defense, and they currently don’t even have a pick on Day 2. Sure, they could throw a late-round dart, but the performance of Blue and Deuce Vaughn before him makes that more of a backup plan than a primary path to finding a new back. That forces the Cowboys to find the answer at running back in free agency.
There are a handful of free agent backs who should command a decent contract this spring, with Williams being one of them (market value projections are courtesy of spotrac).
The Cowboys have a dilemma. Either they prioritize guaranteed veteran production by ponying up some cash, or they risk leaving a massive hole on their roster. The cement hasn’t set on their boy Blue just yet, but counting on a budget-friendly second-season bounce-back as the team’s top running back option is not the way to go. Anything good they get from him going forward should be viewed as a bonus and not an expected outcome. And with the draft not lining up well for them, the Cowboys have no choice but to find their running back answer in free agency, with Williams a frontrunner to land the permanent gig.
