The Dallas Cowboys' annual pre-training camp press conference was, as expected, a disaster. It did not accomplish anything, which can be said for almost every Cowboys presser, but Brian Schottenheimer was able to field the occasional question and he did his best to navigate the chaos.
Schottenheimer gave veteran running backs Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders a special shoutout when he was asked if a frontrunner has emerged in Dallas' clunky backfield.
"The two veteran guys are very different. That's one of the matchups in one of the position rooms that we're very excited to watch and not only in practice, but also in preseason games," Schottenheimer said, via Cowboys staff writer Patrik Walker.
It seems Williams and Sanders sit atop the depth chart, but Schottenheimer also name-dropped Jaydon Blue, second-year fulback Hunter Luepke and even Deuce Vaughn. Rookie draftee Phil Mafah did not get a mention from the first-year head coach.
Phil Mafah could be odd man out in the Cowboys' RB room
It should be noted that the presser was very Jones-centric. That is by design, of course. Nobody loves attempting to gaslight the media more than the Joneses. Schottenheimer only had a finite amount of time to answer each question. Jerry Jones even interrupted him on one occasion.
Having said that, it speaks volumes that Mafah did not get a mention. It officially makes him one of the biggest sleepers to watch in Oxnard.
A seventh-round pick in April, Mafah is more of a bruiser than a slasher. He did not run a 40-yard dash before the draft, but he's patient in allowing blocks to develop and has no problem plowing through high tackle attempts. He has the chops to fill a downhill role in a backfield committee.
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The Cowboys made it a point to draft high-character players with leadership qualities. Mafah checks those boxes in spades as Clemson coaches raved about his personality.
While Dallas doesn't have a true downhill bulldozer on the roster, they are not going to keep Mafah just because he's difficult to bring down. Brian Schottenheimer likes RBs who can create plays as a receiver. That is not Mafah's game.
The Cowboys don't often move on from rookie draftees before their first season. And Schottenheimer obviously did not go into the presser determined to shade Mafah the way Jerry Jones made it a point to air out Trevon Diggs.
However, it is hard not to be left with the conclusion that Mafah is currently bringing up the rear in the RB pecking order.
