It’s never good form to kick someone while they’re down. That hasn’t seemed to stop all comers from piling on the Dallas Cowboys and their latest group of running backs.
The latest to do it was Kyle Crabbs of A to Z Sports, who named the Dallas backfield as the “NFL’s Worst Position Group” ahead of the 2025 season.
“Dallas is welcoming a whole lot of new at running back this year, with four new faces in the room,” Crabbs wrote. “Are they better than what they were last year with Rico Dowdle serving as the primary runner? I’m not sure. I think there are a number of other strong candidates for the running back position but for full transparency, I wanted to save some of those teams for another position. (Javonte) Williams and (Miles) Sanders are well-seasoned players but among the league’s most low-efficiency runners in recent years.”
On offense, the Cowboys are facing a serious predicament with their backfield, as it appears to be their only out and out weakness. At every other level, Dallas has players who have earned NFL All-Pro or Pro Bowl honors in recent years — quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, tight end Jake Ferguson and left guard Tyler Smith.
It’s only at running back where things are truly desperate.
Cowboys Did Little to Improve in Offseason
The truly curious thing is the Cowboys, despite knowing it would be a weakness, did little to improve their running backs in the offseason — instead it appears they’ve opted for a sort of “death by a thousand cuts” approach.
The Cowboys lost Dowdle to the Carolina Panthers on a 1-year, $2.8 million contract after he rushed for 1,079 yards and averaged 4.6 yards per carry in 2024. Dowdle also had 39 receptions for 249 yards and 3 touchdowns.
That’s where the frustration and confusion starts to set in.
The Cowboys replaced Dowdle with free agent Javonte Williams on a 1-year, $3 million contract after he led the Denver Broncos with 513 rushing yards and averaged a mind-numbing 3.7 yards per carry last season.
Cowboys Paid More Money for Less Production
So more money for less production doesn’t really make sense, and there’s a school of thought that Williams might not have much left in the tank.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox put Williams high on his list of recent free agent additions who’s jobs “aren’t safe” in 2025.
“For Williams to hang onto any semblance of a true RB1 role, he may have to showcase the same consistency and explosiveness he showed as a rookie in 2021.” Knox wrote on July 24. “He rushed for 903 yards and 4.4 yards per carry that season and had a solid start (4.3 yards per carry) in 2022 before suffering a torn ACL after four games. Unfortunately, Williams has looked like a completely different running back since the injury, averaging 3.6 and 3.7 yards per carry in 2023 and 2024, respectively. If he isn’t closer to his pre-injury form in training camp, he may end up relegated to more of a complementary role.”
The best hope for the Cowboys backfield might be in a pair of rookies; fifth round pick (No. 149 overall) Jaydon Blue and seventh round pick (No. 239 ovrall) Phil Mafah.
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