The first day of “legal tampering” came and went Monday, and the Cowboys front office watched it all from the sidelines. While the day saw Tony Pollard, Dorance Armstrong, and Tyler Biadasz pack up for new destinations, Jerry and Stephen Jones didn’t do any buying of their own, despite some obvious holes that need to be filled for the 2024 season.
It was frustrating to watch for fans, as marquee names at one key position- running back- came off the market, one at a time, all day long. Saquon Barkley, D’Andre Swift, Josh Jacobs, Gus Edwards, Devin Singletary, Austin Ekeler, Aaron Jones, and the aforementioned Pollard all landed new offers within the first 24 hours of action.
As of this writing, the only Cowboys under contract who logged any rushing attempts in 2023 and are actually listed on the roster as running backs are Deuce Vaughn and Hunter Luepke.
Now word comes from one team insider on Tuesday that reveals the mindset of the team’s management amid the whirlwind of negotiations happening around the league, and it’s sure to not sit well with Cowboys Nation.
Longtime team insider Jane Slater of NFL Network reports that Dallas brass “kicked around the idea” of signing Colts running back Zack Moss. The 2020 third-round draft pick amassed 794 yards and five touchdowns last season on fewer than 200 carries, and, having just turned 26 in December, appears to still be coming into his prime.
Potentially a legitimate value pickup for a team in dire need of backfield help.
The Cincinnati Bengals thought so, too, agreeing to sign Moss to a two-year deal worth $8 million.
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That number was apparently just too rich for the Cowboys. And though it’s not known if the Joneses balked at the idea of paying $8 million to Zack Moss or balked at the idea of paying $8 million to a running back, the development suggests that the Cowboys are taking a purely passive approach and may be limiting themselves to bargain-bin roster adds only.
What now at running back with Tony Pollard gone? “We are looking at any player that can improve us in range that we can afford. We have talked to any guy who has called and listened to what their wishes or ranges are” per one source
— Jane Slater (@SlaterNFL) March 12, 2024
Slater all but confirmed as much, explaining that a team source told her, “We are looking at any player that can improve us in range that we can afford. We have talked to any guy who has called and listened to what their wishes or ranges are.”
Any guy who has called.
In range that we can afford.
There’s a lot there for Cowboys fans to be upset about, and it doesn’t provide much optimism for any Tuesday announcement that will suddenly turn the Dallas backfield into a feared- or even mediocre- unit.
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