Tag: Rico Dowdle

Cowboys dead last in NFC spending at this position, just $3 million before free agency, draft

A review of what the Cowboys have at RB, what they’ll do once the league year starts with free agency and the draft.

The Cowboys have completed the mission. After heavily investing in the running back position in both draft and financial capital, things have bottomed out. In 2016, Dallas invested the No. 4 overall pick on the position, drafting Ezekiel Elliott. Three years later they invested financially making him the highest paid player in the history of the position.

Four years after that, while still carrying $just under $6 million in dead money after releasing Elliott, they slapped a $10 million franchise tag on Tony Pollard. Still, even in 2024, they still had $6.4 million in space being used by Elliott’s old contract. So it is just now that they’ve landed on the less invested side of things in that regard.

And landed their with authority, it might be added. The Cowboys churned out another 1,000 yard rusher, but he is a free agent, leaving just three players with under 100 total carries amongst them remaining on the roster.

So what comes next?

Rostered: $3.09 million in cap space

The Cowboys have three players under contract for 2025, Deuce Vaughn, Malik Davis and Hunter Luepke, who count for only $3.09 million in cap space. That’s the lowest total among all NFC teams and 30th overall.

None of the three backs have proven much, with only Luepke feeling like he has a great chance to stick.

Pending Free Agents

Rico Dowdle, the team’s starter the majority of the season and bell cow the last half of it, hits free agency for the first time. Undrafted in 2020, an injury stole his 2021 season and it took him until this year to become a consistent contributor. He’s seen as the fourth or fifth-best back available in free agency after averaging 4.6 yards a carry on his way to 1.079 rushing yards with another 249 through the air.

Dowdle’s average is a true representation of what to expect on any given carry, as his longest run was just 27 yards and he rarely broke off big gains.

The Cowboys are likely looking for someone with more juice to lead the way in their new play-action based system.

Prediction: Dowdle signs elsewhere.

External Free Agents

The Cowboys are likely going to want to meet all types of runners on their offseason roster before making their way to the draft. Luepke is the short-yardage guy, and he’s expected to make the 2025 roster regardless. Davis has the all-around label and Vaughn… well Vaughn has a touching story.

The Cowboys will likely be looking for a speed merchant style of back, but more than likely at a discount.

Prediction: Jordan Mason could see free agency this year. He’s a restricted free agent but was undrafted and it would be a big ask for the 49ers to offer him a second-round tender while also paying Christian McCaffrey big money. If he comes free, he’s the guy that would make a ton of sense to spend the NFL version of the mid-level exception on. A two year, $7 million deal with two void yearsbmay get him in the fold.

2025 NFL Draft

The Cowboys are expected to be players in the market for a top running back in a deep class. Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty may slide down to No. 12 and make the decision very hard on Will McClay and company.

If not, Omarion Hampton (UNC) and Treyveon Henderson (OSU) could be second and third-round targets who offer breakaway speed at any given moment.

Prediction: The Cowboys go elsewhere with their top pick, Hampton is snatched before they hit the clock in Round 2 and Henderson is the pick in Round 3.

Proving them wrong: Rico Dowdle’s story of grit, greatness as Cowboys RB1

In order to earn his role as the Cowboys lead back, Rico Dowdle literally had to believe in himself before anyone else did. | From @BtchesLuvSports

A series on the Dallas Cowboys’ 2024 season wouldn’t be complete without Rico Dowdle, a name that’s become synonymous with grit, persistence, and proving doutbers wrong. His journey isn’t just inspiring; it’s relatable to anyone who’s ever had to claw their way up through the ranks while shaking off the weight of low expectations.

Rewind to the 2024 NFL Draft. Cowboys fans and analysts alike were collectively side-eyeing the team for not drafting a running back. The headlines were ruthless. One late-April gem declared, “Cowboys in Crisis: Worst Running Back Problem Since Emmitt Smith Cut.” Ouch. For Dowdle, waking up to stories like that probably felt like watching someone critique your cooking without tasting a bite.

Fast forward to Week 15, and the narrative had shifted in a major way. Dowdle’s impact on the Cowboys offense was so undeniable, it inspired headlines like How Rico Dowdle has transformed into an RB1 force for Cowboys.

But to be clear, Dowdle didn’t stroll into the starting lineup on a red carpet. He had to prove himself several times and in multiple ways in order to become Dallas’ lead back.

Back in training camp, analysts were already calling him the team’s best running back. The Cowboys, however, opted for a “running back by committee” approach to start the season.

Spoiler alert: it wasn’t giving what it was supposed to give.

The offense sputtered, and whatever they were calling a run scheme got dragged for being as confusing as it was ineffective.

Meanwhile, Dowdle quietly made his case. With limited chances in Weeks 2 through 4, he averaged over four yards per carry, proving he was ready for more. When his big moment finally came, a 20+ carry game on the road against the Steelers, he didn’t just show up. He showed out. By Week 11, the Cowboys officially handed him the keys to the backfield.

For an 2020 undrafted free agent, being named the lead back is already an impressive feat. But Rico Dowdle wasn’t about to stop there.

By the end of the season, he had rushed for over 1,000 yards—the first UDFA in Cowboys history to do so—while maintaining a career-high 4.6 yards per carry. It wasn’t just a breakout season; it was a full-on statement.

Late in the season, Mike McCarthy told the press that the next step for Dowdle is to become an every-down back. Should the cards fall in such a way that he’s expected to meet that challenge next season, one thing’s for sure, Rico Dowdle will be ready to make his mark. Again.

Decisions on these in-house contributors will be most significant part of Cowboys offseason

The most significant in-house free agents Dallas has to decide what to do with this offseason. | From @cdpiglet

The Dallas Cowboys were unhappy with how the 2023 season ended but did little to help change things in 2024. To fix it in 2025, They will need to hit on their draft picks and bring in outside contributors in free agency, but it all begins with how they handle their own players on expiring contracts.

Dallas has 20 unrestricted free agents, and they won’t be able to fill all those losses with undrafted free agents and the 2025 draft class. Who returns and who they move on from will depend on a multitude of factors. A trio of free agents played significant snaps and had productive seasons.

Defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa has been an excellent player for the price of a third-round pick, but in a weak defensive tackle market, his price could skyrocket. Odighizuwa is slightly less productive than Nnamdi Madubuike of the Baltimore Ravens, but his projected market is in that same range. At $20 to $25 million, Odighizuwa won’t be worth the cost for Dallas, and the team will need to use an early draft selection for his replacement.

Cornerback Jourdan Lewis might have priced himself out of Dallas with his play in 2024, but the injury to Treven Diggs might be enough to force the Cowboys’ hand. A multiyear contract will be necessary, and a cap hit of under three million isn’t enough this time. Lewis has shown an ability to perform in multiple defensive schemes, and Jerry Jones will find a way to keep him on the roster, if necessary, as Diggs insurance.

Rico Dowdle was given the role of top running back in Week 12 against the Washington Commanders. In the next six contests, he accumulated 605 yards on 120 attempts, an average of over five yards per carry. Being a 1,000-yard rusher without a ton of tread on his tires could give Dowdle a market, but he isn’t an explosive runner, and he has a lengthy injury history, so his market is unlikely to explode.

Dallas will probably bring him back on a deal similar to what Zack Moss signed last offseason for the Cincinnati Bengals, four to five million a season.

Chauncey Golston has had a breakout season, and while he doesn’t have the gaudy statistics, his play was invaluable for the injury-riddled Cowboys. His ability to stop the run as an edge defender helped the team improve defensively as the season progressed.

Golston is in the top 12 among defensive ends in run defense snaps, solo tackles, assisted tackles, and batted passes. He is in the top 20 in total snaps and run stops. His lack of pass rush will keep him from a huge payday, so if the defensive end market is down some, then it is possible the Cowboys can get him to return. A trade-off of losing Odighizuwa but keeping Lewis and Golston could be the plan for this front office.

You can find Mike Crum on Twitter @cdpiglet or Bluesky @mike-crum-cdpiglet.bsky.social

Cowboys RB room forecasts to look significantly different in 2025

The Cowboys may embark on a complete rebuild at the RB position in 2025. From @ReidDHanson

Roster churn is nothing new in the NFL. Even before free agency came into existence back in 1993, rosters would change significantly every offseason. Changes were inevitable then just as they are today.

This unavoidable shakeup is especially true for the Dallas Cowboys’ running back room in 2025.

The Cowboys prefer phases for personnel turnover rather than sudden, drastic changes. Too many shakeups at one position group can cause quite the ruckus if done in a single offseason. Unfortunately, this offseason there may be no way of avoiding it at the RB position.

With Ezekiel Elliott already released, and Rico Dowdle set to hit free agency this March, the Cowboys could be looking at wholesale changes at the top of their RB depth chart.

Despite being the Cowboys’ unofficial breakout player of the year, Dowdle is a tough appraisal heading into free agency. For as impressive as Dowdle has been in 2024, he comes with a concerning injury history that stretches all the way back to his college days. It’s those injuries at South Carolina that led him to go undrafted in the first place and those injuries that cause hesitation over a large multiyear extension today.

It’s very possible the Cowboys lose Dowdle to a higher bidder in free agency and are therefore forced to rebuild the RB room completely in 2025. Even players further down the RB depth chart are cause for concern. Deuce Vaughn has struggled to prove he has the stature required to survive in a rotation. He doesn’t offer much in special teams and consequently could be done in Dallas as well. Hunter Luepke is a pretty safe bet to make the roster again in 2025, but his value lies in his ability to play fullback, tight end and H-back. With just 15 career rushing attempts in 32 games, how much of a running back is he really?

To make matters worse, practice squad RBs such as Dalvin Cook and Malik Davis have shown nothing to make anyone think they factor into Dallas’ 2025 plans at all. The way things look today, it could be a total rebuild at the RB position.

Normally this degree of churn would be cause for concern. Without veteran players carrying over from the previous year, there’s no one in the position room to help new additions digest the new offense they’ve walked into. But with the Cowboys coaching staff possibly churning themselves, that’s not really an issue because everyone could be learning a new offense regardless.

Normally this would be a concern heading into free agency as well. A team without a proven backstop on the depth chart could approach free agency desperately. The 2025 free agent class doesn’t appear particularly strong so RB-hungry teams like Dallas could find themselves in a bidding war. Then again, the Cowboys have seemingly devalued the position since amping up their analytics department over the past two years and may just see who slips through the cracks instead.

Normally this would put a truckload of pressure on the NFL draft since the Cowboys would no longer be able to take a best player available (BPA) approach and be forced to draft for need. But that draft philosophy really wouldn’t be much different than it’s been the last few years.

The Cowboys have been extremely transparent in their position targeting as of late. They leave massive holes heading into the draft and act aggressively to fill those holes with their picks. It may not be the wise thing to do but at least it’s familiar to this front office.

Hunting for a rookie RB capable of starting on Day 1 is well within their ability, especially since the 2025 NFL draft class is deep at the RB position. The Cowboys don’t have to panic and pick one with their first pick, they can wait a few rounds for value to come to them. Each round will inevitably signal a rise in panic levels across the fanbase but it’s not impossible to find starting RBs in the later rounds of the draft.

Everything is setting up for major changes at the RB position in Dallas but given the potential turnover in the coaching ranks and the depth in the draft, there’s reason to believe the Cowboys can handle it.

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Cowboys’ Rico Dowdle: ‘Definitely can get’ 1,000 yards after 3rd straight triple-digit outing

From @ToddBrock24f7: The undrafted RB didn’t get a starter’s workload until recently, but he’s suddenly within reach of his first 1,000-yard season.

Rico Dowdle had to think for a moment when asked if there’s been a time in his football life when he’s has had better stretch of games than the one he’s currently on.

“Probably not, honestly,” the Cowboys running back said with a smile after compiling a career-high 149 rushing yards in the team’s 30-14 win over the Panthers. “Maybe high school.”

But nothing the 26-year-old ever did at Asheville’s A.C. Reynolds was on the kind of stage he’s on now.

Dowdle is currently sitting on 880 yards rushing yards for the season, 15th-best in the NFL and ahead of some marquee names. His 5.0 yards-per-carry average has him in the top 10. And his success rate- a metric that tracks how often he gains a certain percentage of yards needed to convert, depending on the down- has him ranked second among all running backs leaguewide: better than David Montgomery, better than Bijan Robinson, better than Derrick Henry, better than Saquon Barkley.

So, yeah, you could say Rico’s on a roll.

“This is definitely a great time right now,” told reporters after Sunday’s win. “These past three weeks, those guys have opened it up. It’s been three good weeks in a row.”

Dowdle logged the first 100-yard performance of his five-year career in Week 13’s win over the Giants, ending with 112. He followed that up with 131 last Monday night versus Cincinnati. His 149 versus Carolina- just two hours east of where he played those high school games he talked about- gave him the best three-week string of games by a Cowboys rusher in six years.

That Dowdle wasn’t publicly referred to by his head coach as the team’s definitive starter until Week 11 will forever be one of the great mysteries of the 2024 season. Had the coaching staff not been forcing carries to Ezekiel Elliott for the first two months of the campaign, one can only wonder where his numbers- and the team- would be now.

It certainly crosses Dowdle’s mind.

“It’s all about the rhythm. I’ve been firm on that since the beginning, about the rhythm, getting the attempts,” Dowdle said. “I think we always could have done it, but… it’s working right now for us, so I’m not worried about [what happened] early in the season.”

Mike McCarthy acknowledged that it took some time to get the Cowboys’ ground attack into gear.

“Like any good run game, you need the attempts,” he said from the podium in his postgame press conference Sunday.

“He’s doing a really good job,” he said of Dowdle. “Breaks tackles, he has a violent run style, but his courses and his decision-making has been excellent.”

Even with the late start, Dowdle is within striking distance of his first 1,000-yard season. And his teammates- especially the big linemen blocking up front for him- are locked in to helping Dowdle achieve that goal.

“Rico’s my dog,” guard/center Brock Hoffman said Sunday. “I think he’s a hell of a running back, and I’m just happy that he’s gotten three games in a row over 100 yards. Let’s just keep stacking.”

When informed that Dowdle is just 120 yards away from 1K, Hoffman called his shot.

“That’ll be easy. We’ll get that next game.”

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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers may have something to say about that. The NFC South leaders are giving up just 109 rushing yards per game to opposing teams on the season, but no team has hit triple digits against them since Week 9. In fact, the Bucs have allowed just 70.4 yards on the ground over their last five outings.

Dowdle may have to be patient to hit 1,000 yards.

But then again, he’s had to be patient just to get his opportunity as the Cowboys starter.

“Closing in,” he explained. “Definitely feels good. Definitely want to hit that milestone, with my first year being a starter. Looking for it, definitely can get it.”

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Is Rico Dowdle playing today? Injury news update for Cowboys running back

Here’s the latest status for the Cowboys’ Rico Dowdle for Week 15 against the Carolina Panthers.

The Dallas Cowboys take the field in an early game on Sunday, hoping to avoid another losing streak. After winning two in a row, their Monday night loss to the Cincinnati Bengals has been followed by the continuous 2024 theme of catastrophic injuries. Now set to take on the Carolina Panthers, the club is going to need as many warm bodies as possible as Bryce Young has turned things around for their offense.

Dallas, with their passing game struggling, needs to lean heavily on their run game. After two straight 100-yard performances, it may have been concerning for fans to see that RB Rico Dowdle was listed on this week’s injury report with a knee issue.

Fortunately for Dallas, Dowdle’s inclusion in the daily report seems precautionary. He was a full participant throughout the week, including Friday’s walkthrough, so it seems the ailment will not preclude him from suiting up, as he did not carry an injury designation. He should play as long as the knee doesn’t flare up in pregame warmups.

The fifth-year running back enters Week 15 as one of the hottest RBs in the league. The Cowboys efforts to feed Dowdle has finally taken hold, even though they failed to capitalize on his glorious ways, limited him to just 18 carries last week despite averaging over seven yards a tote.

Dowdle will have to contend with the defensive schemes of Panthers DC and Mike McCarthy replacement candidate Ejiro Evero.

Rico Dowdle was always answer at RB, why didn’t the Cowboys know it sooner?

Dowdle is an underrated NFL running back, likely because his own team hasn’t valued him properly until recently. | From @cdpiglet

The Dallas Cowboys aren’t mathematically eliminated from the NFL playoffs, but they go into their Week 15 game against the Carolina Panthers needing a miracle to get there. Miracles don’t seem to exist in the 2024 season for Dallas, though. They found a way to lose against the Cincinnati Bengals, and the lowly, three-win Panthers are favored for the first time in their last 33 games.

Dallas is in the final stretch of a lousy season that saw their quarterback and many of their young and up and coming stars lost to injuries. They need to keep an eye on the future for these games, even as they refuse to relent on a doomed playoff pursuit. Although not an assured part of the long-term vision originally, Rico Dowdle has recently shown he could be one of those guys.

Many will wonder why it took so long for Dowdle to find himself in the role of lead back. It might have been coach’s belief in a committee, the front office wanting Ezekiel Elliott to get touches, or worrying about Dowdle’s workload because of his injury history.

He was only given more than 12 attempts once in his first nine games, even though he has been a top-10 rusher in success rate and averaged 4.3 yards per attempt. Still, for the first 11 weeks, he couldn’t even get 50% of the carries.

Starting with the game against the Washington Commanders, Dowdle has taken 70% of the carries and produced. He went from averaging 10 attempts and 40 yards per game, to 19 carries for 109 yard averages.

He ran for more than 40 yards over expected (RYOE) against both the New York Giants and Cincinnati.  Comparing him to Detroit Lions first-round pick Jahmyr Gibbs in the last three weeks, Dowdle has more yards rushing, yards after contact, forced missed tackles, and has one less run for 10 or more yards.

Only three running backs on the season have a 54% success rate or better and more than 4.5 yards per carry. Dowdle is one; the others are Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry. If extrapolated over 17 contests, Dowdle would have rushed for 1,853 yards on 323 attempts and scored six times.

With his next matchup is against the Panthers, the team with the worst rushing defense in the NFL, Dowdle has an opportunity to extend his string of superb performances even further.

You can find Mike Crum on Twitter @cdpiglet or YouTube on the Across the Cowboys Podcast.

Cowboys stopped gatekeeping this UDFA, now he’s among NFL’s best workhorses

Rico Dowdle started in split backfield but has become the Cowboys true bellcow RB. | From @ReidDHanson

My how far the pendulum swings. The Cowboys, stuck in a running back co-op seemingly forever this season, have now safely navigated into bell cow territory. Ezekiel Elliott’s struggles combined with Rico Dowdle’s maturation have pushed the latter into a lead role that most recently ranked the 26-year-old No. 6 on the latest bell cow report.

Dowdle has long looked like the top dog in Dallas, even before the season started. Those familiar with the South Carolina product knew it was injuries and availability that had been holding him back. What Dowdle lacked in name recognition he made up for in talent and versatility. It’s why local media spent little time discussing the reunion with Elliott while the national media couldn’t get enough of it.

Coming off his best yardage total and highest attempt total of the season, things aren’t likely to slow down for Dowdle any time soon. The 6-foot, 220-pound do-it-all back is primed for a run against some of the NFL’s worst defenses. With the exception of Philadelphia in Week 17, Dowdle has a favorable schedule ahead of him.

Working further in his favor is the growth of the Cowboys offensive line. Though left tackle remains a mess, Terence Steele at right tackle is back to his dominant self as a run-blocker, reserve guards T.J. Bass and Brock Hoffman are making the case to be 2025 starters, and center Cooper Beebe is even starting to flash.

Prior to Week 13 Dowdle was lacking explosive runs from his game. He fixed that against the Giants popping off multiple explosive runs he earned breaking and avoiding tackles at the second level. It moved his explosive run rate up from 6.3 percent to 8.2 percent on the season (per Sumer Sports) and has Dowdle positioned in that category ahead of players like Bijan Robinson and Aaron Jones.

For as good as this is for Dowdle, the Cowboys overall running game still leaves something to be desired. Even with Dowdle the clear bell cow over the past three weeks, Dallas ranks 29th in team EPA/rush and 25th in team success rate running the ball in that time span. The film is getting better, the individual runner is getting better, the only thing that’s left is more positive output. Based on trends, that too is likely to be on the way.

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Two Reasons: Cowboys only have selves to blame for disappointing 2024

The Dallas Cowboys haven’t met expectations in 2024, and the team only has themselves to blame for their issues. | From @cdpiglet

Coming off of their third 12-5 season in a row and a second seed in the playoffs, the Dallas Cowboys have fallen far from contention in 2024. That began well before the loss of starting quarterback Dak Prescott to a season-ending injury. If the team is upset by these results, it has only itself to blame.

The issues began with inactivity. The decision not to extend Prescott or star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb earlier in the offseason instead of right before September  was a two-fold error. Not only did it put them behind on the field, as it caused Lamb to miss training camp, but those extensions would’ve freed up cap space for Dallas to sign free agents to replace the nine players who signed elsewhere.

The only outside free agent the Cowboys signed before training camp began was Eric Kendricks, who was a direct replacement for a cut/retired player, Leighton Vander Esch.

That doesn’t negate the poor performance of the head coach and play-caller, Mike McCarthy.

Only recently did he make Rico Dowdle the primary running back, instead choosing a committee approach instead of featuring one of the top 10 running backs (success rate) on the season. In games Dowdle had at least 20 touches the Cowboys are 3-0, but only 2-6 in games when he gets under 20. After rushing 20 times for 87 yards against the Steelers’ top-three rush defense, Dowdle should’ve been the clear top back on the team.

McCarthy instead fed Ezekiel Elliott as the back with the most attempts the next game.

Beyond that, McCarthy hasn’t done a good job opening up the offense, failing to get the team’s playmakers the ball in spots where they can make plays. Speedster Kavontae Turpin has never had more than four receptions in a game all season and had more than five targets only once.

Against the Houston Texans, Turpin caught all three of his targets for 86 yards and a touchdown but had only one target the next game. In their last contest, the team targeted Turpin four straight plays on the opening drive and had him wide open on a slot corner route Cooper Rush missed in the end zone. Fans will have to wait and see if there were any lessons learned.

Dallas was due to regress, but the drop didn’t have to be this drastic if the front office and head coach had done their jobs more effectively. Now, they are trying to make a surge towards an unlikely playoff berth while many fans are already doing 2025 mock drafts, but the projections could’ve been much more positive if the people in charge had done their jobs earlier.

You can find Mike Crum on Twitter @cdpiglet or YouTube on the Across the Cowboys Podcast.

Blocking improving but Cowboys RBs must take things to another level

The Cowboys offensive line is doing their part it’s now up the RB group to push the running game over the top, finds @ReidDHanson

The Cowboys are starting to see some return on their investment. Over the offseason they invested heavily in their offensive line, dedicating their first-round and a third-round pick to the unit. After some significant growing pains melding the new pieces into the machine, the unit is starting to show some signs of life in the run game.

Even with the constant shuffling of personnel along the line, Dallas ranks eighth in run block win rate. While Zack Martin is the only individual high performer of the group, the unit as a whole has been producing solid results.

In a single point failure area like run blocking, team success is paramount. It only takes one error for the entire play to be blown up. A study conducted by Pro Football Focus concluded a running play in which all blockers received positive grades produces a 60.2 percent success rate while a block with one or more negative grades offers just a 25.7 percent success rate. It carries over in EPA as well, with a positively graded blocking effort producing a +0.27 EPA compared to -0.27 EPA for a run block with one or more negative scores.

Shockingly, the Cowboys are currently in the NFL’s top tier in perfect run block rates in 2024. Ezekiel Elliott and Rico Dowdle have both been given solid opportunities for positive gains even if the results of the run haven’t shown it. While running games are largely a byproduct of the blocking, at some point it falls on the running back himself to really push it over the goal line (so to speak).

Explosive plays in particular are an area in which the Cowboys RBs are struggling. Creating holes and delivering positive gains often falls on the offensive line, but it’s the RB himself who’s largely responsible for making players miss at the second level.

Per Sumer Sports, Dowdle’s explosive run rate is 6.3 percent while Elliott’s is just 1.7 percent. For reference, Saquon Barkley is at 11.7 percent and Derrick Henry is at 11.8 percent. It’s a significant difference but Cowboys fans can take solace in the fact the difference between Dowdle and Elliott is far greater than the distance between Barkey/Henry and Dowdle.

Based on a side-by-side statistical comparison it’s clear the Cowboys made the right move giving Dowdle the top spot and pushing Elliott into a supporting role. Dowdle hasn’t just shown he’s the best of the bunch in Dallas but that he’s a legit NFL starter. When Dowdle is getting the ball, the Cowboys are producing at a top 10 success rate (filtered for those with 70+ carries).

Nontraditional ball carriers in Dallas are also producing at high clip. Hunter Luepke (66.7%), KaVontae Turpin (40.0%) and CeeDee Lamb (38.5) are posting decent success rates behind this Cowboys offensive line as well.

The Cowboys haven’t fixed their issues with run blocking, but they are clearly moving in the right direction and better than what some want to credit them for. What this offense needs now is some extra juice from the ball carriers themselves and some more assistance from downfield blockers like receivers and tight ends.

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