It’s another spring in the NFL, and for the Cowboys, that means something that has gotten familiar: a very uncertain running back room. After slowly bringing along Rico Dowdle last season as a Tony Pollard replacement, the Cowboys did this offseason what they have been doing year after year with running backs: They let him walk in free agency.
Despite tallying 1,079 yards on the ground and 249 yards as a receiver last season, the Cowboys did not bother to keep Dowdle, a player they’d nursed through two injury-torn seasons before his breakout in 2024. And it would not have taken much to keep him, as he signed in Carolina for just $2.75 million.
Instead, the Cowboys are again trying to cobble together a running-back room filled with retreads and question marks, with Miles Sanders and Javonte Williams the big offseason additions. The Cowboys drafted Jaydon Blue in the fifth round.
That might not be enough. But an opportunity to bolster the running-back room could be in the offing. That’s because the Texans signed former Browns star running back Nick Chubb on Monday, which means someone should soon come free.
Cowboys Need a Big-Play Back
After a rookie year in which he tallied a total of 1.104 yards of offense, former Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik made a declaration about running back Dameon Pierce. He said he appreciated Pierce’s “angry” style of running. Pierce promised more of the same.
“I don’t have good intentions, especially this year,” Pierce said during the preseason. “Slowik emphasizes that, so now I have to find ways to be even angrier.”
But the problem is, Pierce never got much of a chance in Houston after that first season. With Chubb coming aboard and Joe Mixon in place, now could be the time the Texans let him find an opportunity elsewhere.
And for KD Drummond of the USA Today Cowboys Wire site, Pierce makes sense in Dallas. Though he totaled on 293 yards in 2024, he did have a 92-yard run and averaged 7.3 yards per carry. He makes sense as a home-run option.
“The Cowboys signed Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders in free agency, and drafted University of Texas back Jaydon Blue in the fifth round in April,” Drummond writes. “None of those players should be seen as above reproach as the Cowboys don’t have a bell-cow approach to this season. Dallas might not be in a position to outright trade an asset, but a pick swap to acquire him should be considered, and they absolutely should kick the tires if Pierce hits the open market.”
