Stephen Jones Reveals Disappointing Plans for Cowboys Running Back Situation

Fans won’t be happy about this new approach from the Cowboys.

It’s no secret that Dallas Cowboys fans want the running back position addressed. With Tony Pollard gone and then rumblings that Derrick Henry might have been coming to Dallas, fans have also had their sights set high.

But Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones crushed those dreams with his latest comments.

Cowboys Running Back Solution Leaves a Lot to Be Desired

Jones acknowledges that the Cowboys don’t have an “established back in the organization,” but he reveals that the plan is not to add an established back anyway. In fact, he doesn’t even sound like the Cowboys are planning to add a top running back prospect in the draft.

He mentions addressing the position through the draft, and doing so with “complementary players.” That sounds an awful lot like code for not having an RB1.

So this means that not only can Cowboys fans forget about guys like Alexander Mattison, Ezekiel Elliott and Dalvin Cook, but they should also forget about guys like Jonathon Brooks, Trey Benson or even Blake Corum.

By the sounds of this, the earliest the Cowboys will even consider adding a running back is with their third-round pick (No. 87 overall), but even that isn’t guaranteed. The trouble is the next they pick after that is at No. 174, at the very end of Round 5.

Considering what we saw from Deuce Vaughn as a sixth-round pick in 2023, the idea of relying on a late-round rookie as the RB1 doesn’t feel great.

Of course, with the Cowboys’ offensive identity shifting to a much more pass-heavy one, a weak backfield won’t necessarily sting the way it once did.

After all, Dallas is still favored to win the NFC East with Vaughn currently slotted in at RB1, with the Eagles trailing despite their major addition of Saquon Barkley.

The other thing to keep in mind is that Jones isn’t exactly the most reliable source in the world, and even if Dallas were deep in negotiations with a new RB1 it probably wouldn’t be wise to make that information public. So there’s also a chance that this all gets flipped on its head at any time.