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Will Cowboys go running back in the second round?
Todd Archer, ESPN Dallas Cowboys reporter
IRVING, Texas -- On Tuesday, Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said running back was not among his team’s musts.
On Thursday, executive vice president Stephen Jones said he felt comfortable with what the Cowboys have at running back after losing DeMarco Murray in free agency.
The unified front from the Joneses might be a diversionary tactic at this point, but the Cowboys could be in position to take a running back starting in the second round tonight with the No. 60 overall pick but might be pushing it if they choose to wait for the third round, where they pick No. 91.
Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon went in the first round on Thursday, which was not unexpected considering all of the talk leading up to the draft. Gurley went No. 10 to the St. Louis Rams. Gordon went No. 15 to the San Diego Chargers.
Both players visited the Cowboys before the draft, but Gurley had a higher rating and would have been the Cowboys’ no-brainer pick at No. 27. Even had Gordon been available at No. 27, there would have been some debate before the pick.
So now the Cowboys are left to look at runners such as Duke Johnson, Tevin Coleman, Ameer Abdullah, T.J. Yeldon and Jay Ajayi in the next two rounds. Coleman, Yeldon and Ajayi visited Valley Ranch. The Cowboys had a private workout with Johnson. Another down the road option could be Southern Cal’s Buck Allen, who also visited Valley Ranch.
“We feel very comfortable with our running back corps, but it doesn’t mean we won’t add to it,” Stephen Jones said. “Anytime you miss an All-Pro player like DeMarco you feel like you should beef it up a little bit more, but as far as I’m concerned, we could go to war with what we got and feel that way pretty much about everything.”
While there is no set depth chart at the moment, Joseph Randle would look to be the top back now, followed by free-agent addition Darren McFadden, Lance Dunbar and Ryan Williams. McFadden has one 1,000-yard season but has not averaged better than 3.4 yards per carry since 2011. Randle showed flashes as Murray’s backup last year but off-field issues have raised questions. Dunbar has been a change-of-pace back. Williams has a pedigree but has averaged just 2.8 yards per carry in his career.
Last year the Cowboys knew they needed to add a pass-rusher and gave up their third-rounder to get the 34th pick from the Washington Redskins to take DeMarcus Lawrence. Their options last year at defensive end were even more limited to what the Cowboys have at running back this year.
“I do think as we wait for that pick to come our way again we’ll be patient, and I think we’ll get to pick from two or three guys we want to pick,” Stephen Jones said. “And I’ll be surprised if that doesn’t happen whereas (in the first round) we were getting down to the nubbins.”
Todd Archer, ESPN Dallas Cowboys reporter
IRVING, Texas -- On Tuesday, Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said running back was not among his team’s musts.
On Thursday, executive vice president Stephen Jones said he felt comfortable with what the Cowboys have at running back after losing DeMarco Murray in free agency.
The unified front from the Joneses might be a diversionary tactic at this point, but the Cowboys could be in position to take a running back starting in the second round tonight with the No. 60 overall pick but might be pushing it if they choose to wait for the third round, where they pick No. 91.
Todd Gurley and Melvin Gordon went in the first round on Thursday, which was not unexpected considering all of the talk leading up to the draft. Gurley went No. 10 to the St. Louis Rams. Gordon went No. 15 to the San Diego Chargers.
Both players visited the Cowboys before the draft, but Gurley had a higher rating and would have been the Cowboys’ no-brainer pick at No. 27. Even had Gordon been available at No. 27, there would have been some debate before the pick.
So now the Cowboys are left to look at runners such as Duke Johnson, Tevin Coleman, Ameer Abdullah, T.J. Yeldon and Jay Ajayi in the next two rounds. Coleman, Yeldon and Ajayi visited Valley Ranch. The Cowboys had a private workout with Johnson. Another down the road option could be Southern Cal’s Buck Allen, who also visited Valley Ranch.
“We feel very comfortable with our running back corps, but it doesn’t mean we won’t add to it,” Stephen Jones said. “Anytime you miss an All-Pro player like DeMarco you feel like you should beef it up a little bit more, but as far as I’m concerned, we could go to war with what we got and feel that way pretty much about everything.”
While there is no set depth chart at the moment, Joseph Randle would look to be the top back now, followed by free-agent addition Darren McFadden, Lance Dunbar and Ryan Williams. McFadden has one 1,000-yard season but has not averaged better than 3.4 yards per carry since 2011. Randle showed flashes as Murray’s backup last year but off-field issues have raised questions. Dunbar has been a change-of-pace back. Williams has a pedigree but has averaged just 2.8 yards per carry in his career.
Last year the Cowboys knew they needed to add a pass-rusher and gave up their third-rounder to get the 34th pick from the Washington Redskins to take DeMarcus Lawrence. Their options last year at defensive end were even more limited to what the Cowboys have at running back this year.
“I do think as we wait for that pick to come our way again we’ll be patient, and I think we’ll get to pick from two or three guys we want to pick,” Stephen Jones said. “And I’ll be surprised if that doesn’t happen whereas (in the first round) we were getting down to the nubbins.”
