However, no one can argue that Dallas didn’t fill in the gaps that the departure of Julius Jones and Tyson Thompson created. In reality, not only did the ‘Boys fill in the gaps at running back, but they upgraded significantly and gave themselves one of the top 1-2 punches at the position in the league.
With Pro-Bowler Marion Barber as the starter, the Cowboys weren’t really looking for a guy to compete with him for the starting job. After all, why wouldn’t you want a guy who had 12 total touchdowns and rushed for 975 yards on 204 carries for a 4.8 yard average, which was 4th in the league for backs with at least 200+ carries, on the field as much as possible?
The only knock on Marion the Barberian is that his physical, bruising style clearly has an affect on him late in the game if he is asked to carry the load at the position. This was evident during the playoff game against the Giants, where Barber had 101 yards rushing and a touchdown in the first half alone, but was held to only 28 more years in the entire second half. Why? Well besides the fact that the Giants probably keyed on him a bit more, Julius Jones failed to produce in the game for Dallas, and therefore they had to keep Barber in ensure a solid player was on the field at running back. It was noticeable then that this guy is best when he has fresh legs.
Knowing so, the Cowboys knew they had to find a perfect complement to Barber. They chose to let go of Julius Jones and let him sign elsewhere in free agency, along with Tyson Thompson. Dallas chose to address the needs at running back through the draft.
When the Cowboys were on the clock with the 22nd pick in the first round of the 2008 draft, they had an intriguing situation to make a choice out of. Felix Jones, an explosive and shifty back who led the nation in yards per attempt at Arkansas while sharing carries with top rated running back Darren McFadden his senior year, was still available. It was no secret that the Cowboys were interesting in Felix. Jerry Jones, an Arkansas alum himself, made it public that he was interested in Felix.
However, there was also another interesting back who somehow fell all the way to number 22. Illinois star running back Rashard Mendenhall, who was projected to go in the top-20, was also on the board. Mendenhall had a different style than Jones. Rashard is more of a every down back, with great vision and solid speed and agility. This gave Dallas an interesting choice – go with a guy who is the perfect complement to Barber, or go with a guy who could potentially be a starter, a guy in which a team can be built around.
As most should know by now, the Cowboys opted to take Felix Jones. They saw him as the perfect lightning for Marion Barber’s thunder. The downfall on Jones, however, is that he too is not an every down back, but rather a back that shines when he has fresh legs – much like Barber.
To fix this problem, the Cowboys selected another running back in the draft. During the fourth round, the Cowboys selected Georgia Tech running back Tashard Choice. Choice led the ACC in rushing during 2006 and 2007. This was a brilliant move by Dallas because it gave them a back that can carry the load and not have a problem with taking 20-25 carries a game. Choice is also a great leader, and provides the Cowboys with security in case Barber should get injured.
Just like that, the Cowboys went from a scary situation with only one back who can’t handle over 20 carries a game, to a perfect combination of backs they will ensure them to dominate the league in rushing. In today’s league, the two-back system is becoming quickly popular, and the Cowboys have one of the better combinations of backs.
Position Grade |
| Starter(s) |
A |
| Backup(s) |
B+ |
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