The Dallas Cowboys have to stop disrespecting proven player in increasingly muddy roster battle
The Dallas Cowboys have to review the film for a clearer answer, but the running back battle might have completely changed on Saturday night.
Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer wants to review the film before drawing any conclusions. But his team was uncapable of running the ball well in the first half of a preseason win over the Seattle Seahawks, with running backs Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah averaging 2.27 rush yards per attempt.
Things were much different in the second half, as Malik Davis and Israel Abanikanda combined for 75 rushing yards while averaging over five yards per attempt. In particular, Davis stood out as he even broke free for a 14-yard gain.
The thing about Davis: he emerged last season as the Cowboys RB2 on his way to 52 attempts and 250 yards in ten games played. He moved the chains 11 times and scored two touchdowns in limited playing time. Yet going into the preseason opener, he wasn’t considered one of the two running backs in a “tight battle” for RB2, which Schottenheimer described to be happening between Blue and Mafah.
At this point it seems a little disrespectful to Davis, who ran very well on Saturday night and looked like the best option on the roster at least for one more game.
“Give it up for Malik Davis,” Schottenheimer told reporters. “He’s amazing, Christmas Day, Thanksgiving Day, whatever the day is, Aug. 14, I love that guy.”
Though Davis got himself some well-deserved praise from the coach who will be deciding his roster fate at the end of the month, the conversation is a little more complicated than that.
And it doesn’t quite sound like he’s the automatic favorite for RB2 after one preseason showdown.
Schottenheimer blames Cowboys OL for poor run numbers
Schottenheimer’s first impression for his team’s early struggles running the ball? The Cowboys offensive line wasn’t winning the battle in the trenches. It was not a running back problem.
“Early on especially, we struggled to move their guys up front,” Schottenheimer said postgame. “I think you’ll see that. That’s why the run numbers in the first half weren’t very good. (The Seahawks) were doing a good job plugging up the middle.”
The Cowboys head coach admitted RB evaluation becomes difficult because “you gotta get what’s block.” I gotta say, based on the TV broadcast, there weren’t a lot of running lanes out there.
“Phil (Mafah) had some really good runs,” Schottenheimer said. “And then, Jaydon (Blue), there wasn’t a whole lot there, but you get him going on screens and things like that, he’s just a weapon.”
Schottenheimer also shouted out Israel Abanikanda for closing out the game with physical runs.
RB battle becomes muddier
I went into the preseason opener h0ping to learn more about the Cowboys RB2 battle and it doesn’t feel like we did. If anything, it became muddier as Davis and Abanikanda inserted themselves into the picture while Blue and Mafah did little to separate themselves from the pack.
One thing is clear, though: Davis deserves to be in the running for RB2. He already wound up with the job last year and looked well in Week 1 of the preseason. Not giving him more chances would be disrespectful.
Schottenheimer loved what he saw from Davis on Saturday night. Let’s see if more reps follow.
“Malik is just a slasher, man,” Schottenheimer added. “His vision and understanding of blocking schemes and all that, I think is great.”
