Through three weeks of the 2024 NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys have one of the worst rushing attacks in the NFL.
Dallas is averaging just 73.7 rushing yards per game, which is third-worst in the league behind only the Las Vegas Raiders (51) and Chicago Bears (72.7). Also, Dallas’ 3.6 yards per carry is fourth-worst in the NFL and the franchise’s worst yards-per-rush average through three games since 2012.
Let’s examine the Cowboys’ running back depth chart ahead of their “Thursday Night Football” showdown against the New York Giants.
Dallas’ Running Back Depth Chart
Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott have led the way for the Cowboys’ running-back committee, but the team also has Deuce Vaughn on the active roster and Dalvin Cook on the practice squad.
Rico Dowdle
Dowdle is Dallas’ starter, and he has the most carries so far this season. Dowdle has rushed 23 times for 88 yards (3.8 yards per carry), but he has yet to score a touchdown. He also has eight receptions for 59 yards.
He was targeted on the first play of Week 3 and touched the ball on each of Dallas’ first three plays. It’s also worth noting that the 26-year-old has had at least five targets in consecutive games.
Dowdle has played between 43% and 46% of snaps in all three games this season, splitting the work with Elliott.
Ezekiel Elliott
This season, Elliott has rushed 19 times for 62 yards (3.3 yards per carry) and one touchdown while adding five receptions for 31 yards.
With that said, Elliott has seen his snap share trend in the wrong direction (50% snap share in Week 1, 39.4% in Week 2, and just 20% last week).
Elliott is one of the best running backs in franchise history and a notable name that fans recognize, but there isn’t any explosion left in the veteran’s legs. The 29-year-old doesn’t seem to have much left in the tank.
Deuce Vaughn
Vaughn was selected by the Cowboys in the sixth round (No. 212 overall) of the 2023 NFL Draft. Standing at 5’5″, he’s the shortest player in NFL Combine history.
He’s also the son of one of the coaches on the Cowboys’ staff. His draft day phone call was one of the most heartwarming NFL Draft moments in recent memory.
The heartwarming phone call between father and son 📲🏈
Witness Cowboys scout Chris Vaughn draft his son Deuce 💙
(via @dallascowboys) pic.twitter.com/HZwHVmXTmn
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) April 30, 2023
Vaughn broke a number of school records at Kansas State, but he hasn’t produced much with the Cowboys. This season, he has rushed seven times for 20 yards (2.9 yards per attempt) and caught two passes for 14 yards. For his career, Vaughn has 30 carries for 60 yards, plus nine receptions for 54 yards.
Dalvin Cook
While it’s clear the Cowboys’ current rushing attack isn’t working, Cook won’t be playing against the Giants on “Thursday Night Football,” according to owner Jerry Jones.
“We’ve got a short week here, and I don’t think this is the time that you have any real serious roster adjustments in at that particular time,” Jones told Shan & RJ on 105.3 The Fan earlier this week. “So I don’t think so, because of the short week, for sure.”
It’s possible that Cook will factor in at some point going forward, perhaps in their Week 5 contest against the Pittsburgh Steelers since the Cowboys will have 10 days between games.
From 2019 to 2022, Cook had four consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons, totaling 5,024 yards and 44 touchdowns during that time. However, he had a down year in 2023 while with the New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens.