The Dallas Cowboys have several needs on both sides of the ball, and they do most of their work in the draft. As fans have seen in the past, the Cowboys do not sign many free agents, so the draft is the offseason highlight.
This team’s needs range from running back to safety and many more positions in between, and they are becoming more blatant as the season goes along.
Can the front office make the right call to the correct player on draft night in the first round? Only time will tell, and fans have seen this team make some pretty questionable decisions in the first round, so anything is possible.
A Navy Kid Who Excelled on the Football Field
The son of a United States Navy chief petty officer, Ashton Jeanty, began his football career as a high school freshman in Naples, Italy.
His high school was Naples Middle/High School, which is part of the Department of Defense Education Activity system. It is located in Gricignano di Aversa, Campania, Italy.
Surprisingly, Ashton Jeanty was discovered in 7th grade on a basketball court in Italy, not on a football field. This is because kids could not play football until they were freshmen in high school.
Naples High School football coach Jim Davis saw his talent.
“He’s going up for a layup and he’s getting so much height I’m thinking this kid’s about to dunk the ball. As a seventh grader, you can imagine how short he is. He’s 5-9, 5-10 now. So he was probably closer to 5-4 or 5-5. And it’s like, Wow, look at the power this kid has at such a young age.”
Ashton Jeanty would start his first year of high school football in 2018 as the quarterback, but two games into the season, the coach saw Jeanty should be the running back.
In the season’s last four games, running back Ashton Jeanty ran for 1,200 yards and had 17 touchdowns.
The football team played other military children at similar high schools on bases around Europe.
From Italy to Texas to Idaho
Following Ashton Jeanty’s freshman year in Italy, he moved to Frisco, Texas, where he played football at Lone Star High School from 2019 to 2021.
During his time at Lone Star High School, he would have 273 carries, 2,226 rushing yards, 39 rushing touchdowns, 97 receptions, 1,619 receiving yards, and 17 receiving touchdowns.
This led him to be ranked 1,284th nationally, the 90th running back nationally, and the 188th prospect in Texas. He received 15 offers to play at the next level before deciding to play at Boise State University.
https://x.com/CollegeGameDay/status/1855288509768069220
His time at Boise State University started in 2022, where he hit the ground running. The following are his rushing statistics from Boise State over the last three years, so far.
In 2022, he had 156 carries for 821 yards and seven touchdowns. In 2023, he would take the lead back role, and the numbers reflect that promotion.
In 2023, Ashton Jeanty had 220 carries for 1,347 yards and 14 touchdowns.
This season, 2024, is when Jeanty would start getting national attention due to his record pace stats. He has 224 carries for 1,734 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns.
The Heisman candidate could see these statistics grow as the season continues, but could these numbers bring him back to Texas?
I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby
Kid Rock said it best in the lyrics of his hit song “Cowboy.” Ashton Jeanty did not say this phrase, but he is thinking, “I wanna be a Cowboy, Baby!”
Ashton Jeanty would love for the Dallas Cowboys to draft him so he could go back home and play in front of family and friends. Here is what he had to say about the NFL draft.
https://x.com/theScore/status/1856921248816595320
Please script this and put a star on this man’s helmet.
Ashton Jeanty and Rico Dowdle would be a formidable backfield for the Dallas Cowboys.
Rico Dowdle is coming into his own as the backfield leader, averaging over five yards a carry. Add Ashton Jeanty to the mix next year, and the Cowboy’s backfield will see a resurgence.
Let’s add this to the backfield and unleash this offense…
https://x.com/FBGreatMoments/status/1857217702177419671
This explosiveness and the pass protection he brings would keep the defense guessing whether it is him or Rico Dowdle in the backfield.
https://x.com/BobbyBeltTX/status/1857129034951397543
The pass protection Ashton Jeanty brings to the backfield is reminiscent of a young Ezekiel Elliott.
This young man wants to become a Dallas Cowboy, and it is the front office’s job to make it happen. If he is sitting near their pick on draft day, trade up if needed to get this man in the silver and blue.
You dont trade up to get a rb you trade down if their record is bad
Given Jerry Jones’ penchant for wheeling and dealing, he should make every effort to get a top tier running back either through the 2025 draft, or free agency.
Look at the magic he and Jimmy Johnson did in his earlier years. Three Super Bowl wins in four years is a major accomplishment.
I’d like to see Grampa Jones bring back that same magic and infuse new life into the organization.
I know it’s sacrilegious to JJ, but trading away a top talent or two for a chance at top draft picks should be considered. That’s what the tandem of Johnson and Jones did with Hershel Walker, and we all know how well that turned out.
Leading up to draft day, offering up Micah Parsons, DaRon Bland or DeMarcus Lawrence (or maybe even all three) as trade bait to get Ashton Jeanty is an enticing option. This will leave huge gaps in the DE, OLB and CB ranks for sure, so JJ will have to trust Will McClay to find the proper replacements as only Will McClay can.
Indeed, having a backfield of Jeanty and Dowdle opens up almost infinite possibilities for the offense. One need only to look at the Shanahan-tree led teams as a blueprint for success.
Whoever succeeds Mike McCarthy as HC will benefit greatly from this duo.
Ben Johnson is kind of iffy at this point in time, there are way too many HC needy teams that want him, but having DeMeco Ryans or Bobby Slowik as MM’s possible replacement would probably bring over the entire Texans coaching staff, which I think would be far superior to what Dallas has at the moment.
Excluding, of course, Al Harris, whom I think is the lone bright spot on an otherwise cold and dark coaching staff.
Heck, just putting the words: ‘Assistant Head Coach’ on Slowick’s OC title will likely do the trick.
And either candidate will make more efficient use of Ashton Jeanty (if the Cowboys manage to land him) and Rico Dowdle.
Better play from every other offensive player currently on the roster would be a side benefit.
One need only look at the dynasty years of the ‘90’s to fully grasp what I’m writing about: short to intermediate passes to the wideouts, TE’s and FB’s to open the game, which will loosen up opposing defenses’ coverages; occasional fullback dives up the middle to keep them guessing; then give them heavy doses of Emmit Smith.
Punishing and unrelenting doses of Emmit Smith forced right down their throats worked wonders.
A smothering and punishing defense that’s stingy on points and yards surrendered would add dividends as well. This will give the Dallas defense a chance to rest.
Another byproduct is that the offense won’t have to be forced to play catch-up and become totally reliant on the passing game, thus making them one-dimensional. Opposing defensive players won’t have the chance to pin their ears back to rush the QB.
Utter this mantra three times in quick succession: Power Sweep Right.
Defenses will be gassed and beat-up before the second half.
Opposing defenses will be forced to bring both safeties closer to the box for run support, which opens up the passing game, which in turn gives the running game even more lethality. Yada, yada.
But all this hinges on the Joneses giving the new coaching staff full reign, with no meddling.
Frankly, I’m a bit tired of JJ sounding-off to the media and various talk shows with his ill-advised spewing of nonsense, lies and misinformation. The less I hear from both Joneses, the better.
Owners (and their nepotistic sons) should be seen, but not heard.
No drama and no distractions for the team and fans to deal with. Just “W”’s in the win column.
As a matter of fact, Jones should just keep his mouth shut and his ego in check. He should just step back and let the professionals do their jobs. His only concern is to write checks.
The same goes for his penny-pinching, tightwad of a son, Stephen “we-don’t-have-room-because-of-the-salary-cap” Jones.
His philosophy towards putting together a championship-worthy team is a mockery to the legacies of Jimmy Johnson and Tom Landry.
I can almost guarantee another dynasty IF all of these cockamamie ideas of mine come to fruition.
Just bouncing an idea or two around. Waddaya tink?
Honestly, I like it. The only issue is Jerry will probably draft another Michigan defensive lineman unless the new head coach gets to make personnel decisions. If Jerry and Co. could relinquish control this team has the pieces to win a Super Bowl.