Cowboys Preseason Game 1: A Running Back Conundrum

The first Cowboys preseason game gave us some real football to finally talk about. The position I want to discuss first is running back, and the box score doesn’t tell the whole story about this position. Well, it kinda does.

Jaydon Blue got the nod as the first running back off the sideline. He finished the night with 19 yards on eight carries. While Phil Mafah was the second running back and he had 9 yards on four carries. We don’t have to pretend those numbers are good.

Both of these running backs had to deal with defenders in the backfield before the play ever had a chance. We watched snaps where the Cowboys offensive linemen were getting pushed back far enough that they were running into their own backs, but that’s another article.

What makes this harder to judge is that it didn’t look the same when Malik Davis and Israel Abanikanda started getting touches. The backfield wasn’t as crowded, and both found room that Blue and Mafah couldn’t seem to find.

Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah Never Got Going

Jaydon Blue got twice as many carries as Phil Mafah, so there is twice as much to look at, but only 10 yards difference between the two. His 2.4 yards per carry wouldn’t even get a running back on the practice squad.

I feel like he should have gotten more runs around the edge instead of up the middle, but that wasn’t the game plan. He has to do more with less in these games, and he proved in game 1 that he couldn’t.

Could we blame the offensive line? Sure, but that wouldn’t tell the whole story.

Phil Mafah’s four carries is a tiny sample size, and most of those carries were stuffed at the line of scrimmage. His vision didn’t seem to be the greatest and the 2.3 yards per carry showed it.

Leaving the game with a chest injury also hindered him, but he seems to be ok.

It seemed like these two just couldn’t hit the right gap or make anything happen once hit. One thing I can say is Phil Mafah kept those legs pumping when he ran into the crowd of mass in front of him.

I didn’t think either one played well. There’s no sugar-coating this outing, just subpar play from two guys who are battling to be running back number two. I hope these guys can find their footing in the second preseason game.

Malik Davis and Israel Abanikanda Had a Different Night

Once Malik Davis got some carries, the running game felt different. He ran seven times for 39 yards and seemed to have more juice than the two backs in front of him.

Malik Davis runs hard and seems to be more shifty than Blue or Mafah. Having spent a few years in the NFL bouncing around has seemed to help him find his groove at running back. Israel Abanikanda found room later too.

I thought these two ran the ball better than the two guys that got the early run.

Maybe they did, but they also weren’t seeing the same type of pressure in the backfield from the third and fourth stringers.

That is what makes preseason analysis difficult. You can watch the whole game and think a player is great going against the bottom of the roster players, but what do they look like against real NFL talent?

What I can say is, Davis and Abanikanda took their opportunities and ran with it, no pun intended. Malik Davis especially helped himself because he turned those looks into production, while Abanikanda did enough to earn more carries.

The Running Back 2 Battle is Still Open

I went into this first preseason game expecting to get a better idea of how the running back order might shake out behind Javonte Williams.

I didn’t get that.

Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah had terrible numbers, while Malik Davis and Israel Abanikanda had the better numbers, but their work was against different competition.

Davis had the best night and there’s no questioning that. He’s also had big nights in real NFL games for the Cowboys. That could be enough to push him up the depth chart.

I think Mafah needs more carries. He seems like one of those backs that wear a defense down with his size and physicality. You can’t get that off of four carries.

The next preseason game should tell us more if Dallas give Blue and Mafah the nod again in the first half, but if Davis and Abanikanda get the early run, maybe the Cowboys have already seen enough.

After one game, this running back room still feels wide open.