DALLAS — The Dallas Cowboys need a running game and it's clear – they're dead last in the NFL in total rushing yards, yards per carry and rushing touchdowns.
The lack of production from the running back room has come under scrutiny after Jerry Jones did not re-sign Tony Pollard nor sign Derrick Henry, who actually leads the NFL in rushing. Not to mention Henry lives in Dallas in the offseason to train and publicly expressed interest in signing with the team.
Instead, Dallas brought back former Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott for his second stint and combined him in a room with the undrafted Rico Dowdle.
On 105.3 The Fan Tuesday, Jones brought up the subject of Henry unprompted, assuming that would be among the questions Tuesday morning after Henry had another strong performance Monday night. He explained why Henry wasn’t an option for the Cowboys.
“How do I make a decision? I go back to when I bought the team,” said Jones. “We got it down to $300,000 and we flipped a coin and I Iost and I was the owner of the Dallas Cowboys. I don’t know why I picked what I picked.”
“Henry is having a career year. I don’t know if he’d be having that kind of year in our situation. We don’t run that type of offense at all. He didn’t fit, principally because of the cap and in anticipation of players we will need to get signed.”
Perhaps the Cowboys' saving grace on the ground comes on the legs of a "hometown hero" who is putting up video game-like numbers in college ... someone who is the odds on favorite to win the Heisman trophy?
Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty – who played high school football at Frisco Lone Star High School – said on a live stream that the Cowboys were one of two teams he'd like to play for.
“Chiefs, you know what I'm saying? Be a Super Bowl contender every year, come on now," Jeanty said. "Dallas Cowboys, I'm not saying they're not a good fit. I'm not saying that at all. I'm from Frisco, played in Frisco, I played in their practice stadium. I would be a hometown hero if I went there."
The chances of Jeanty making a hero's homecoming aren't that farfetched, either. Two separate mock drafts for the 2025 NFL Draft both have Dallas selecting Jeanty in the middle of the first round. ESPN thinks the Boise State Bronco would go to Dallas in the No. 15 spot, and CBS Sports also predicts Jeanty to the Cowboys in the No. 16 spot.
Jeanty's high school days were featured on WFAA's Friday Night Football in a top 10 matchup against Denton Ryan in 2020.
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