The Dallas Cowboys had an 1,000-yard rusher in 2024.
In 2025, they've got a mish-mosh of a backfield after letting that guy, Rico Dowdle, walk in free agency, not even for that big of a contract.
It was one of the more curious decisions of the offseason. There wasn't an obvious reason that the Cowboys couldn't re-sign Dowdle, but they didn't.
Instead, they're trying to replace him with some combination of veteran free agents Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders along with rookie Jaydon Blue, who they left inactive for Week 1.
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What happened to Rico Dowdle?
Rico Dowdle left the Dallas Cowboys in free agency to sign with the Carolina Panthers.
Dowdle signed a one-year contract with Carolina for $6.25 million (although only $2.75 million in base value). Williams came to Dallas for one year and a base value of $3 million.
The Cowboys opted not to keep him, and Dowdle couldn't even find a starting job elsewhere. He's slated to be Chuba Hubbard's backup with the Panthers.
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Rico Dowdle Cowboys stats
Rico Dowdle had a career year with the Cowboys in 2024.
He carried the ball 235 times for 1,079 yards, a 4.6 yards per carry average. He also caught 39 passes for 249 yards. In total, Dowdle scored five touchdowns.
He had only run for 385 career yards dating to his rookie season in 2020, so it was a massive breakout.
The Cowboys clearly didn't think it was repeatable, so they let their 1,000-yard rusher walk in hopes of replacing him with any one of a number of dart throws.
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