In the case of the Cowboys, one of those glaring mistakes is how they did not lean into running back Rico Dowdle at the start of the season. The fifth-year back had the best night of any player on the Dallas offense, totaling 131 rushing yards on 18 carries, good for 7.3 yards per touch.
Those figures come on the heels of a 112-yard performance on Thanksgiving Day against the New York Giants.
Granted, the quality of opponent on the defensive side for the Cowboys in these recent outings has not been among the best in the league. Nonetheless, Dowdle’s performances have made the original strategy of splitting duties with an antiquated version of Ezekiel Elliott one of the more ridiculous decisions this team had made this season.
And it should create a question in the mind of owner Jerry Jones as he evaluates the “outstanding” Mike McCarthy (that was Jerry’s bizarre postgame take) and his coaching future here: Does this coaching staff deserve credit for “developing” Rico? Or blame for needing two months to see that he needs to be “the guy”?
At the start of the season, Dallas got next to nothing from both Dowdle and Elliott, but perhaps the answer all along was to ride the youngest (and best) horse in the room. Since they have committed down that path, Dowdle has rewarded his team with a series of strong showings.
Now, would this have saved the Cowboys earlier in the year? That answer is likely a no given the series of outstanding roster and franchise issues that reach well beyond their backfield.
But regardless of circumstances, Dowdle has continued to grind through all the turbulence and carve out a name for himself in what has become a lost season for this franchise. And the management – or mismanagement – of Dowdle should be on ownership’s “To Do List” once Dallas gets this 2024 mess over with.