Your Sunday morning Cowboys news.
Cowboys’ RB eyes milestone for first time in career – Mario Herrera Jr., Inside the Star
Since joining the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent, Rico Dowdle has worked hard. With another stellar performance, he could earn a significant accolade for the first time in his career.
RB Rico Dowdle is looking to secure the first 1,000 yard rushing season of his career, and he needs just 97 yards to get there.
Will Dowdle Get There?
If we take a sample from the previous four games, Dowdle should have no problem reaching the 1,000 yard mark before the clock hits all zeroes in AT&T Stadium in week 18. I wouldn’t rule out it happening this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles, but setting our sights on week 18 is more realistic.
Dowdle currently averages just 64.5 yards per game, but that number is not indicative of his recent usage. He split carries exclusively with Ezekiel Elliott and sometimes Deuce Vaughn at the beginning of the season. It wasn’t until after QB Dak Prescott went down with injury that HC Mike McCarthy announced Dowdle would be the lead back and take the bulk of the carries.
The Buccaneers did a good job of bottling up the Cowboys run game. Dowdle managed just 23 yards rushing on 13 carries with DT Vita Vea clogging up running lanes. Before the Bucs game, Dowdle matched a feat not reached since Emmitt Smith back in the late 1990s.
Dowdle eclipsed the century mark in three consecutive games, averaging 131 yards per game to add his name to the Cowboys’ history books. Averaging just 48.5 yards rushing over the final two regular season games will make him the most recent player to accomplish that in a Cowboys uniform.
Who Stands In His Way?
Defensive tackles Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis might have something to say about Dowdle reaching the milestone against their defense. No team wants other players to break records against them, and it’s surely no different for the Philadelphia Eagles.
How Cowboys’ Brock Hoffman has helped turn Rico Dowdle loose – Todd Archer, ESPN
From one undrafted player to another, Brock Hoffman has helped unlock the Cowboys running game and Dowdle.
Philadelphia Eagles fans are as rambunctious as they come, and while the Cowboys have already been eliminated from playoff contention before Sunday’s meeting (1 p.m. ET, Fox), the atmosphere should still be captivating. Brock Hoffman, the Cowboys’ right guard, will love it. Nobody talks more on the field than Hoffman. In hockey parlance, he is the Cowboys’ enforcer. In football lingo, he plays to the echo of the whistle.
Two weeks ago against the Carolina Panthers, Hoffman, who moved to center because of Cooper Beebe’s absence due to a concussion, lost his voice in the fourth quarter. “Because he was making so many calls or talking s—, one of the two,” offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer said. The Cowboys’ offense found its identity when Hoffman replaced future Hall of Fame guard Zack Martin, who underwent season-ending right ankle surgery, five games ago against the Washington Commanders.
Running back Rico Dowdle finds himself 97 yards away from 1,000 on the season, mostly because of three straight 100-yard rushing games since Hoffman has started. Cooper Rushhas been sacked just six times in the past five games. It’s not all because of Hoffman, but teammates and coaches don’t dismiss what he has brought to the huddle.
“Super consistent,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “His attitude and energy, what he brings to the workplace has just been on point since he’s been here. Super professional, so well-prepared. He’s got a connective personality, and he definitely deserves a lot of credit for the mindset and play style that he’s really pushed along up front.”
Cornerback Jourdan Lewis called him a “force multiplier.” Schottenheimer said Hoffman has “in a lot of ways galvanized the way we play.”
“He is not going to back down from anybody. His confidence in himself is extremely high,” Schottenheimer said. “He doesn’t look it himself, as a guy that’s undrafted. He’s been through the journey. Been in Cleveland, been here, been cut, been brought back. He’s now starting.”
3 Dallas Cowboys to start in fantasy football in Week 17 vs. Eagles – Ali Jawad, SI.com
if you’re lucky to have made it this far, these Cowboys could carry you to a fantasy football championship
Brandon Aubrey, K
Kicker Brandon Aubrey has become “Aubrey-matic” when kicking from 50 plus yards out. Against Tampa last Sunday, the All-Pro went a perfect 4-4 including a pair of 58-yarders.
Additionally, Aubrey set the NFL record for the most 50-plus yard field goals in a single season with 14, and he may still increase that total with two games remaining.
Aubrey has consistently delivered double-digit fantasy scores, achieving this feat in eight games this season. His reliability makes him a must-start option, solidifying his position as one of the league’s most consistent kickers.
Rico Dowdle, RB
Running back Rico Dowdle’s three-game streak of 100-yard rushing performances came to an abrupt halt last Sunday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The veteran running back was held to just 23 yards on 13 carries, a significant drop-off from his recent outings.
Despite this setback, Dowdle remains a key figure in the Cowboys’ offense having received 10 or more carries in eight consecutive games. He enters this week’s matchup against the Eagles needing only 97 yards to reach the 1,000-yard rushing milestone.
However, achieving this feat will be challenging against a formidable Eagles run defense that ranks ninth in the NFL, allowing just 102.9 rushing yards per game, but surrendered 113 yards to the Commanders last Sunday.
NFC East update: Cowboys to play big role in division outcome-Jess Haynie, Blogging the Boys
Despite being out of the playoff picture, the Dallas Cowboys will have a say in how the NFC East is won.
The Cowboys are headed to Philadelphia this Sunday and then return home for the Week 18 finale against Washington. The Eagles failed to seal the deal on a division crown last week, narrowly losing to the Commanders and leaving the door open for disaster. If Philly loses its final two games and Washington wins out, Dan Quinn’s crew could steal the NFC East.
Current NFC East Standings
Philadelphia Eagles 12-3 (3-1, 7-3 vs NFC)
Washington Commanders 10-5 (3-2 in division, 7-3)
Dallas Cowboys 7-8 (3-1, 5-5)
New York Giants 2-13 (0-5, 1-10)
The Eagles beating Dallas this week didn’t seem in doubt before losing QB Jalen Hurts to a concussion. The Cowboys have beaten better quarterbacks than Kenny Pickett in their recent 4-1 surge, but Pickett should be better after a full week to prepare. While he played plenty in two years with the Steelers, Pickett had only attempted three passes with Philadelphia before being forced into action last week.
Dallas suffered its own major offensive loss this week with news that WR CeeDee Lamb will be shut down with a shoulder injury. It’s rightfully concerning; Lamb’s individual greatness has sometimes felt like the only thing keeping Cooper Rush and the offense afloat. And though the Eagles’ offense may be handicapped this week, their defense which held the Cowboys to six points in Week 10 will be determined to pick up the slack.
If Dallas does upset Philly, the Commanders still have to do their part in a Sunday night meeting with the Falcons. Atlanta is tied with Tampa Bay atop the NFC South and a division win is likely the only way they’ll make the playoffs, so motivation will be high. But Washington, with their own playoff spot still not confirmed, can’t afford any lost momentum. With Michael Penix now QB1 in Atlanta, the duel between him and fellow rookie Jayden Daniels will be fun to watch.
Unfortunately for Washington, even if things go their way this week, Week 18 isn’t looking pretty for their chance at winning the NFC East. While the Commanders will head to Dallas for their finale, the Eagles get a gift with a home game against the hapless New York Giants. Philadelphia could probably rest Hurts for another week and still run away with that game.
That doesn’t mean Dallas-Washington would be meaningless. Again, the Commanders still haven’t locked up a wild card spot. Depending on this week’s outcomes, the Cowboys could be standing in their way of even making the playoffs.
