Cowboys operating backs Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle amongst NFL’s least environment friendly by Week 2

Plenty of issues went fallacious for the Dallas Cowboys final week. Selecting and selecting only one factor to concentrate on can be like asking the youngsters to pick a single sweet out of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Manufacturing facility. There are too many choices, however not like there, none of those are scrumptious.

Dropping 44-19 (a scorigami, at least) forces you to reevaluate something and all the pieces within the title of by no means letting it occur to you once more. We needn’t assume all the pieces might be damaged without end and ever, however with two video games now performed this season we are able to begin to attract reliable conclusions in regards to the 2024 version of this membership.

One of many issues that all of us (usually) had considerations about from the second the offseason started was the operating recreation. These considerations nonetheless exist by two contests.

The Dallas Cowboys have one of many least environment friendly operating again rooms within the NFL and that may be a drawback

We stay in a day and age the place we’ve got entry to a lot data. Going off of issues like complete yards in 2024 is akin to beginning a hearth with sticks and coconut husks. That is a complicated second in time, not the fire-making problem that everyone hates within the new period of Survivor, which implies we are able to look deeper beneath the hood.

For total context’s sake listed here are the uncooked dashing numbers from all people who has registered a carry for the Cowboys to this point this season, courtesy of Pro Football Reference.

Clearly with Dallas getting boat-raced on Sunday the alternatives for operating the ball, establishing your will and all that jazz, have been far and few in between. However it doesn’t take any stage of superior evaluation to see that neither Ezekiel Elliott nor Rico Dowdle have set the world on hearth by two video games. However it is just two video games.

The latest efficiency from Elliott and Dowdle is what has people wondering whether a change is necessary. Take into account that Jerry Jones was requested throughout his Tuesday look on 105.3 The Fan about whether or not or not the crew was contemplating selling Dalvin Cook dinner to the roster from the follow squad this week. That sounds unlikely.

Cook dinner is hardly a hero ready within the wings to save lots of this group, however we’re at some extent the place virtually any various to the present plan needs to be thought of. This isn’t hyperbolic to say at Week 3’s starting. The Cowboys are in severe want of assist.

How can we discern this, although? We’ve famous that we aren’t going to overreact to something. However wanting past the overall field score-type statistics we are able to see that the Cowboys have actually probably the most environment friendly operating again room in the whole league.

Amongst certified rushers, they’re the one crew within the league to have two ball-carriers within the backside ten of RYOE per try, per NFL Pro.

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That is Very Not Good! What’s notably irritating about it’s that it was fully and completely predictable which is why there have been so many requires the Cowboys so as to add expertise to the operating again group in free company or the NFL Draft.

It’s straightforward to say this in hindsight clearly, however it was very obvious because it was all occurring. Take into account the choices that Dallas might have of their backfield proper now if they’d chosen to be a bit extra proactive on this regard.

It’s unlucky that that is the case as a result of Elliott and Dowdle each look like arduous staff who will do greater than is requested of them, however the knowledge reveals that they don’t have the identical form of juice that different operating backs in in the present day’s NFL do. They’re operating fairly actually uphill in lots of senses.

Once more, we’re solely two video games into the season, however contemplate that of the identical pool of certified rushers the place we generated our RYOE/Try numbers that there are solely six ball-carriers who’ve but to register a rush of 10 or extra yards this season:

• Ezekiel Elliott, 16 complete carries, Dallas Cowboys
• D’Onta Foreman, 14 complete carries, Cleveland Browns (Just one recreation performed)
• Javonte Williams, 19 complete carries, Denver Broncos
• Kyren Williams, 30 complete carries, Los Angeles Rams
• Zach Charbonnet, 22 complete carries, Seattle Seahawks
• Trey Benson, 14 complete carries, Arizona Cardinals

Take into account that there are eight extra gamers with solely a single rush of over 10+ yards and that Rico Dowdle is on that checklist (Dallas has three of those performs complete and the opposite two belong to CeeDee Lamb). If the purpose isn’t apparent to you proper now, this group just isn’t yielding optimistic or explosive outcomes.

Listed below are some extra methods by which the Dallas Cowboys are failing as a operating operation (rank by way of 1st being the worst):

• Rush Yards Per Recreation…………………………………….. 85 (eighth)
• Rush Yards Per Play………………………………………… 3.7 (seventh)
• Group Dashing Success Charge……………………………. 37% (ninth)
• Group Dashing Yards Over Anticipated………………… -66 (2nd)
• Group Dashing Yards Over Anticipated/Try…… -1.5 (1st)

These final two factors are what is especially damning of the general operation. While you hear that the run recreation is struggling perhaps your thoughts wanders to the truth that Dallas has two rookies beginning alongside the offensive line in Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe. It will be regular and arguably anticipated for them to wrestle. Perhaps that is their fault, actually talking.

However that’s the place RYOE turns out to be useful to assist us filter our ideas out. Take into account precisely how NFL Professional defines RYOE:

“The distinction between precise dashing yards and anticipated dashing yards on a person play or collection of play.”

The whole objective of this statistical measurement is to inform us what ball-carriers needs to be doing with the alternatives they’re given. Whether or not these alternatives are stout or stingy is a distinct matter, however with the ability to make the proverbial lemonade is one thing that gamers are requested to do and Cowboys ball-carriers don’t make any.

To be fully clear and truthful, this measurement assesses all ball-carriers so the failed finish round from Brandin Cooks (actually, Jalen Brooks) in opposition to New Orleans can also be factored in and weighing issues down. However that’s hardly sufficient by itself to tug Dallas to this point down into the dumps in these sorts of areas. The Cowboys have a severe concern on the bottom, you doubtless didn’t want any superior evaluation to know that.

The room at massive wants assist and it’s unlikely that Dalvin Cook dinner can present it. Correct time to handle that is effectively within the rearview mirror, the time now’s both for the Cowboys to magically get considerably higher on this regard or trot out extra of the identical.

Which do you assume would be the case?