FRISCO, Texas — Rico Dowdle, the Dallas Cowboys’ 26-year-old undrafted running back, had just 96 carries in his first four NFL seasons.
Fast forward to today, and Dowdle is just 97 rushing yards away from his first 1,000-yard season, something he thinks about all the time as a running back looking to make a name for himself. He trailed multiple Pro Bowlers like Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard for years, but in Week 11 of this season, Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy abandoned his “running back by committee” approach and anointed Dowdle as the “back-leader” of the Cowboys.
Only the NFL’s 2024 rushing yards leader, Saquon Barkley (632 rushing yards since Week 11), the Baltimore Ravens’ Derrick Henry (663) and the Los Angeles Rams’ Kyren Williams (579) have more rushing yards than the 529 by Dowdle since becoming the face of the Cowboys’ running game in Week 11. His 107 carries are by far the most on the team in this stretch, followed by Backup Starting Quarterback Cooper Rush 20 and then Elliott 17.
Dowdle also set a new single-game career high for rushing yards in three consecutive weeks against the New York Giants (112 rushing yards on 22 carries in Week 13), against the Cincinnati Bengals (131 rushing yards on 18 carries in Week 14). ) and the Carolina Panthers (149 rushing yards on 25 carries).
“Oh, yeah, sure. I definitely think about it all the time,” Dowdle said Thursday when asked about reaching 1,000 rushing yards. “I have two weeks to do it, so I definitely want to hit that mark… It would mean a lot… It would definitely mean a lot to be a 1,000-yard rusher in the NFL, especially with my “First season I can carry the load. “It’s definitely a milestone that I think I can reach, and I think I can do it.”
With the 26-year-old running back battling a broken hip in 2021 and a season-ending ankle injury in 2022, Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy sees more room to grow in Dowdle’s game after of what he has shown in his first turn as a player. Featured runner.
“I think Rico is a great story,” McCarthy said in a conference call Friday. … “He fought through the injury situations he was in for the next two years, and finally got a real chance last year behind Tony, he thought he was very productive. I think clearly by earning a spot, he has made a great effort.” Good job on first and second chances. I love his racing style. What I like about Rico is that he is still young. There is still room for improvement. He’s also starting to try to establish himself as a third downer. There’s a lot more ahead of him. So I’m proud of him. I love the way he does it.”
Dowdle prides himself on being a violent, downhill runner, and that style has allowed him to have one of the most efficient rushing seasons in the entire league in 2024. A successful career is analytically defined by gaining at least 40% of the required yards. on first down (4 yards on first and 10, for example), 60% of the required yards on second down, and moving the chains for a first down on a third or fourth down carry.
The run success rate metric is the number of successful runs divided by the total number of run attempts a player has. Among 27 players who have at least 155 carries this season, Dowdle’s 55.3% rushing success rate on his 190 carries for 903 rushing yards is fourth-best in the entire league. That’s ahead of Detroit Lions Pro Bowler Jahmyr Gibbs (54.5%) and Barkley (52.9%). Dowdle trails only Henry (59%), the Atlanta Falcons’ Bijan Robinson (56.4%) and the Kansas City Chiefs’ Kareem Hunt (55.5%) this season. He’ll face Barkley on Sunday, something he’s looking forward to after long admiring players like Barkley and Henry.
“Oh, yeah, sure… Those guys have been doing it for a long time, and I feel good doing it,” Dowdle said of two of the top NFL running backs the Cowboys have faced this season. “I think I’m able to handle the load pretty well, carrying it so many times, but those guys, like you said, have been doing it for a long time, so I definitely appreciate them.”
One of the things he admires about Barkley’s game is his ability to create space, whether the block in front of him is set up to do so or not.
“Everything, he’s a complete player,” Dowdle said of Barkley. “Explosive. He makes plays and can create on his own. He’s been able to do that and he’s having a great year.”
However, Dowdle will not be on the field at the same time as Barkley. Instead, he’ll directly face the Eagles’ “strong” defensive line, led by defensive tackle Jalen Carter, defensive tackle Jordan Davis and running back Josh Sweat.
“They’re pretty strong,” Dowdle said. “They have Jalen Carter, a guy from Georgia. They have Jordan Davis… and then they have [Josh] They sweat, so they are pretty good at the front. They built a good defense, the front seven. Fifty-three as a linebacker [Zack Baun]so I’m looking forward to Sunday’s challenge.”
