News flash: Jerry Jones will live to regret what he did.
Despite having their finest summer in years, the Dallas Cowboys’ decision to let running back Rico Dowdle go for pennies was a major source of controversy.
Following a successful career year, there were rumors that Dowdle may sell for up to $5 million annually. Many Cowboys supporters urged Jerry Jones to re-sign Dowdle throughout the season in order to keep him from leaving in free agency because of how well he performed.
As it turned out, Jones did not keep Dowdle. For a pitiful $1.75 million guaranteed, the former undrafted free agent signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Panthers.
The story of the revenge game almost writes itself because Dallas and Carolina will face each other in the 2025 regular season. We know that Dowdle will play against his old squad in Week 6 after the NFL released its schedule on Wednesday night.
In Week 6, Rico Dowdle will make the Cowboys pay for his absence.
Following his own stellar season, Chuba Hubbard is expected to start at running back for Carolina, while Dowdle is set to start at RB2.
Jonathan Brooks, a 2024 second-round selection of the Panthers, will be out for the whole season while he heals from an ACL tear, according to recent reports. Although they selected Trevor Eitenne, a Georgia product, in this year’s fourth round, he poses no danger to Dowdle’s workload.
Instead of re-upping Dowdle, a guy who had been with the Cowboys for five years after joining as an undrafted free agency out of South Carolina in 2020, the team, for whatever reason, chose to sign veteran Miles Sanders.
Sanders offers experience to a youthful backfield and comes to Dallas with a smile on his face after a terrible Panthers stay, but Hubbard passed him on the depth chart despite the fact that he was one of the league’s most effective runners the previous season.
With the selection of Clemson brute Phil Mafah in the seventh round and Texas speed demon Jaydon Blue in the fifth, the Cowboys, to their credit, completely rebuilt their running back room.
Both rookies, especially Blue, should be a danger for snaps right away, but what if Dowdle was taking the lead instead of Sanders, who spent the previous two seasons averaging a pitiful 3.5 yards per carry?
Although the Cowboys are expected to defeat Carolina, it would be advantageous for Jerry Jones if Dowdle overwhelms his defense in this game. Letting him go never made sense and may backfire.
