Cowboys Signing Dalvin A Popular Media Rumor; Better Than Pollard and Dowdle?
FRISCO - Are folks in Cowboys Nation and in the national media clamoring for the Dallas Cowboys to sign just-cut New York Jets veteran running back Dalvin Cook because he's "got game''?
Or because he's "got name''?
With Cook's Tuesday release, he is now free to move, and ideally for him, to land with a playoff team and compete for a Super Bowl.
The Cowboys are a playoff team. They will compete for a Super Bowl. Is this a match?
Almost immediately upon his release, seemingly every NFL-related media outlet in America connected him to Dallas. ... some of them aware that the Cowboys' running game could use a boost ... but some of them seemingly unaware that Cook was a bust with the Jets.
After being released in the offseason by the Vikings - with whom he'd been a perennial Pro Bowler - the 28-year-old signed a one-year deal with the Jets. He was going to star alongside just-acquired Aaron Rodgers. Of course, Rodgers' season in 2023 lasted just four snaps before he tore his Achilles.
Meanwhile, the Jets, now 6-10, spent the year leaning on Breece Hall at running back.
Cook, he had 16 touches in Week 1. But he never again recorded double-digit carries and - with him surely not in uniform for anybody this weekend - will finish the season with just 67 carries for 214 yards, with zero TDs and two fumbles lost. Yuck.
We know that he was available at the trade deadline and that nobody (including Dallas) bit. We also know that when he was a summer free agent, Dallas was again disinterested.
Have things changed for the Cowboys? Should they be interested now?
We've seen the argument that Cook would offer "a fresh set of legs'''; given the fact that he's spent the year sitting on the sideline, we suppose that is true.
In fairness, though, Jets coach Robert Saleh said, of the release, "It's an opportunity for him to go out there and finish the season strong. He's got a lot of juice left in his legs.''
So, maybe.
And as it relates to Dallas? The Cowboys running game, led by Tony Pollard, is not where it wishes to be. Dallas is averaging just 4.1 yards per carry this season, ranks outside the top 10 in the league in rushing yards per game, and has experienced some red-zone problems with its backfield.
Does Dalvin solve all of that? Maybe the fairer question: Is Dalvin Cook a better player than the Cowboys are relying on at running back, meaning not only Pollard but also backup Rico Dowdle?
