Mike McCarthy says Cowboys ‘have to’ get Rico Dowdle the ball: ‘He’s the lead back’ Nov 15, 2024

As Mike McCarthy searches for answers for a floundering offense, the Dallas Cowboys coach plans to lean on Rico Dowdle out of the backfield.

“You have to get him the ball,” McCarthy said Thursday of Dowdle, via the team’s official website. “That’s my focus, to continue to get him opportunities. He’s the lead back.”

With Ezekiel Elliott mixed in, Dallas hasn’t leaned on one rusher. Dowdle leads the Cowboys with 83 rushing attempts for 374 yards but has just one game of more than 12 carries (20 totes for 87 yards in a win over Pittsburgh).

Moving forward, getting Dowdle more touches makes logical sense. He’s the Cowboys’ best runner — at this stage it’s not particularly close — and with Cooper Rush under center, Dallas must get a ground game going to have any chance to move the ball consistently.

“It’s definitely a great recognition of being the lead back for America’s Team,” Dowdle said. “But other than that, I’ve just got to continue to go out there and keep doing what I’m doing.”

Dallas is averaging 19.7 PPG, 315.0 total YPG, 83.7 rush YPG and 2.0 giveaways per game in 2024, all worst in a season by the Cowboys since McCarthy became head coach in 2020, per NFL Research.

The 83.7 rush yards per game are the second-fewest in a season in franchise history (79.1 in 2012) and currently second-worst in the NFL.

“I wouldn’t necessarily say that it’s been terrible,” Dowdle said. “I know our numbers and stuff are not where we want them to be, but it’s just football.”

Saddling up Dowdle with a full workload Monday night against Houston makes sense, particularly with the uncertainty at quarterback. However, that only works if the score remains close enough to warrant running the ball.