For the Dallas Cowboys, passing on star running back Derrick Henry still appears to be their worst off-season mistake.
Henry, who inked a two-year, $16 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens in free agency, is outpacing the Cowboys (2-2) through four games.
Henry has 80 carries for 480 yards and five touchdowns, according to RJ Ochoa of SB Nation. Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle, and Deuce Vaughn, the running backs for the Cowboys, have combined for 65 carries, 235 yards, and one touchdown.
Through Week 4, all three Dallas Cowboys running backs:
– 65 loads
A total of 235 running yards
– Every carry, 3.9 yards
– One touchdown via rush
Derrick Henry of the Baltimore Ravens through Week 4:
– 480 running yards – 80 carries – 6.0 yards per carry
5 touchdowns on the ground
— September 30, 2024, RJ Ochoa (@rjochoa) On Baltimore’s opening offensive play, Henry scored an 87-yard rushing touchdown to lead the team to a 35-10 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. On 24 carries, he finished with 199 yards and one touchdown. According to Ochoa, Dowdle is the lone Cowboy with at least 87 rushing yards this season with 134.
Henry, who has a home in Dallas, stated on “The Pivot” podcast in March that he would have liked to play for the Cowboys, but they never contacted him. Why did they not?
Following a Week 3 victory over the Cowboys in which Henry ran for two touchdowns and 151 yards, Jerry Jones, the owner of Dallas, told the media that “we could not afford” to sign Henry.
Dallas may have avoided spending in free agency this offseason by signing quarterback Dak Prescott and standout wide out CeeDee Lamb to contract extensions at the last minute.
In August, the Cowboys inked Lamb to a $136 million, four-year contract extension. Before the team’s season opener against the Cleveland Browns on September 8, it awarded Prescott a $240 million, four-year contract.
Despite Dallas’ emphasis on re-signing Prescott and Lamb, former sports agent Joel Corry of CBS Sports indicated that the Cowboys still have place for Henry.
After Week 3, Corry stated in a piece, “The same deal Henry got done with the Ravens could have been done with a lower cap number.” “Henry’s 2024 cap number [$5.105M] could have been as low as $2.768M by adding three dummy/void years to prorate Henry’s $7.79M signing bonus over five years instead of two years.”
Dallas might have been concerned that Henry, 30, will do less well this year. Because of the wear and tear on the position, organizations have refrained from compensating veteran running backs in recent years.
The Cowboys will undoubtedly regret missing out on signing the future Hall of Famer. He could have improved Dallas’ chances of winning the Super Bowl by igniting its woeful running offense.
