Felix Jones now the starter in Dallas
Posted by Anthony Stalter (04/30/2010 @ 8:52 am)
It appears that Marion Barber’s days as a starter are over in Dallas, as Chris Mortensen reports that Felix Jones will officially move to the top of the Cowboys’ depth chart at running back.
Barber finished with 214 rushing attempts last season, while Jones received 116. Those numbers will likely be reversed this season, with Jones getting the bulk of the carries. Tashard Choice is still expected to get some touches as well, seeing as how both Jones and Barber have issues staying healthy.
While this is certainly big news, the biggest question surrounding the Cowboys’ running game isn’t which back will start, but whether or not Doug Free can man the left tackle position now that Flozell Adams has been released. Dallas did not select an offensive tackle in last week’s draft, which was a huge vote of confidence for Free, who has very limited experience. Unless they re-sign Adams at some point, it looks like the 26-year-old Northern Illinois grad will start Week 1, because there is no depth behind him.
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Will the Cowboys target Gaither after releasing Adams?
Posted by Anthony Stalter (04/02/2010 @ 7:30 pm)
On Friday, the Cowboys released left tackle Flozell Adams and free safety Ken Hamlin and while the moves themselves aren’t surprising, the timing is a little strange.
The Cowboys weren’t up against any sort of deadline to release either player. Adams was due a $2.5 million roster bonus in June, but they could have allowed the draft to play out before releasing him. Hamlin was on his way out at some point, but Dallas doesn’t have a suitable replacement on the roster at this point.
If the season were to start today, Doug Free would protect Tony Romo’s blindside and Alan Ball would compete with Mike Hamlin at the free safety spot. It’s doubtful that the Cowboys would just hand the starting left tackle spot over to an inexperienced player such as Free, so don’t be surprised if they add an offensive tackle in one of the early rounds of the draft.
Another possibility is that Jerry Jones will target Ravens’ restricted free agent Jared Gaither, who wants to remain in Baltimore but also wants a long-term deal. The NFL Network’s Jason La Confora said in a recent episode of NFL Total Access that Gaither could be had for a second round pick. The problem that the Cowboys face in that scenario is that the Redskins are also interested in Gaither, so maybe Dallas will be willing to part with their first round pick (No. 27 overall) in order to get ahead of Washington, which selects at No. 37.
Of course, this is just speculation on my part but again, chances are the Cowboys aren’t going to hand the starting left tackle job over to Free after releasing Adams.
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