The Cowboys’ preseason opener in Seattle answered one big question and left another hanging. Camden Brown made the wide receiver battle look a lot clearer with two highlight-reel touchdowns, but the backfield still feels like a work in progress behind Javonte Williams.
Williams remains the steady answer at the top of the depth chart after his career year in 2025, and Dallas is not hunting for a new starter there. The real intrigue is what comes after him. That’s one of the few places on this offense where the Cowboys could still unveil something different heading into 2026, especially with all 11 of last year’s offensive starters still positioned to return in their roles.
Against the Seahawks, Jaydon Blue handled a team-high eight carries but finished with the fewest rushing yards among the running backs. Malik Davis and Israel Abanikanda each logged seven carries, with Davis leading the group with 39 yards and Abanikanda right behind him at 36. Phil Mafah also got four carries before leaving with an injury.
Blue’s most encouraging moment came as a receiver, when he caught one of two screen passes for 13 yards on the drive that ended in a field goal. But the bigger issue for him is that he missed Monday’s team drills because of a shoulder injury, which opened the door even wider for Davis to keep stacking reps.
And Davis did what he has done since arriving in Dallas in 2022: he took the opportunity and made it count.
With Mafah and Abanikanda both limited, Davis worked Monday as the primary backup to Williams. That wasn’t just a product of injuries, either. The Cowboys are still seeing the same thing they’ve seen for a while now - when it comes to this group, running hard between the tackles is the most reliable answer.
Davis fits that job. He brings burst, he makes quick decisions at the line, and he has a knack for turning modest blocking into positive yards. Mafah flashed some of that earlier in camp and had real year-two momentum as the 2025 seventh-round pick, but the arrow is pointed the other way for now as he tries to fight back into the mix.
That leaves Dallas looking at a possible Williams-Davis pairing if the season opened today. It may not be the kind of duo that grabs fantasy attention or sets casual fans buzzing, but it could absolutely work.
That matters because the Cowboys’ defense looked like a unit built to play with a lead against Seattle, and Monday brought another boost with the formal signing of Von Miller. If that defense is going to keep games under control, the offense’s job becomes pretty simple: move the chains, chew clock, and keep the tempo where Dallas wants it.
That’s where the run game comes in, especially with George Pickens, CeeDee Lamb, and Ryan Flournoy stretching defenses on the outside. Once opponents have to respect those perimeter threats, life gets easier inside.
So for now, Williams gives Dallas a strong starting point, and Davis keeps doing enough to stay right in the middle of the conversation. If Mafah and Abanikanda get healthy, the picture could shift again. But heading into the Saints work on Tuesday, the running back battle is still very much worth watching.
In Other News...
Cowboys Camp Battle At Left Tackle Just Got More Interesting
Training camp is already giving the Cowboys a clearer picture of how they want to sort out the left side of their offensive line, and rookie Shelton has become part of that conversation. The fourth-round pick from the 2026 NFL Draft has been working with the second-team unit at left tackle, a sign that Dallas is taking a closer look at his versatility while it continues to mix and match pieces up front.
Shelton is hardly the only lineman getting reps in a moving competition. Nate Thomas, Trevor Keegan, TJ Bass and Nick Leverett have all been cycling through different spots as the Cowboys try to find the right combinations in practice. The left tackle picture remains fluid for now, which is exactly what makes this stretch of camp worth watching. [Read more 🡒]
DeMarcus Lawrence Faced One More Career Decision After Finally Winning It All
DeMarcus Lawrence finally reached the top of the sport in the 2025 season, winning his first Super Bowl ring with the Seattle Seahawks after 11 years with the Dallas Cowboys. After a long run in Dallas, the championship gave him the kind of ending so many players spend their entire careers chasing, and for a moment it looked like he might walk away from football with that feeling still fresh.
Instead, Lawrence chose to give the game one more year, a decision shaped in part by his family situation and the support around him. What makes the next chapter especially notable is that it is already set to be his final one, leaving one last season for a veteran pass rusher who spent years grinding for a title and now gets a closing act on his own terms. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Suddenly Have A Tackle Problem They Cant Ignore
After the Cowboys first preseason game, the most uneasy feeling in the building is back at offensive tackle, where the depth chart already looks thinner than anyone would like this time of year. Nate Thomas had a rough opening stretch, and Drew Shelton, the recent draft pick getting his first look, was part of the same problem as Dallas tried to sort through a position group that suddenly feels too vulnerable for comfort.
The Cowboys have a little time to fix it, but not much, and the rest of the preseason will be watched closely for help both inside the building and beyond it. If the current options keep flashing the same issues, Dallas may have to lean on waivers or explore trade possibilities before the regular season starts, because this is the kind of problem that can snowball quickly once the games count. [Read more 🡒]