Javonte Williams is walking into Week 1 with a setup the Cowboys would gladly take: a fresh multi-year deal, the RB1 job, and a matchup against a Giants defense that PFF’s Judah Fortgang sees as vulnerable in all the right places.
Dallas bet on Williams in free agency last season, and the move paid off fast. He answered with 1,210 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns, then enters this season as one of the more dependable starters around. Fortgang’s case for a strong opener is simple: Williams got heavy work near the stripe last year, and New York had real trouble keeping teams out of the end zone.
"Williams handled 71.4% of Dallas’ goal-line carries last season and converted 10 of his 20 attempts inside the 5-yard line into touchdowns. He finished with 11 rushing scores, seventh among running backs with at least 80 carries. Now, he faces a Giants defense that surrendered 19 rushing touchdowns, tied for third-most in the NFL," Fortgang wrote.
He added, "With Dallas favored by 3 points in one of the highest-total games on the slate, the projected game environment should create opportunities for Williams near the goal line. There isn’t much reason to overthink this spot: Williams is well-positioned to find the end zone."
There is some pushback on the matchup. Brian Baldinger recently argued that the Giants could control both lines of scrimmage, particularly with T.J.
Bass stepping in for injured Tyler Smith. Even so, the Cowboys still have enough strength up front to run the ball effectively, and that plays directly into Williams’ hands.
The Giants also have recent history with him. Williams sat out the season finale last year because of a shoulder injury, but in Week 2 he gave Dallas its first real preview of what was coming. He posted 97 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, averaging 5.4 yards per rush, and added 33 receiving yards on six catches for 130 yards on 24 touches.
That game became the launch point for his breakout season. Now, with the offensive line dealing with injuries and questions in pass protection at tackle, Williams should be a central piece of the plan again. He can move the chains, and he can force defenses to pay attention to the run, which opens more for Dak Prescott and the rest of the offense.
In Other News...
Cowboys Fans Have A New Overshown Question After That Giants Opener
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Overshowns late hit on Jaxson Dart drew a penalty and left him facing the possibility of a league fine once the play is reviewed, which only adds another layer to how Dallas will manage him moving forward. Given his history of major knee injuries, every snap for Overshown carries a little more weight than it would for most players, and the Cowboys now have a familiar question to sort through: how to get his aggression on the field without letting it spill over into costly mistakes. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Loss Exposed The Same Problems Fans Feared Most
The season opener in New York did little to quiet the unease around Dallas. The Cowboys fell 28-20 to the Giants, and the loss felt familiar in all the wrong ways, with a defense that had been reshaped in the offseason still unable to get off the field and an offense that spent too much of the night fighting behind the sticks.
New York converted 10 of 11 third downs, a brutal sign for a unit that was supposed to look sturdier after the changes. Add in the penalties, missed tackles, a costly interception and dropped passes, and the Cowboys were left with the same mix of execution problems and coaching questions that have followed them before, only now with an opening loss to show for it. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Trade Deadline Hope Just Got Much Tougher For Jerry Jones
The Cowboys search for a defensive jolt took a hit with Maxx Crosby staying put on the Raiders side of the conversation. Dallas had already been in the mix as a finalist in earlier trade talks, and Jerry Jones has made it clear he is open to doing something if it helps the defense. With the deadline still weeks away, the idea of Crosby in a Cowboys uniform had remained alive as one of the bigger names worth monitoring.
But the market has gotten a lot more complicated. The Rams also explored a deal for Crosby, only to learn he does not want to be moved and would rather remain in Las Vegas, and that kind of stance changes the temperature around any chase. For the Cowboys, it means any renewed push would have to overcome not just trade cost, but a player preference that could make a November 10 deal much harder to pull off. [Read more 🡒]