The Dallas Cowboys revamped the team’s running back depth chart this offseason and will have a new starter when Week 1 rolls around. Yet, several Cowboys veterans are fighting for a roster spot with some players in danger of never taking a snap for Dallas.
The Cowboys’ significant offseason additions at the position include signing Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders during NFL free agency. Dallas followed up these moves by selecting Texas Longhorns running back Jaydon Blue and Clemson Tigers rusher Phil Mafah on the third day of the NFL draft.
All this has created a murky picture at running back months before the Cowboys begin training camp. One former Pro Bowler may be in danger of getting cut.
New Cowboys RB Miles Sanders Is a Potential Cut Candidate
The Cowboys signed Sanders, who the team has familiarity with from his standout years with the Philadelphia Eagles, but this was not the same player who suited up for the Carolina Panthers. Sanders is fighting for a roster spot and needs to solidify himself during training camp.
Sports Illustrated’s Randy Gurzi offered an early projection for the Cowboys depth chart and has Williams winning the starting role. The analyst believes Sanders will get cut as Dallas finalizes their roster ahead of Week 1. Deuce Vaughn is another running back who gets the axe in these projections.
“Deuce Vaughn is another player who gets edged out by a rookie,” Gurzi wrote in a May 5, 2025, story titled, “Dallas Cowboys 53-man roster prediction after rookie minicamp.” “Seventh-round pick Phil Mafah is a bulldozer who can dominate in short-yardage situations. Vaughn was a great story, but he hasn’t taken advantage of the opportunities to this point. Also gone is Miles Sanders, who wasn’t impressive the past two years in Carolina.”
Miles Sanders Failed to Reach 500 Rushing Yards in His 2 Seasons With the Panthers
The projections have Blue as the Cowboys backup running back with Mafah and Hunter Luepke joining Williams as the four rushers who make the final roster. Prior to selecting Blue and Mafah, the Cowboys sounded confident in the veterans the team added in free agency.
“I like what we did in free agency,” Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones said regarding the team’s running back moves on April 25, per Pro Football Talk. “That’s one of the things we like to accomplish in free agency is get some guys in and feel like we did that. We don’t really feel like we have to pick a position anywhere in terms of our depth.
“That’s how you make mistakes when you say ‘hey, we’ve got to draft for need here.’ I think you make mistakes that way. Don’t get me wrong, it comes into everybody’s pick when you’re looking at players but we don’t feel the need to have to reach and take a player down the line just because we need a position.”
Sanders’ days as a Pro Bowl running back may be a thing of the past. The veteran’s best season came with the Eagles in 2022 when Sanders posted 259 carries for 1,269 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns in 17 appearances earning his lone Pro Bowl nomination.
Sanders failed to reach 500 rushing yards in either of his two seasons with Carolina. The running back could have a bounce back opportunity given the number of weapons who will surround him in Dallas.
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