For the last couple of years, the preseason has only been three games instead of four, which means it is one less opportunity for players to show why they should make the final roster.

One offensive unit that we should be worried about when the regular season rolls around is the running backs.

This team has absolutely no idea what they are going to get from anyone on a weekly basis, and based on what we saw during the first preseason game, they have a mountain to climb.

Rico Dowdle pic.twitter.com/oMpabLXwwy

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) August 14, 2024

What I Want To See

On Saturday let’s see a bit of balance, huh? Trey Lance should not be throwing the ball 41 times in a preseason game.

It is not only that he threw the ball that many times, but he missed a lot of easy throws the former 3rd overall pick should make. To add, he was playing against guys who probably won’t even make the roster.

“Lot of attempts, lot of misses”- Steve Smith Sr on QB Trey Lance

— Jane Slater (@SlaterNFL) August 11, 2024

Lance was better with his feet than his arm against the Rams. He had six carries for 44 yards and was the leading rusher for the team.

Malik Davis only averaged 2.3 yards per carry. His longest carry was four yards. Rico Dowdle, who is expected to be the lead back, averaged 4.7 on three carries for 14 yards. That is awful.

Given multiple opportunities to do something, they came away with little to no yards.

I would love to see Ezekiel Elliott play this week, but I have a feeling they will hold him out again.

Zeke had 642 yards last season on 184 carries with the Pats. He is on the decline, but they need to find a combination that works so they don’t enter week one against Myles Garrett and the Browns with no plan of attack.

Nothing But Pain

This is the worst the Cowboys’ backfield has been since Zeke was drafted in 2016, and even before that, at least they had a rusher go over 1,000 yards.

One other name to keep an eye on his is Deuce Vaughn.

Vaughn has to seize the moment in Dallas’ final two preseason games.

His performance will determine whether he secures a roster spot or faces being cut. He doesn’t even have to show that he can be a solid running back. I would rather see him be able to catch the football out of the backfield.

Deuce Vaughn pic.twitter.com/n1rB2kcF2P

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) August 14, 2024

Vaughn being drafted was the story of the 2023 NFL draft when his dad called him, but that will be his only moment if he can’t prove anything.

That starts with Mike McCarthy, how instead of throwing the ball nearly 50 times in a game that doesn’t matter, you see what you have in these guys?

This season might bring nothing but pain when watching this team try to run the football.

They don’t even have CeeDee Lamb signed, and no defense is going to be scared of an aging Zeke, Rico Dowdle and either Davis, Royce Freeman or Vaughn.

Okay, I’ll Calm Down

Maybe I am overreacting, but this team is putting a lot of trust in guys who aren’t proven and a guy who is aging.

It might be because this is not what fans are used to going into a season. They have had a good to very good running back for over a decade.

Let’s see what happens Saturday against the Raiders and then the following week against the Chargers. I will still complain either way. I just wish they had CeeDee Lamb in the building. They did add help to the defense with Jordan Phillips and Carl Lawson, that is a start.

The young offensive has looked good enough as of now, and they will be needed to stay as healthy as possible.