Dallas Cowboys Should Focus On DeMarco Murray, Not Dez Bryant

As the Cowboys prepare for the 2015 season, they need to make some tough decisions with their roster. They have mortgaged themselves into a corner somewhat with large contracts they have some of their players signed to. Guys like Tony Romo, Tyron Smith and Brandon Carr are costing them a lot of money annually, and it’s highly likely they will need to let some of their veterans go to have any cap space for next year.

With projected cap space in the NFL expected to be about 140 million, the Cowboys would have about 7-8 million depending on if they decide to make those cuts, restructure contracts, etc. Assuming they do make those types of moves, it still leaves them in a pretty tough spot fiscally. The hard truth they will have to face is that they will not be able to keep some of the free agents they’d like to. One of those guys might be DeMarco Murray, and if they don’t decide to re-sign him, they will be making a huge mistake.

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Money aside, it doesn’t take an NFL expert to look at the 2014 season for the Cowboys and see that they made huge strides in terms of both season performance and wins. They were a Dez Bryant controversial catch away from possibly playing in the NFC Championship game. But the biggest reason why that was the case wasn’t Bryant’s performance during the year. Granted, he had a great season, but he has had great seasons just about every year he’s been a pro. The season Murray had and the way the Cowboys fundamentally changed their approach to the run game was the biggest reason why they were so successful.

Murray had over 1,800 yards rushing and 13 TD’s; impressive numbers in todays pass-first NFL to be sure. But more importantly, his ability to move the ball so well on the ground took a lot of pressure off of Romo’s shoulders and made the passing attack that much more lethal.

It’s kind of tough to stop guys like Bryant and Jason Witten when you stack 8 in the box to stop Murray. Averaging almost 5 yards per carry against the defense forces them to pick their poison; sometimes it was a slower death with Murray and the run game, other times it was a quick strike from Romo to Bryant. Taking Murray out of that equation changes everything.

Look at the last few seasons for the Cowboys. They were hovering in the top 5 all year in rushing this past season, and saw post season success. 2013? Top half of the league in passing, bottom half in rushing, 8-8. 2012? The same, 2011? You get the picture. Granted, Murray was on the team during those years, but he never got a full work load, as the Cowboys didn’t commit to the run like they did in 2014. With the success they had running this past year, it is a no brainer that 2015 should be a carbon copy of that blueprint.

Jerry Jones might think his offer of around 4 million to Murray is fair, but it is almost a lock Murray will get a bigger deal somewhere else. Jones needs to take a second look at what will keep Murray in Dallas long term.

He can’t assume the next guy that steps into Murray’s role will be able to do the same kind of job, especially when you consider what Joseph Randle is going through in his personal life. Murray possesses speed, power and vision. There is no doubt he has a weakness: fumbling. But so did Tiki Barber when he played for the N.Y. Giants. Barber was coached up and was able to correct that issue; Murray should be able to do the same.

Bryant is a special player and will command big money as well. Franchising him is probably the likely answer next year. But Murray can be signed for a lot less than Bryant, and the Cowboys need to focus on doing exactly that.

Next: Where do the Cowboys rank among the best franchises in history?

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