When Dallas Cowboys running back Joseph Randle suggested earlier this offseason that former Boys ballcarrier and current Philadelphia Eagle DeMarco Murray left "a lot of meat on the bone" in the running game for Dallas last year, it was met mostly with eye rolls and quiet laughter.
Murray, behind the vaunted Cowboys offensive line, carried the ball 393 times for a franchise-record 1,845 yards. Randle, running behind the same line, managed just 343 yards on 51 rushes.
In short, Randle really has no place to talk. Yes, he had far less opportunities with Murray firmely entrenched as the starter and yet still managed almost 7.0 yards-per-carry, but having not shouldered a full-time NFL load, it's probably best Randle hold off on such talk until after he's proven himself capable of attaining even a comparable level of production. Even head coach Jason Garrett not-so-subtly admitted as much, stating that he wanted Randle to focus on "doing, not talking."
Despite the ridiculous and unnecessary nature of the statement from Randle, was it actually a bit more factually correct than fans of the Eagles would probably like to admit?
While watching tape of the Cowboys 2014 running game this offseason, Andy Benoit of MMQB.com came to the conclusion that Murray really did fail to utilize the blocking ahead of him to the utmost extent and therefore was unable to drive the Dallas rushing attack and offense to realizing its fullest potential. Thanks to a wooden stiffness in his hips, Murray's ability to make people miss is limited, which in turn dictates that he hit the hole and hit it hard every snap. As such, Murray is effective only when he keeps his shoulders square and churns forward for yardage. Murray was, for some reason, unable to do that consistently last year, meaning Randle and recent free-agent pick up Darren McFadden should have a heck of a 2015 season ahead of them if they can pick up where Murray left off in the thread of the Dallas running game.
"Randle averaged 6.7 yards a carry off the bench in 2014. He can average well over 5.0 getting 20-plus carries a game as a starter as long as he plays with the discipline that Murray sometimes lacked. Not to stoop to giving fantasy advice, but the third-year pro and first-time starter would not be a reach late in the first-round of your 12-team draft," writes Benoit.
"Randle's only obstacle to 1,500-plus yards is Darren McFadden, a fascinating wild card in this backfield equation. In between hamstring pulls and ankles sprains, McFadden has proven to be an excellent straight-line runner."
The suggestion that Murray failed to fully take advantage of the holes in the Cowboys running game despite coming within a hair's breadth of 2,000-yards is mind-boggling.
Still, there's no denying that Randle and McFadden possess a top gear that Murray simply doesn't and there's also no denying that the Cowboys offensive line should be just as good, if not better, in 2015 than it was in 2014.
"What stood out: left tackle Tyron Smith has rickety mechanics but the otherworldly athleticism to more than compensate. Center Travis Frederick is the inverse of Smith-a mechanical genius with only decent physical tools. Right guard Zack Martin has many intriguing positive traits countered only by a few very correctable negative ones. Left guard Ronald Leary is fine when he's aggressive but subpar when he plays to not get beat."
Adding first-round talent La'el Collins to that group means opposing defenses will likely feel no excitement at the proposition of facing off against the Dallas run game next year.
While Randle was wrong to speak about a departed teammate's production - or the perceived lack thereof - if he's actually correct, as Benoit suggests, that Murray missed out on a lot of yards last year, an already scary Cowboys rushing attack may be on the verge of becoming historically fearsome.
