Cowboys are trying out Ben Tate, per report

The journeyman running back, who played for the Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers last year, will join a backfield without a clear-cut starter.

The Dallas Cowboys enjoy fragile running backs to an unhealthy degree. They replaced DeMarco Murray with Darren McFadden this offseason for financial reasons and now they are looking to add another injury report All-Star to the mix.

Source: RB Ben Tate is working out for the Dallas #Cowboys today.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) May 21, 2015

The Cowboys backfield currently sports a veritable arsenal of Joseph Randle, Lance Dunbar, Ryan Williams and newcomer McFadden, who combined for 976 rushing yards in 2014. They will try to replace a 1,845-yard rusher last year in Murray.

Ben Tate, on the other hand, has bounced around the league since arriving as the savior for the Browns’ rushing woes. He started the season in Cleveland before being outpaced by Terrence West and Isaiah Crowell, then tumbled to the Vikings before finally landing in Pittsburgh for the Steelers’ playoff run.

More from Dallas Cowboys

His role was diminished last year at all three stops, but in Dallas he has the chance to be the most important and productive back in the NFL. Right?

The running game serves – or at least served – as the basis for a great deal of what the Cowboys do on offense. Murray was used early and often in games, allowing Dallas to have longer scoring possessions and ideally forcing the defense to collapse inward, either with run support formations or by bringing in a safety as the eighth man in the box. This would afford Tony Romo and a receiving corps led by Dez Bryant an opportunity to generate one-on-one matchups along the sidelines, as well as more easily draw away safety help in the middle.

For many observers, it was clear the Cowboys were able to effectively do this was their incredible offensive line. Not only would the line clear away caverns in the defense for Murray, but they would also provide Romo endless time in the pocket to find the right matchups in the passing game.

This made Murray expendable when they had to chose between him and Bryant. The Dallas line makes Murray less valuable of an asset as Bryant, but it isn’t magic dust that can make any scrub an NFL starter.

Tate has the pedigree to take over as the starter for Dallas, but his struggles to hold onto the football and lack of production in three spots should make Cowboys fans pause. At least he’s not walking in as the savior like he did in Cleveland.

More from Dallas Cowboys

Home/Dallas Cowboys