When you promote the Son of Martyball from within, expect there to be Martyball played in Big D. The Dallas Cowboys deciding to give their former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer a seat in the big chair was a tad shocking. What is not is his proclivity for running the football. Run, run, pass, punt is what made his late father Marty famous. To be fair, the Schottenheimers do know how to run.
So with that in mind, I came across Adam Rank's latest NFL mock draft for NFL.com. Rather than doing what he thinks every team will end up doing, he decided to go in a totally different direction. He opted to do one based on what every team SHOULD do in the first round. The results were disastrous, culminating in Ashton Jeanty going to the New York Giants at No. 3 for some odd reason.
This in turn caused the Cowboys to still reach on North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton at No. 12. That is about as early as I could envision Hampton coming off the board. Conversely, I do not think it is in the Cowboys' best interest to take a running back in the first round, but I do not work at The Star in Frisco. Assessing Rank's tank is easier said than done, so I will do my very best to do so.
Let's grade this take, shall we: Should the Cowboys take a running back not named Ashton Jeanty?
Should the Dallas Cowboys take a running back in the first round?
To put it as simply as I can, no, the Cowboys should not be taking a running back at No. 12 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. If they do, it better be Jeanty out of Boise State. If they end up reaching on Hampton at No. 12, that could end up costing America's Team dearly. If they were to trade back into the 20s to draft Hampton, I would be much more on board with that hypothetical first-round selection.
As far as if the Cowboys' pick should be a running back other than Jeanty, I would argue that it should be yes, assuming they are taking a running back in day two or three of the draft. If the non-Jeanty running back is required to go in the first round, it should be no, because Hampton would be a massive reach for them. I would much rather the Cowboys take a guy who starred over at Ohio State.
Whether it be TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins or even Dylan Sampson out of Tennessee, that is the better pick to make for the Cowboys. All three will be available in day two or three to replace Deuce Vaughn. Again, answering this take is a bit complicated because it is a bit of yes and no. I would say that it behooves Dallas to take a receiver of an offensive lineman with the No. 12 pick.
The point being is I would rather see the Cowboys draft pretty much anyone other than Hampton.
Grade: C's get degrees, and you cannot spell Dallas Cowboys without a Capital C!