When it comes to the NFL, there is nothing guaranteed. Just when you think you have things figured out, you get thrown a curveball that catches you off guard.
Case in point, take a look at what happened to Tony Romo. Throughout his rehab everyone insisted that this was still Romo’s team, but once he was able to return to the lineup, he finds out that this is now Dak Prescott’s time to shine.
Now, it’s hard to fault the Dallas Cowboys in any way for choosing to stick with Prescott, but this is one of those curveball situations that still caught a lot of us off guard.
The sad truth is that is just the nature of the NFL and nobody’s job is guaranteed, no matter how long you’ve been with the organization.
Job security in the NFL is iffy at best, and I think that Lance Dunbar could be looking over his shoulder now that Darren McFadden was activated from the Non-Football Injury list.
The Dallas Cowboys still have about two weeks to make a decision about when/if they want to add McFadden to the active roster, but it’s hard to believe they will carry four running backs. That means someone’s job is in jeopardy, and to me it looks as if Lance Dunbar is the odd man out.
Dunbar is what I would classify as a 3rd down/specialty back in the NFL. He is not someone that you want carrying the workload for your team, but he is useful in certain situations.
The Cowboys like to use him as a receiver out of the backfield because he creates a mismatch problem for linebackers. That is where he is most dangerous, but with the way Ezekiel Elliott has been playing, Dunbar’s playing time has been limited to say the least.
Durability is the main concern with Lance Dunbar. It seems every time he starts to produce for the Cowboys offense, he always suffers an injury that ends his season.
It’s really difficult to depend on someone when you have to worry about their availability on a regular basis. Already in 2016, injuries have been a problem for Dunbar and resulted in him only playing in eight games.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I like Lance Dunbar, but I think Darren McFadden can pretty much do everything that Dunbar can and offer little bit more in the running game.
McFadden finished fourth in rushing in the NFL last season running by the Cowboys impressive offensive line and could be relied upon once again in case of an unfortunate injury occurred.
Honestly, I would feel much better with the duo of Alfred Morris and Darren McFadden backing up Ezekiel Elliott then I would with Morris and Lance Dunbar.
Give me a complete running back over a specialty RB any day.
Of course, this is all speculation. We really have no way of knowing when/if the Cowboys will add Darren McFadden to the active roster or who will be a roster casualty once it does happen. But, if I’m Lance Dunbar, I would certainly be a little bit worried that my job was in jeopardy.
Do you think Lance Dunbar’s job is in jeopardy?
Please feel free to use the comment section below to share your thoughts and opinions about Lance Dunbar’s job security.
I think it’s a foregone conclusion that if McFadden is ready to play Dunbar is history. The only other option would be Darius Jackson but I really hope that doesn’t happen. This will likely be McFaddens last year and I like having Jackson as a backup to Morris.
Randy, I tend to agree with you. However, I know the coaching staff really likes Lance Dunbar. I just don’t really see a role for him on offense if McFadden is added to the active roster. It will be really interesting to see how the situation plays out.
The way to look at this is that the Cowboys running game is the font from which all team success flows. Dak is better, the defense is better because of it. If you can dominate that aspect of the NFL game, then you stockpile as much talent as you can so that it never falls off.
That is why I wanted Leary still on the team when Collins took his job at LG, Best backup G probably in the game in Leary, and sure enough he became needed in a big way. Same could be true for McFadden, who we know is a threat and a workhorse at RB.
If you lost Elliott, you reload with McF and Morris and it remains the case that nobody stops you.
Thanks for taking the time to comment Russ. I agree with everything you said, especially about keeping Ronald Leary. Honestly, if I have to make a decision between having McFadden or Dunbar on the active roster, I think I would have to go with McFadden. I just think he offers more to the team overall.
So to clarify, I would not dump McFadden just to keep Dunbar. Dunbar has enough good NFL plays that someone will bring him to camp next year.
Russ, I agree. There were a few teams interested in Dunbar during the off-season, but he was still recovering from his knee injury. I think somebody will bring him in.