Darren McFadden has huge game, muddles

However, there is a silver-lining for the Cowboys in losing a game they should have won.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Tuesday morning on KRLD-FM that Darren McFadden’s breakout game Sunday at the New York Giants merits McFadden the opportunity to start Sunday against Seattle.

Dallas may have finally found that starting running back to replace DeMarco Murray.

McFadden’s yardage came on a season-high 29 carries, and he earned a rushing touchdown.

The Dallas Cowboys’ running back by committee approach is on the verge of getting a major overhaul. McFadden has failed to crack 4.0 YPC since 2012 before this season and Michael was never able to make his mark after being selected by Seattle in the second round two years ago.

The Cowboys said leading rusher Joseph Randle still will get carries, but they have acknowledged a desire to take a look at Michael now that he is comfortable in the offense. With McFadden atop the heap, he should see around 20 total touches, giving Michael a good 10-12 looks per game to prove he’s more than a workout warrior.

Granted, McFadden is no spring chicken, but he appears to have a better feel for the game as a starting running back than Randle.

Back in 2010 with Oakland, McFadden gained 1,157 yards in 13 games. He has the pedigree of a feature back. He has yet to have a 100-yard rushing game this season. But Randle stands as the lone running back left on the 53-player roster who played in Dallas last season. If he plays, it will be as McFadden’s backup. He played only one play in each of the past two games, losing a yard on a fourth-down run against the New Orleans Saints and gaining 6 yards on the third-and-1 run against the Patriots.

On a day when the Cowboys couldn’t get out of the way of themselves with mistakes that enabled to basically giveaway the game to the Giants, McFadden was the only bright spot in a mistaken-prone performance. Although he had his moments – such as a three-touchdown game against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 3 – and although the Cowboys rank seventh in rushing yards per game (127.7), Randle has been inconsistent and much less explosive than Dallas had hoped for.