Dynasty Capsule: Dallas Cowboys

Dan Meylor

cowboyscapsule

As part of the premium content package, we’re again unveiling dynasty capsules for every team in the NFL leading up to free agency and the NFL Draft. This year, we’re again going to do a follow-up on all the teams after all the free agency and NFL Draft movement to assess the impact of any players teams have gained or lost. Since these capsules are always done as a simple snapshot in time, we figured that was the best way to tackle the off-season and provide ultimate value for our subscribers. All in all, we’ll have close to 500 player profiles found in these capsules over the off-season.

The Cowboys’ offense was a surprise in 2014, finishing the season as one of the best and most balanced units in the league. With a couple tough decisions to make in the coming months, all eyes will be on Dallas to see if they can keep Big D’s new Big Three intact.

Quarterbacks

Tony Romo

Soon to be 35 years old, Romo had one of the best seasons of his career in 2014. He completed a career high 69.9% of his passes (the best of any quarterback in the league), had a career best 34-to-nine touchdown-to-interception ratio (best in the league) and averaged 8.5 yards-per-attempt, which was his best finish since his first season as a starter. Overall, Romo was incredibly efficient in 2014 and it translated well to his fantasy numbers.

Depending on the scoring settings, Romo likely finished the season among the bottom half of the top ten quarterbacks in your fantasy league which is exactly where he’s finished in each of the previous three seasons. Due to that consistency and his age keeping his price tag relatively low, Romo makes for an ideal trade target (as long as he has all of his weapons back next season) for contending teams in need of a solid signal caller in 2015 or for those in two quarterback leagues.

Brandon Weeden

Weeden hasn’t looked good under center at any point during his time in the league. Even with a plethora of weapons in Dallas, his play was subpar in the lone start he got last year. In the event that Romo goes down to injury, you should be looking for better options for your fantasy team.

Running Backs

DeMarco Murray

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Murray had a truly brilliant fantasy season. He was explosive, effective in the passing game and most importantly, consistent. The Cowboys’ coaching staff force fed their star runner through the season. In fact, there wasn’t a game where he didn’t touch the ball at least 22 times. Even more notably for fantasy owners, he had at least 100 rushing yards or a touchdown in every game but one throughout the season.

The trouble with Murray coming off his career season is two-fold however. His 450 regular season touches as well as the 47 he got in the post-season put a considerable amount of wear and tear on his body. That, along with him being a free agent raises some questions about exactly where Murray’s upside falls for 2015 and beyond. Personally, the workload he received in 2014 is enough alone to scare me off and the thought he may be on a team where he won’t have the same offensive line to run behind makes it a no brainer to sell Murray at what is sure to be the highest value of his career. Fantasy owners should at the very least attempt to see what they can get for Murray during the off-season. It’d be irresponsible not to.

Joseph Randle

After being relatively unimpressive with his limited opportunities as a rookie, Randle looked good in 2014 as the (much underutilized) change of pace back in Big D. He made the best of his 51 carries, rushing for 343 yards (6.7 YPC) and scoring three times – those numbers have led some to suggest Randle could be a breakout candidate in 2015 if Murray isn’t back in Dallas. Those who think so may want to slow down, however.

Although he showed an impressive burst and looked shifty and explosive in the open field as a second year player, there are question marks surrounding Randle. The Cowboys’ unwillingness to incorporate him into their passing game along with his inability to make much happen when given opportunities as a receiver points to him not having the trust of the coaching staff in that department. That along with the consistent trouble Randle has had in pass protection since arriving in Dallas suggests he may not be ready for fulltime duties. The baggage off the field which includes a pair of arrests over the last six months also doesn’t help his case.

Even if Murray finds a new home in 2015, I wouldn’t be banking on a break out from Randle. He’s a part time player that benefited from worn down defenses this past year and doesn’t have the overall skills to be a three down tailback in a run first offense.

Lance Dunbar

A year ago, Dunbar was entering the final year of his rookie contract with the Cowboys and coming off a season where he showed promise as a runner, albeit in limited opportunities. After averaging five yards per carry on the ground along with always being considered an above average pass catcher, the possibility existed that new play caller Scott Linehan would employ Dunbar as part of a multiple tailback attack as he did previously in Detroit. That never came to fruition, however.

Now Dunbar is a sparely used restricted free agent, sitting third on the Dallas depth chart, and looking for an opportunity to see the field in Dallas or elsewhere. Although he won’t be a priority free agent for the Cowboys or anybody else, his prowess out of the backfield as well as his nimble feet and impressive speed makes him a name worth monitoring throughout the off-season.

Ryan Williams

Although it seems like Williams has been in the league forever, he’s only 24 years old. Once a promising running back prospect, he’s had more than his fair share of injuries which have held him to just five NFL games since being selected in the second round of the 2011 draft by the Cardinals. He looked good last preseason and recently signed a two-year contract to stay with the Cowboys. He’s a name worth monitoring and makes for a nice “end of roster” stash in deep leagues until we know if Murray will be back.

Wide Receivers

Dez Bryant

Three consecutive seasons with at least 88 receptions, 1,200 receiving yards and a dozen touchdowns means Bryant is easily a top-five overall wide out if not the best fantasy receiver in the game. The only question around him revolves around his contract, but there’s no way Jerry Jones lets Dez leave. If he doesn’t sign long term, he’ll get the franchise tag.

So now that we know Bryant will be back in Dallas, the only question left to answer is where among the top five receivers fantasy owners should rank him?

Terrance Williams

Williams finished 2014 as the WR40 in standard scoring leagues and WR51 in PPR and was held to two catches or less in all but four games. Never surpassing 77 yards in a game despite routinely seeing single coverage, his fantasy owners were forced to rely heavily on long scores for any production out of the second year receiver. Playing Robin to Bryant’s Batman (and doing a poor job at it), it may be time to move on from the hopes Williams could become a consistent fantasy producer.

Cole Beasley

While it’s true Beasley doesn’t have the lateral quickness or burning speed of some of the best slot men in the league, he proved very valuable for the Cowboys down the stretch of the 2014 season. Unfortunately, however, that didn’t translate into a lot of fantasy production. Despite seeing 37 targets over the final seven games of the season, Beasley turned those chances into just 26 catches for 312 yards (44.6 YPG) and three touchdowns. Although the potential exists that the restricted free agent could contribute more as he gains experience in the offense, it’s far more likely Beasley will continue to be a better NFL receiver than fantasy wide out.

Devin Street

Catching just two passes for 18 yards as a rookie, fantasy owners didn’t get to see much of the rookie. With average speed (4.55 40 time), an inability to get off press coverage and limited burst in and out of his breaks, his upside is limited for going into year two. He’s not worth a roster spot in shallow dynasty leagues.

Tight End

Jason Witten

Sure, Witten’s numbers in 2014 were the worst he’s posted since 2006, but he still finished the year as a low-end TE1. Although he no longer made linebackers look foolish as the primary short to intermediate target in the Cowboys’ offense, he still routinely found openings and Romo found him on a regular basis. The end is close for Witten, but he still carries value for contending dynasty teams that need a useful tight end for 2015 as they wait for developmental prospect at the position.

Gavin Escobar

Last off-season, the Cowboys’ coaching staff promised we’d see more of the physically gifted Escobar than we did during his rookie season when he played just 207 plays. They obviously didn’t really mean that. Escobar played nearly 100 more snaps this year than he did in 2013, but only posted nine catches for 105 yards and four touchdowns. It’s obvious the Cowboys’ coaching staff doesn’t see him as playmaker at this point despite having a need for a field stretching inside receiver. With another disappointing year in 2015, dynasty owners will begin forgetting about the upside Escobar showed coming into the league.

James Hanna

Hanna has only been a contributor on special teams so far in his three years in the league. He holds no dynasty value.

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dan meylor