An enticing trade proposal has the Dallas Cowboys acquiring another veteran standout running back to bolster their already prolific offense.
Entering Week 6, the Cowboys have the league’s eighth-best scoring offense, having averaged 26.8 points per game. Running back Tony Pollard is off to another superb start, with 340 rushing yards, two touchdowns and 96 receiving yards through Dallas’ first five games.
That said, the Cowboys’ offense functioned better last year when they had two quality RBs in Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott, who was released this past offseason in a cap-saving move. So one shouldn’t be surprised if Dallas tries to add another playmaking RB ahead of the Oct. 31 trade deadline.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell pieced together several trade ideas leading up to the deadline. One of his trade proposals had the Cowboys acquiring Arizona Cardinals’ running back James Conner in exchange for a conditional 2025 sixth-round draft choice that could become a fifth or fourth-rounder:
“They would owe a sixth-round pick if Conner scores one touchdown, a fifth-round pick if he finds paydirt four times or a fourth-round selection if he scores six touchdowns and/or runs for 500 yards over the remainder of the season…
Conner is not a superstar, but he has converted 29 touches inside the 5-yard line with the Cardinals into 16 touchdowns while playing behind a middling offensive line. It’s a small sample, but that 55% conversion rate is better than the league average for running backs over that time, which is just over 40%. With this affordable deal, Conner could be a valuable 1B to Pollard over the second half of 2023 and into the postseason.”
Conner had a phenomenal 2022 season on a four-win Cardinals team, racking up 1,082 yards of offense and eight total touchdowns despite missing four games. In 2021, he had 1,127 yards of offense and a whopping 18 touchdowns.
Through Arizona’s first give games, Conner has 364 rushing yards, two touchdowns and eight receptions for 30 receiving yards.
Without a doubt, Conner would add a much-needed boost to a Dallas offense that has been too reliant on Pollard and star wideout CeeDee Lamb. Having a third player capable of putting up 1,000 yards from scrimmage would only yield positive results for the championship-starved Cowboys.