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Denver Broncos running back Javonte Williams.
In terms of swapping out one player for another, it can be hard to make sense of one move the Dallas Cowboys made in free agency.
Dallas watched their 1,000-yard running back go out the door in Rico Dowdle, who signed a 1-year, $2.75 million contract with the Carolina Panthers on March 12. In Dowdle’s place, they brought in Denver Broncos running back Javonte Williams on a 1-year, $3 million contract after he led the Broncos with 513 rushing yards in 2024 but averaged just 3.7 yards per carry.
Signing Williams could eventually cost the Cowboys a compensatory draft pick, and according to ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, there’s an outside chance Williams might not even make the Cowboys’ 53-man roster.
“Why replace Dowdle with a back who has averaged 3.7 yards per carry and posted the league’s fifth-worst success rate since returning from a multiligament knee injury in 2023?” Barnwell wrote on June 3. “Only $1 million of Williams’ $3 million is guaranteed, so there’s a slim-but-plausible chance he doesn’t even make the active roster in Week 1. I would say it’s likely Williams gets there, but that we see him strictly in a rotational role. He’s not likely to reach Dowdle’s heights in workload or production.”
Want to be even more confused? The Cowboys drafted 2 running back in 2025, taking Jaydon Blue in the fifth round (No. 149 overall) and Phil Mafah in the seventh round (No. 239 overall).
The @Broncos LITERALLY carry Javonte Williams into the end zone 😂😂
📺: #ATLvsDEN on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/6TMoZdhiwl— NFL (@NFL) November 17, 2024
Williams Seemed to Regress in 2024
The confusing thing about Williams and his recovery from a devastating knee injury suffered in Week 4 of the 2022 season was that it seemed like he regained his form when he returned in 2023 only to see a major regression in 2024.
The Broncos drafted Williams in the second round (No. 35 overall) in the 2022 NFL draft and he had a stellar rookie season with career highs in total offense (1,209 yards), rushing yards (903) and touchdowns (7).
After missing 13 games in 2022 with his knee injury, he returned in 2023 and played in 16 games while eclipsing 1,000 yards of total offense again.
In 2024, with an improved offensive line and, finally, a reliable quarterback in Bo Nix, Williams took a step back and had just 859 yards of total offense and 4 touchdowns — both career lows for a complete season.
Benching Williams Seemed Best Option for Denver
Things got so bad in 2024 that at one point it seemed like the Broncos’ best move was to bench Williams and cede his carries to rookie Audric Estime and Jaleel McLaughlin to try and get the running game going.
“To me, I think (running the ball) is where the Broncos have to kind of just bite it and say, ‘hey, we’e been trying this all season long,’ ” Broncos reporter Cody Roarke said on the “Locked on Broncos” podcast on December 11. “It hasn’t worked. If we’re going to make the postseason, we need to find a way to get the run game going. And we need to get (Estime), who we keep saying we want to get more touche, to get him the ball and see it through.”
Williams’ struggles also cost him big money in free agency. Headed into 2024, Spotrac projected he would receive something in the range of a 3-year, $20.7 million contract in free agency — a far cry from the deal he actually received.
Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders and Denver Broncos. A veteran sports writer and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame
