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Dallas Cowboys have plenty of RBs, but can any of them carry the load?
FOX Sports senior NFL writer Alex Marvez's training camp tour made its second stop in Oxnard, Calif. Here are some of the things he learned and observed while visiting Cowboys camp with SiriusXM NFL Radio co-host Gil Brandt. Read his Cowboys report today and check back on the following dates for his next stops on the tour:
OXNARD, Calif. -- Dallas Cowboys fans would be breathing easier if they knew exactly what the team had at running back entering the season.
Stephen Jones takes some of the blame for the uncertainty.
The franchise's executive vice president and player personnel director, Jones is well aware that as DeMarco Murray was churning toward the NFL's 2014 rushing crown the Cowboys were running him into the ground. Murray registered a whopping 497 touches between rushes and receptions during the regular season and playoffs, which didn't leave very many opportunities for backups Joseph Randle and Lance Dunbar.
Jones said he discussed the use of Dallas' running backs in 2014 earlier this week with Cowboys offensive coordinator Scott Linehan.
"We did do the right thing, in my opinion, playing the hot hand last year and letting (Murray) have the touches he had," Jones said. "But at the end of the day, I don't know that it was necessarily the perfect way to do it. It may have been that it would have been better to give Lance and Joe Randle more touches."
That won't be an issue this season with Murray having left the Cowboys in free agency for Philadelphia. Randle is expected to lead a running back-by-committee approach with Dunbar and newcomer Darren McFadden (Oakland) coming off the bench.
"I think we'll see a more diversified attack at the running back position from us but I'm not sure we're going to fall off," Jones said. "That's taking nothing away from the effort or performance DeMarco had last year. We just decided that we can't just be good on offense. We need to use our (financial) resources on the defensive side. We did that with (defensive end) Greg Hardy and certainly focused the draft on defense. We've got to get better over there. We still feel we can have a great offensive team."
Dunbar is well aware of the pressure his position group is facing as the Cowboys try to replace Murray, who rushed for 1,845 yards last season.
"Of course, DeMarco is a great back. We're going to miss him a lot," said Dunbar, who contributed largely as a receiver out of the backfield in 2014. "We have an opportunity to step up and make some plays and show this team they can rely on us."
Safety first: The Cowboys will be fine at running back if Jones' predictions are as accurate as how he felt about the safety position in 2014. Jones ignored outside criticism for not addressing the spot and sticking with Barry Church and J.J. Wilcox. The duo justified Jones' faith. Church and Wilcox led the Cowboys in tackles and should be even better this year with the latter now entering his second season as a starter.
"J.J. was great on the field, but his leadership was unbelievable out there," Church said. "I was giving all the calls, but he was doing that as well. If I messed up on something, he let me know about it. He grew right before my eyes."
Short leash: Some of the money Dallas saved by not re-signing Murray was spent on Hardy, an elite pass-rusher who only played in one game for Carolina last year following a domestic violence conviction. While ultimately cleared upon appeal, Hardy is still facing a four-game suspension entering this season.
Hardy has fit in well with his new team although the Cowboys have made it clear that any further domestic-violence issues won't be tolerated.
"Obviously, he had one situation that he's certainly had to be accountable for," said Jones, whose franchise drew some media criticism for signing Hardy. "I think Greg knows there is zero tolerance for him and for that matter anyone on our team when it comes to that area. But as a football player and teammate, he's been everything and more that we can hope to have."
Head coach Jason Garrett said the Cowboys begin every individual pass-rush drill with Hardy matched against left tackle Tyron Smith, which has led to some strong battles between two of the NFL's best at their respective positions.
"Both those guys understand that it's important for them to set the pace by competing against each other," Garrett said. "If one of them wins, the other one is coming back (for revenge). That's the kind of environment we want to create. It's really contagious throughout the rest of the offensive line and our entire team."
In case of emergency: In a perfect world, the only time Brandon Weeden will take the field this season is taking snaps from the victory formation.
But if something were to happen to starter Tony Romo, Weeden appears far more prepared to handle the quarterbacking chores in his second year with the Cowboys. Weeden has drawn praise for the improvement he exhibited during the offseason.
"My comfort level is just so much better this year than it was at this point last year," said Weeden, a 2012 first-round pick who signed with the Cowboys after washing out in Cleveland. "This is the first time since I started playing football that I had the same coordinator in back-to-back years. There's some merit to that. "When you get comfortable with something and you understand the terminology, you can communicate better. That allows you to just go out and play.
"Are there a lot of things I need to work on? Absolutely. But my comfort level is the highest it's been in the league simply because I know the system better and I've been around the same guys for a long time."
One of the areas Weeden has focused on improving is his mechanics. In 28 career games (21 starts), Weeden has posted a mediocre 56.0 completion percentage.
"At Oklahoma State, I always considered myself a very accurate passer," said Weeden, who set that college's single-season passing records in 2011. "I think when I got to Cleveland I wasn't as accurate as I needed to be. A lot of that is comfort level, being under center a lot and doing those sorts of things. That's one thing I really tried to hunker on this year is being more accurate, giving guys the chance to run after the catch and the timing."
Although considered a disappointment in Cleveland, Weeden never had the benefit of gaining tutelage from a veteran quarterback before becoming a starter. He has that opportunity now with Romo, who isn't that much older than the 31-year-old Weeden but has far more NFL experience.
"I've learned more in the last year and a half than probably as much I ever had playing football," said Weeden, who turned to football in his mid-20s after three seasons in professional baseball. "Watching him operate, you see how in command he is and in control of this whole entire offense. He can get in and out of plays with the best of them.
"I learn a lot in the meeting rooms. He'll say, 'I did this because of this.' If I got out there and tried to do some of that stuff it wouldn't work. He knows this offense so well. He's always trying to help and relay those messages and give us examples of why he's been so successful. A lot of quarterbacks wouldn't do that. Tony is gracious enough and it's been great for us young guys."
So has the virtual reality training system the Cowboys bought for their quarterbacks during the offseason.
"It really benefits us younger guys," Weeden said. "I can go in and watch my (practice) reps and then go back and watch Tony's reps. I can hear exactly what he's saying at the line of scrimmage. We can even look down at our footwork so if we missed a throw so we can see whether it's because of our mechanics. You can hear the defense's calls and use those as well.
"Basically, it's like having two practices because I can take the same drops, act like I'm throwing and do the whole deal. We're cutting edge."
Drama-free: Jones admits one of the motivating factors in striking a long-term contract with Dez Bryant was avoiding some of the preseason drama that would have unfolded if the star wide receiver didn't report to training camp. Jones and his father Jerry, who owns the Cowboys and is the team's general manager, finalized a five-year, $70 million deal in mid-July just before the NFL deadline to re-sign franchise players to multiyear contracts beyond the 2015 campaign.
"Jerry and I really pushed thinking that Dez is not only a great player but he brings a big energy to the field and a competitiveness like I haven't seen since Michael Irvin in terms of really pushing his teammates, making the game fun and enjoying practice when it can be work in training camp," Stephen Jones said. "It was real important to get those distractions aside.
"We didn't want any 'Dez Watch' or those things. It doesn't only affect management but the (media) mikes go in front of coaches and players. They're asking, 'Do you miss Dez? Do we need Dez back?' Those are distractions. Now we can focus on the task at hand, which is getting this team ready to compete for a championship."
After a 12-4 record last season, the Cowboys may be ready to take that next step.
Alex Marvez and Gil Brandt will be live on SiriusXM NFL Radio from 12-to-3 pm ET Monday with Alex's FOX Sports column on the Falcons running Tuesday.
