Blogging The Boys
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The Cowboys have two rookies looking to take over the backfield.
The Potential Duo: Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah
One week ago today, the Cowboys ran to the podium to secure an absolute firework in the fifth round. Two rounds later, they double-dipped at the position to bring in the exact opposite of that guy. Jaydon Blue, a speedster from Texas, was Dallas’ first choice at running back, and Phil Mafah, a big, strong runner from Clemson, became their second.
The two could not be further apart in their skill sets, but that’s what could make them a special rookie duo. Blue, a 5’9, sub-200 lbs guy with legit 4.2 speed, can bring the boom with explosive runs or vertical receptions, while Mafah can flat out bulldoze you with his 235 lb frame. That kind of contrast in playing style is what this offense needs.
Letting Blue and Mafah share the starting job would be looked at as a risk by some in the football world. They are both day-three draft picks after all. If we look at skill alone, however, they can both handle it, and Blue’s pass-catching ability stands out especially.
He reeled in 56 passes over the last two seasons at Texas, which is a crazy number for a guy with the potential to be a dominant runner as well. Mafah has a similar trait when it comes to goal-line scoring.
The Clemson product has rushed for 21 touchdowns over the last two seasons. In short, he can get you into the end zone. These two guys, if given the chance, have a lot of immediate impact skills to bring to the field, as well as sky-high potential.
Cowboys are taking the slow and steady approach with last year’s first-round pick.
Second chances aren’t guaranteed in life; not even for former first-round picks. When Tyler Guyton rolled snake eyes his rookie season, the Dallas Cowboys were under no obligation to wipe the slate clean and just hand him the job back.
As their top pick in the 2024 NFL draft, Guyton wasn’t going to get cut from the roster or anything, but the Cowboys could have added competition to the mix and made things awfully uncomfortable for the second-year left tackle. Instead, they cleared the path for the young man to succeed.
Not only did Dallas add offensive line guru Klayton Adams to lead the offense in 2025, but they allowed Guyton’s top competition from last season, Chuma Edoga, to leave in free agency. Edoga replaced and rotated with Guyton at LT in 2024 after the rookie’s maturity, focus and effort were called into question. Edoga himself wasn’t seen as much...
