There were not expected to be a whole lot of roster changes for the Dallas Cowboys heading into the Week 3 matchup vs. Baltimore in Rio on Sunday afternoon, but then again, because it has been a strange week of practice to accommodate the international voyage, we probably wouldn’t have had many opportunities to find out about the changes, anyway. But on Sunday, coach Brian Schottenheimer pulled something of a surprise: He benched veteran running back Emari Demercado in favor of Tyler Goodson.
Goodson, who spent the first three years of his career with the Colts, will be the backup to Javonte Williams in Rio in Week 3. That’s a surprise deviation from the unofficial depth chart the team puts out, as Demercado has been the RB2 to date after he was picked up off waivers following roster cut-down day.
There had not been much talk about Demercado getting bumped, though there has been plenty of talk about the slot going for the Cowboys running game, Williams included. Dallas has just 135 yards rushing this season, 30th in the NFL.
Among Cowboys reporters and observers, there was ample surprise. The team seemed to be invested in Demercado, who had good years with the Cardinals and was brought in on the recommendation of ex-Cardinals line coach Klayton Adams, now the Cowboys offensive coordinator.
From PFF’s Nate Jahnke: “Tyler Goodson has overtaken Emari Demercado as the Cowboys RB2. Demercado a healthy inactive today.”
And from Blogging the Boys’ Brandon Loree: “#Cowboys RB Tyler Goodson is active in place of back up running back Emari Demercado. Very interesting. Maybe the coaching staff wants to see more juice.”
Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram wrote: “Cowboys RB Tyler Goodson will make his team debut with Emari Demercado getting the clipboard today.” The clipboard, of course, means you’re benched.
Cowboys Bench Veteran Playmaker in Week 3 vs. Ravens