Cowboys 22-Year-Old Playmaker Tabbed Top ‘Trade Candidate’

Getty Cowboys RB Deuce Vaughn

The Cowboys are, mercifully, wrapping up their bye week here in Week 7 and ready to move forward into Week 8 as the most dysfunctional 3-3 team in recent memory. The Cowboys are poised to remain competitive in the NFC East, as they are only one loss behind the division-leading Commanders, who are dealing with an injury to star rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.

When they come back from the break, they will be facing a difficult schedule and, at the same time, looking ahead to the November 5 NFL trading deadline, the last chance the team has to make a significant change to the roster.

We’ve already seen a handful of major deals so far, including one that sent running back Cam Akers from the Texans to Minnesota. The Cowboys, you may have heard, could use some upheaval at running back, as they rank dead last in the NFL in rushing yards, with 463.

But at USA Today, they’ve got Dallas perhaps lined up to make a most unexpected trade. Rather than bringing in new talent at the position, the paper’s For the Win site has the Cowboys looking to offload a player: second-year speedster Deuce Vaughn.

Deuce Vaughn Not Getting Reps in Dallas

Sounds strange, of course, to think that a player who can’t get much run as part of a “committee” that is the worst in the NFL might have value to other teams. But the Cowboys do appear committed to keeping Rico Dowdle around in some form going forward, while veteran Ezekiel Elliott could be benched—or cut outright—in favor of former Pro Bowler Dalvin Cook, who is on the practice squad.

Either way, it does not appear that Vaughn’s chances are forthcoming.

“Vaughn is a 2023 sixth-round pick who just isn’t getting the run a young running back needs to really find his footing in the NFL,” wrote USA Today’s Cody Woodruff in an article called, “1 trade candidate for all 32 NFL teams ahead of the 2024 deadline.”

He continued: “Dallas could afford to trade the second-year player for roughly what they drafted him for (a sixth-rounder) and allow him a chance to play more elsewhere.”

Indeed, Vaughn, who is 22, has just seven carries for 20 yards on the season, and two catches for 14 yards. The presumption was that he would be a bigger factor for the Cowboys this season with Tony Pollard gone and the “committee” lined up to ensure more even distribution of touches. But Vaughn is on pace for fewer touches this season than last season, when he had 40.

Cowboys Need to Make Dalvin Cook Decision

Moving Vaughn for a sixth-rounder would make some sense, especially for a rebuilding team who could use some speed. Vaughn did not run the 40-yard dash at the NFL combine in 2023, but he did report a time of 4.44 seconds. He is only a situational back, though, because he is 5-foot-6 and needs to get into space to be effective.

The Cowboys could afford to deal him away if only the team would promote Cook, the longtime Vikings star and former Pro Bowl rusher who was signed by Dallas to the practice squad on August 28. Cook has indicated he is ready to go when the Cowboys ask him.

Cowboys coaches have put off a Vaughn move by saying he needs time to learn the offense. But it’s been nearly two months—he knows the offense. And with what the Cowboys have on hand, bringing up Vaughn really can’t hurt.