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The Dallas Cowboys could be an ideal landing spot for two-time Super Bowl champion running back Jerick McKinnon.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox wrote in his May 6 piece on veteran free agents “that could help each Super Bowl contender in 2024” that the Cowboys should consider signing the 32-year-old former Kansas City Chiefs running back.
McKinnon remains a free agent after spending the past three seasons in Kansas City as a complementary back. Knox argued that McKinnon brings value as a pass-catching back – a trait that Dallas could use out of their backfield for the 2024 season.
“A capable change-of-pace and receiving back, McKinnon could fill a valuable role in the Cowboys’ backfield rotation,” writes Knox. “He has thrived as a pass-catcher with the Kansas City Chiefs, hauling in 94 regular-season passes over the last three years.”
Jerick McKinnon Has Excelled as Pass-Catching Back
The 10-year back has also served as a valuable piece during the playoffs, appearing in seven postseason games for the Chiefs over the past three seasons. He started all three games of the Chiefs’ postseason run in 2021, catching 14 passes for 165 receiving yards and 1 touchdown. His receptions and receiving yards in the playoffs ranked third among all Chiefs players, only behind Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill.
“McKinnon has also been valuable in the postseason, recording 74 touches for 477 yards in seven playoff appearances with Kansas City,” wrote Knox. “His experience in win-or-go-home games could be very valuable for a Cowboys team that keeps going home early.”
Because McKinnon is older and primarily a pass-catching back, he would be signed at a bargain rate. This fits well with the Cowboys’ effective salary cap space of just $2.7 million, per OverTheCap.com. Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones admitted that the team wasn’t able to sign Derrick Henry due to salary cap constraints.
“Our situation is just, you know, and no one ever wants to say it, but it’s salary cap, and we just didn’t have the money to allocate to that position in terms of where we were from a cap standpoint, knowing what we’re looking at with Dak [Prescott] and certainly Micah [Parsons] and CeeDee Lamb,” Jones said on SiriusXM Mad Dog Radio, according to Pro Football Talk.
Why the Cowboys Will Likely Pass on Signing Jerick McKinnon
While the idea of adding McKinnon is a nice proposal considering his pass-catching prowess and his experience in the postseason, Dallas would be adding a third veteran back with a lot of wear-and-tear. The Cowboys have already signed Royce Freeman and brought back Ezekiel Elliott in recent weeks. Elliott has the most career rushing attempts (2,065) of any active running back.
McKinnon has 116 games of experience under his belt since entering the league in 2014. Outside of Cordarrelle Patterson, McKinnon would be the oldest back in the league if he signs with a team in 2024.
The Cowboys currently have multiple backs on the roster, including returnees Deuce Vaughn, Rico Dowdle and Malik Davis. It’s hard to envision Dallas signing McKinnon before the season starts. If there’s an injury that pops up before the season or during the regular season, the idea of signing McKinnon becomes a more likely scenario.
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