I know how this goes in a fan\u2019s eyes. A familiar name hits the market or has been on the market for a while. Fans, myself included, get enamored with the name<\/a> and who the player used to be, not who they are now.<\/p>\n When it comes to Jaydon Blue, I think he should get the first at backup running back.<\/p>\n That doesn\u2019t mean Blue earned a lifetime pass. It doesn\u2019t mean he was great as a rookie because he wasn\u2019t, but there was enough there for Dallas to find out what it has before throwing money at an older back.<\/p>\n That\u2019s just common sense, and that slips by me sometimes.<\/p>\n Jaydon Blue Showed Progress Late<\/p>\n Jaydon Blue\u2019s full rookie stat line in 2025 was not pretty enough to frame and put on the wall.<\/p>\n He finished with 38 carries for 129 yards, 3.4 yards per carry<\/a>, one rushing touchdown, one catch for five yards, and one fumble.<\/p>\n A team doesn\u2019t want that type of production as a backup running back, but those stats don\u2019t tell the entire story.<\/p>\n Blue barely got a real workload. Reports were he was immature, and the limited snaps didn\u2019t let him get in much of a rhythm, even though it was his own fault.<\/p>\n His first two games with carries were flat out rough.<\/p>\n First two games:<\/p>\n 7 carries, 7 yards, 1.0 yard per carry, 0 touchdowns. <\/p>\n There is no way to dress that up. It\u2019s just terrible.<\/p>\n After those first games and several weeks in the doghouse, Blue started showing me a little something.<\/p>\n Final three games:<\/p>\n 31 carries, 122 yards, 3.9 yards per carry, and 1 touchdown. <\/p>\n I care about these numbers more because he closed out the season with a little juice.<\/p>\n These numbers don\u2019t make him a star, but it does progress. We could see in real time he was starting to get his feet under him and proved he wasn\u2019t stuck in mud all season.<\/p>\n His best game came against the Giants, when he had 16 carries for 64 yards and a touchdown<\/a>. That was the kind of performance that should make Dallas say, \u201cAlright, let\u2019s see what this looks like with a full offseason as RB2.\u201d<\/p>\n The Cowboys Got Real Value With Jaydon Blue<\/p>\n I think this is another part of the story folks shouldn\u2019t ignore.<\/p>\n Jaydon Blue was seen as a 3rd or 4th round pick<\/a> and the Cowboys got him in the 5th round at No. 149.<\/p>\n I know a draft grade doesn\u2019t mean much to anyone unless it was a first-round grade, but plenty of players never figure it out. Blue was not some random late-round camp body.<\/p>\n The Cowboys got a talented back later than expected.<\/p>\n Blue\u2019s calling card is speed and agility. The burst he has can stress a defense and that is exactly the type of player I want behind Javonte Williams. We can get a little thunder and lighting action going in the backfield to keep the defense unbalanced.<\/p>\n This offense needs cheap young players<\/a> who can grow into roles. Good teams find those guys and give them a chance. They don\u2019t panic every time a young player has a bumpy rookie season.<\/p>\n That\u2019s how you end up paying for yesterday instead of building for tomorrow.<\/p>\n Jaydon Blue Has to Prove He Has Matured<\/p>\n Now let\u2019s not get ahead of ourselves. Jaydon Blue has work to do.<\/p>\n There were fair questions about why he did not take control of RB2 as a rookie. The concerns were not hard to figure out and were pretty well noted<\/a>.<\/p>\n He had to prove he knew the playbook, had to earn trust on passing downs, he had to show he could handle blocking assignments.<\/p>\n A running back can run a 4.3 and still be sitting on the sideline if he cannot do those things mentioned above. If Blue misses a blitz pickup and gets Dak Prescott hit, he will find himself parked next to the water cooler.<\/p>\n![\"Jaydon](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/17722517399795-1024x680.jpg\" "\\"Jaydon")
<\/p>\n![\"Jaydon](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Jaydon-Blue-1st-TD-1024x683.webp\" "\\"Jaydon")
<\/p>\n![\"Jaydon](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Jaydon-Blue-Cowboys-102325-aaa48b6fba1149369e2fd88b8b433659-1024x682.jpg\" "\\"Jaydon")
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