Marion "The FullTime" Barbarian? A Look at the Cowboys RB Shakeup

The sting from the recent playoff loss to the Giants had not yet cleared Valley Ranch when the talk had already shifted to the upcoming draft.  The Cowboys, having traded a late first round pick the previous year to Cleveland (used on Brady Quinn), were entering the draft with two first round selections.

Early speculation was that the team was looking to add a corner and a receiver in the first round. But talk quickly shifted to a potential blockbuster deal in which the Cowboys would look to deal with the newly departed Bill Parcells in Miami, acquiring the first overall pick in the draft. 

It seemed to be a perfect fit.  Miami was so full of holes that one player was not going to make them any better and the Cowboys were seemingly that one player away from making another Super Bowl run.  Then of course there was the obvious Razorback connection between Jerry Jones and the probable number one pick, Darren McFadden. 

The only problem for Cowboys fans was a young bruising runner named Marion Barber.  It was clear that any deal to Miami would include Barber, who had made a name for himself as a hard-nosed runner.  He was once referred to as the "toughest runner in the league to bring down" by Patriots coach Bill Belichick.  

I will admit that after watching Adrian Peterson run over the league as a rookie, I was at least curious what a player like McFadden could bring to an already talent laden team in Dallas.  But after a quick daydream I stepped back into reality.

Barber came out of nowhere in 2006 to lead the NFC in total touchdowns with sixteen, and followed that up with a pro bowl selection in his third season.  So why would the Cowboys be considering moving him for an unproven college kid?

The answer is more about the direction of the league and less about Barber’s running ability.  With the new wide open NFL, more and more teams are moving to the running back by committee.  Barber was no exception as he has been splitting time with Julius Jones since coming into the league in 2006.

Naturally, there were questions about whether Barber could carry a full workload and still remain effective and healthy throughout an entire season.

It was the split with Jones that allowed Barber to be the punishing runner he was without breaking down as the season wore on.  Jones started and played most of the first quarters with Barber getting two to four series in the first half.  This allowed him to remain fresh as the opposing defense began to wear down in the second half.

It seems that the question of durability was key for Jerry Jones and team management as they contemplated what to do prior to the draft.  Barber was also a restricted free agent, making it now or never for Dallas if they wanted to lock up Barber before he hit free agency.

To the joy of most Cowboys fans, the team decided against a major move for McFadden and locked up Barber with a seven year forty-five million dollar extension, including sixteen million guaranteed. 

So while the contract issues got resolved, many people were still wondering, with Julius now gone to Seattle, if Barber could handle the added pounding of being the full time starter.

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