Is he still under contract with Dallas? He can make somebody a very good back just like he did in 2015…I hope he gets the chance to play somewhere. If I am Jerry Jones I would sign Darren as insurance in case their Super Bowl run is stalled by an injury to Zeke Elliott. I thought he had a 2 year deal with the Cowboys and that had expired, but I may have dreamed that.
He is a free agent. The free agency period begins March 9.
Thanks Matt. Have you talked to Darren about his future? Does he know what he might do or is he discussing the matter? Man, the New England Patriots might be a great place for him. He can still run and he can catch the ball. The NFL teams he has played for never used him effectively as a receiver coming out of the backfield. I feel he has some great play left in his body.
He has said that he would like to come back to Dallas, but has to do what is best for himself at this point in his career.
He knows Zeke is the 1.
I don’t know how happy he is in Dallas, but I can’t see him going into a situation as good as he is in right now. Dallas loves to run the ball and he gets touches there even with Elliott dominating.
McFadden will be 31 years old next year and I’d be really surprised if any NFL teams are going to bring in a running back that old with the understanding he will be No. 1 on the depth chart. With the Cowboys he has a chance to be an integral part of a contender even if he isn’t starting.
well, Jonathan Stewart is 29, Adrian Peterson is 31 & Frank Gore is 33 & they all started last year
Yes but all 3 of those guys have stayed pretty injury free for their career. And Peterson is going to take a big pay cut if he wants to play on a contender.
Gore fractured his hip about 5 yrs ago
Matt, DMac is still only 29 years old…he will turn 30 right about the time the regular season starts… and a year or two at that particular age makes a big difference… He has not had a lot of mileage on him the last two or three years… And has performed very well when given the chance… I continue to say, as I have for two years… tHat he is vastly underrated as a resource at the present time… people were gnashing their teeth when the Cowboys let DeMarco Murray get away to Philadelphia couple of years ago… But they forget the McFadden is only a few months older then DeMarco, the same size, the same speed (if not faster) and has almost identical productivity numbers as Murray. And this, despite the fact the McFadden spent almost all of his time in the cesspool that was Oakland during the years he was there. Meanwhile, most of Murray’s career was spent behind the great offense of line of the Dallas Cowboys, with Tony Romo and Dez Bryant, and Jason Witten on the same field.
It’s amazing how quickly forget how dominant he was… At least of dominant is Zeke was in college… if he had had the opportunity Zeke had last year he probably would’ve put up very similar numbers… even at the "advanced "age of 29…
The Cowboys would be fools to let you tell it like that, any bargain basement price, get away… He’s a perfect complement to Zeke… Meanwhile, they can grab some on the fourth or fifth round to take over his role as back up with McFadden move on in a year or two…
would be real interested in taking on a reclamation project for someone with talent lost/wasted or whatever describes Darren. He is beyond the twilight of his career by perception. Darren as to hope for a contract somewhere that allows him to prove himself this year to cash in one more moderate contract to follow. Not many teams that need what he brings to the table now.
To the general public - yes. To those inside of NFL football, they know how much tread is left on him . . . he doesn’t have much time left . . . a year or two . . . but he’s still a stud and can make a major contribution in the right situation. If Zeke were to go down (not wishing that upon him - just using that as an example), I could easily see DMac rushing for 1,500 yards behind that line and with the other offensive weapons Dallas has. New England would be another great opportunity for him. Remember - McFadden has “plus” hands, so can make the catch out of the backfield with the best of them.
What would be tragic would be for his enormous talent to slip away unused the next couple of years.
I know this will never happen. Dallas HAS to play Zeke as the starter, because of investment, fan pressure and the fact that they may not have him but for a few years (free agency). But the wise move would be to start McFadden - or, at least, split time between the two. Therefore, getting less “mileage” on Zeke while a premier back like DMac is still around. No drop-off, and you preserve Zeke for a longer career. After all, one way or another McFadden will be gone in a couple of years, so why not get all you can out of him now?
But, again, I know that will never happen (barring injury to Zeke).