No one was more excited about the cowboy's first round draft pick than myself. Felix Jones along-side Darren McFASTER-THAN-YOU dominated defenses all across the board in the SEC. The visions I've had over the last 3 months of Jones and Barber lined up side by side behind Tony Romo have been enough to salivate over. But after watching the first three pre-season games, my mouth is dry. Felix has averaged around 10 carries a game, which is what most annalists have expected. But those 10 carries a game have totaled about 65 yards, which is sub-par given his status as an incoming rookie.
However, I'm not so sure that Jones is entirely to blame for these pathetic numbers. His true gift is making plays in the open field. And the play calling of Jason Garrett has done absolutely nothing to get him there. Instead of throwing him screen passes and running him outside the tackles, he is being lined up behind the fullback in an I-Formation, and run straight up the middle. Perhaps this is strategical in hiding the true abilities of Jones. But like all rookies, Felix needs experience in real game situations, and confidence boosting. It's probably safe to say that Garrett will mix it up in the regular season, and give Jones the appropriate touches. But a shaky pre-season is bound to slow Jones' maturation into an NFL running back.
