A couple of weeks ago, Dallas Cowboys fans were excited about Jaydon Blue making his debut in Week 5 against the New York Jets.
Blue, who was selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, is a talented RB with speed and quickness that the Cowboys could use in tandem with Javonte Williams. However, the rookie’s first two games haven’t gone to plan, and now his role could be changing with KaVontae Turpin on his way back.
According to Jon Machota of The Athletic, Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones said on 105.3 The Fan on Monday that Turpin, WR CeeDee Lamb, and rookie RG Tyler Booker “all have a chance to play” in Week 7 against the Washington Commanders.
Jaydon Blue’s Week 7 Already Off to Unideal Start with KaVontae Turpin Update
Turpin has missed the Cowboys’ last two games due to a foot injury. Without Turpin on the field, Dallas has turned to Blue and Jalen Cropper to handle punt and kick return duties.
Dallas didn’t put Blue on punt duties, as the teams solely left that for Cropper. As for kick returns, Blue had a nice return in his debut against the Jets for 32 yards. He didn’t do much on the ground in that game, totaling seven yards and four carries.
Then, in Sunday’s road loss against the Panthers, Blue averaged 20 yards per kick return on two attempts. The rookie running back also saw some time on offense, but didn’t make a dent, totaling zero yards on three carries.
For as much excitement and clamoring that Cowboys fans were doing to get Blue on the field, it hasn’t worked out thus far.
That said, it’s still too early to write the young running back off. We don’t have a large enough sample size (seven carries) to say that the rookie is good or not. Now that Miles Sanders is on injured reserve, we should expect Blue to get more work.
However, fellow rookie running back Phil Mafah is eligible to come off injured reserve and return to practice, which could make the RB2 spot in Dallas rather interesting.
The Cowboys could look to keep Blue on kick returns with Turpin back. However, assuming the All-Pro return man is healthy to take the field, that provides serious competition for Blue when his chances to touch the ball have already been limited to start his Dallas tenure. Turpin's absence was an opportunity for the rookie to showcase his playmaking in the return game, though it ultimately didn't result in much.
Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see if the Cowboys keep Blue on kick returns and if they can find a way to get him going. He has the talent and skills to be a playmaker in this offense like Turpin, but it hasn’t materialized yet.