3 Cowboys Draft Busts Who Could Be Cut This Offseason

1. Deuce Vaughn, RB

It was hard to find anyone who wasn't all-in on the Deuce Vaughn selection. Following the release of Ezekiel Elliott, the Cowboys were turning to Tony Pollard as their lead back which was encouraging. Pollard had more than 1,000 yards for the first time in his career in 2022 and was expected to pick up where he left off.

The issue was the lack of depth behind him. Dallas signed Ronald Jones, who joined Rico Dowdle and Malik Davis. This led to an expectation they would take a running back in the draft, which didn't happen until Round 6. That's when they took Deuce Vaughn out of Kansas State, who was called by his father Chris Vaughn, who works with the Cowboys as a scout.

Vaughn put up some impressive numbers for the Wildcats with 3,604 yards and 34 touchdowns in three years on the ground. He added 4,884 yards and another nine touchdowns as a receiver.

Despite his production, Vaughn measured in at just 5-foot-5 and 179 pounds at the NFL Combine. That limited his potential since teams aren't going to trust someone that size to carry the load but in Dallas, he was going to be a change-of-pace back.

Unfortunately, Vaughn hardly made an impact as a rookie with 40 yards on 23 attempts and 40 yards on seven receptions. Heading into year two, he has to prove he belongs or he could be in danger of being cut. The Cowboys running backs corps is far from impressive but the former sixth-round pick hasn't come close to the expectations he brought in and the Cowboys can't afford to keep a developmental player at this position.

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