The Dallas Cowboys earned a 27-20 victory over the New York Giants on Thanksgiving. Running back Rico Dowdle led the offensive charge for Dallas, recording 112 yards on 22 carries. He scored a touchdown as well. Dowdle became the first Cowboys running back to rush for more than 100 yards in 26 games, per the NFL.

Dowdle's first career 100-yard rushing game snapped the longest drought in Cowboys' history. The Cowboys had not seen a performance like Dowdle's since 2022.

“From ESPN Research, Rico Dowdle is the 1st Cowboys player with 100 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown since Tony Pollard in Week 10 of the 2022 season vs the Packers,” Todd Archer of ESPN wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

The Cowboys' defense stepped up against the Giants. Meanwhile, quarterback Cooper Rush overcame previous injury concerns and turned in a respectable effort. Rush went 21-36 through the air with 195 yards and a touchdown. However, Dowdle unquestionably led the way.

Rico Dowdle's 2024 season with Cowboys

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Dowdle, 26, has appeared in 11 games so far in the 2024 season. He recorded his first rushing touchdown of the year on Thursday against the Giants. Dowdle has emerged as a reliable running back for the Cowboys.

He made his NFL debut in 2020 with Dallas. He saw limited action that season, though. He did not play in 2021 and was limited once again in 2022. In 2023, though, Dowdle appeared in 16 games and recorded 361 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

One has to wonder if Dallas now envisions Dowdle becoming the running back of the future. He still has room to improve, but he's played fairly well.

Of course, the Cowboys have no shortage of questions to answer. They earned the win on Thursday, but the victory came against a two-win Giants team. The Cowboys are now 5-7 overall.

Dallas will have plenty of time to prepare before playing their next game. The Cowboys will not play again until Monday, December 9 when they go head-to-head with the Cincinnati Bengals.