We know Williams is the starter, but how will snaps be divided up behind him?
The Dallas Cowboys' run game is going to play a pivotal role in how far the team goes in 2026, and that means a lot of carries for Javonte Williams.
After a career-best season in 2025, Williams posted 1,201 yards and 11 TDs as he became a key contributor for Brian Schottenheimer; more is expected heading into 2026.
Now, entering his second NFL season in Dallas, the big question all offseason was who would be behind Javonte, and more importantly, who would get snaps.
Jaydon Blue was cut, and Malik Davis rose to win the RB2 job; he did it rather easily. But the Cowboys did sign Emari Demercado as well.
Right now, it is Williams, Davis, and Demercado as the running backs who are likely going to see some burn against the New York Giants in Week 1.
But that's us talking.
When asked who will be behind Javonte for Week 1, Schottenheimer gave a little insight.
"Javonte's our bell cow, and the other guys are certainly going to play," Schottenheimer said. "But Javonte is one of those guys, the stronger he gets is based off how many carries he gets, and what we think we learned with Javonte, it's more about how we handle him during the week, in terms of his workload during the week, not so much on game day.
"In terms of rotations and things like that, we haven’t finalized that stuff."
Last season, it was Malik who got snaps when Williams needed a breather, but he never had more than eight carries in a game
So, he didn't see the field much at all. Will that change in 2026?
Some believe part of the reason Williams was used so much was that Dallas didn't have much confidence in those behind Javonte.
But what about now? Surely the Cowboys have enough confidence to give Davis a handful of carries each week, right?
Schottenheimer noted that Demercado will be used more on special teams, so his workload on offense, at least initially, will be limited. As for Hunter Luepke, your guess is as good as mine when it comes to what to expect from him.
So, what exactly the plan is for those behind Williams is a little unknown as we turn for Week 1, but what we do know is that Javonte can't do it all by himself.
And that means there's snaps up for grabs behind him.
