There's another face heading to the running back room for the Dallas Cowboys. With the position led by All-Pro running back Ezekiel Elliott and a dynamic backup in Tony Pollard, the name of the game is finding depth, and the Cowboys hope they've taken a step toward achieving that goal by signing Ryan Nall -- per his agent.
Nall, 26, began his NFL career as an undrafted free agent of the Chicago Bears in 2018. He'd go on to to remain in the Windy City through the 2021 season, unable to make a major impact behind David Montgomery. Nall had his best NFL season in 2020, when he was active in 16 games and grabbed eight receptions for 67 yards and a touchdown. More of a receiving threat to this point, the former Oregon State standout has yet to make an impression on the league in the realm of taking handoffs -- having just six rushing attempts over the course of his first three seasons for only 12 yards and no touchdowns.
Where Nall might be able to carve out a seat for himself in Cowboys training camp is on special teams, where he averaged 65.5% of his snaps for the Bears. That will at least give him a chance to win over special teams coordinator John "Bones" Fassel, hoping to remain on the roster in the event Dallas needs him offensively due to injury; but he'd have to contend with team favorites Rico Dowdle and JaQuan Hardy for the right to do so.
In reality, he'll likely have to continually prove himself from OTAs onward to have a shot at the 2022 active roster.
