Dallas Cowboys make long-awaited roster decision with 4-time Pro Bowler set to make debut

Dalvin Cook is set to make his debut for the Dallas Cowboys in Sunday's primetime showdown with the San Francisco 49ers.

The former Minnesota Vikings running back, a four-time Pro Bowler, joined the Cowboys a week before the start of the season but spent the opening seven weeks of the year on the practice squad.

However, his wait to be involved on Sundays is over with the 29-year-old elevated to the active roster for the trip to Santa Clara to take on the 49ers (3-4) – and he will hope to offer Mike McCarthy's offense a desperately needed spark.

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The Cowboys (3-3) have – by far – the worst rushing attack in the NFL this season, putting up just 463 rushing yards in six games at a paltry average of just 3.5 yards per carry. Rico Dowdle leads the team in rushing with 246 yards, averaging 4.2 yards per rush, while Ezekiel Elliott has been wholly ineffective, averaging three yards per carry on 38 attempts.

Head coach McCarthy hinted coming back from the team's bye week that Cook would get his opportunity against the 49ers. He said: "I think the biggest thing for us is we’re taking the full week. Dalvin is ready. I really like the work that he’s putting in. I think he’s definitely in position to [play].”

Cook established himself as one of the best running backs in the league after being drafted in the second round by the Vikings in 2017. He had four successive 1,000-yard rushing seasons in his final four years with the franchise – racking up 43 touchdowns in that stretch – before joining the New York Jets as a free agent last year.

The move proved to be disastrous, though, and his career has stalled. Cook put up just 214 rushing yards in 15 games with the Jets at 3.2 yards per carry.

He was waived by the Jets ahead of the final game of the season and was picked up by the Baltimore Ravens, playing a minimal role in the AFC championship game defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs – his only game with the franchise.

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Cook's lack of production over the past 12 months coupled with the fact it took him almost two months to rise from the practice squad to the active roster raises huge questions over the impact he can have on the Cowboys' sluggish offense.

The former Florida State standout was a shadow of his former self in 2023, and he will have to prove quickly if he has anything left in the tank to prolong his NFL career.