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4 hours ago
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The Dallas Cowboys "bet right" on Javonte Williams. Or at least that's how head coach Brian Schottenheimer feels.
After Williams tore his ACL back in Week 4 of 2022, in his second season after rushing for 903 yards in his rookie season, he came back in 2023 and wasn't himself, rushing for 774 yards, and then last season, he only posted 513 yards, with many thinking Javonte was still feeling the effects of his knee injury.
We know that when players suffer an ACL injury, sometimes they never get back to being the player they were; other times, they do. It is a waiting game to see how it plays out.
And over two years removed from his injury, Williams is playing some of the best football of his career, and as Schottenheimer points out, the gamble has paid off.
"I think when you look at 10, 12, 15 years ago, people thought their careers were over, and now we've all learned it's not,” Schottenheimer said. “It does take time. Each position is a little bit different, but when we dove into the background of the young man, there was no question in our mind that he was going to be back to normal. We didn't know if that'd be day one, I don't know if today he feels like he's back to normal.
"The main thing for us and the understanding of with these injuries now, there's a process and it's going to take eight, nine, 10 months sometimes, but we bet right.”
More: No 'buckle up' moment for Cowboys' Javonte Williams with Denver return looming
Williams proving to be great addition
When the Cowboys signed Williams in the offseason, many were skeptical of the move, given that his production had continued to drop each year since his injury, which is a big red flag for a running back.
But Schottenheimer and the scouting department, along with Will McClay, clearly felt good about where Williams was in terms of his health, and what he could be, and through seven weeks of the season, he's been everything Dallas hoped he would be.
Already having a career high in touchdowns (six), Williams has been Dallas' bellcow in the run game, having 15+ carries in five of the seven games to be one of the driving forces behind what is described as one of the most potent offenses in football.
Sometimes when you gamble, it's a big loss, but right now, the Cowboys are smiling because their gamble on Javonte is paying off.
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