The Dallas Cowboys deserved a round of applause for extending running back Javonte Williams before he reached the open market. For once, they set the table for free agency, rather than reacting to the contracts handed out by other teams.
By the looks of it, Williams' $8 million annual average value looks like a steal. J.K. Dobbins got $10 million from the Broncos after playing in just 10 games last season, while Kenneth Walker and Travis Eitenne are now making $14.35 million and $13 million per year, respectively.
While it's great to have Williams back, RB2 is a sneaky need. It was apparent in the second half of the year that Williams' workload took a toll. Not the fleetest of foot, he lost some explosion and didn't bounce off defenders with the same regularity or force.
All hope is not lost in that regard, but a great target is now off the board after the Washington Commanders signed former Tampa Bay Buccaneer Rachaad White to a one-year, $2 million contract.
The #Commanders deal with RB Rachaad White is 1-year, $2M. https://t.co/jEOfNFILbX
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) March 12, 2026
The Dallas Cowboys were a perfect fit for Rachaad White
The Commanders were a pushover in 2025, but they are going to be a problem next season. While dishing out wads of cash in free agency isn't always conducive with winning, Washington had a lot of pieces in place before the legal tampering period, and it's added several good players this week.
Rachaad White is no exception, and he reunites with quarterback Jayden Daniels after the two were teammates at Arizona State.
As evidenced by his career 3.9 yards per carry, White is not an efficient runner between the tackles. However, he's one year removed from tallying over 1,500 yards from scrimmage. He took a backseat to Bucky Irving in 2025, but he remained effective, racking up 790 scrimmage yards and four touchdowns.
Very few running backs are better than White at catching the ball out of the backfield. In other words, he's the perfect third-down back for today's NFL. He's not peppered with targets like Christian McCaffrey, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Bijan Robinson, but 205 catches in four years is impressive stuff.
In the last two seasons, White didn't drop a single pass on 97 targets, per Pro Football Focus. He's as sure-handed as they come at the RB position.
White's Buccaneers tenure proved he's better as a 1B than a bell-cow. Regardless of his role with Washington, he's going to give the Cowboys' headaches as a pass-catcher. That he was available for $2 million proves they should have been in the mix.
Malik Davis, 2025 draft picks Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah, and Israel Ibanikanda are the only backs behind Williams right now. Even with Davis' inspiring play last season, that's a really underwhelming group.