FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys are signing running back Tyler Goodson off the Atlanta Falcons practice squad, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 in Houston reported Tuesday. Wilson reported that Goodson is joining the Dallas 53-man roster.
This is the second running back Dallas has added since Malik Davis was carted off the practice field at The Star on Sept. 11 with a hip injury. Davis had surgery the next day. That same Saturday, the Cowboys placed Davis on injured reserve without a designation to return and signed Israel Abanikanda from the practice squad to the active roster.
Dallas lost 28-20 to the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 13. For the opener, the Cowboys carried three running backs on the active roster: Javonte Williams, Emari Demercado, and Abanikanda. Fullback Hunter Luepke was also on the roster. Abanikanda was inactive against New York.
At the time of Wilson’s report, Dallas had not announced the signing. No corresponding roster move had been reported either.
Tyler Goodson Arrives After Leading Atlanta Falcons in Preseason Rushing
Atlanta signed Goodson on March 26. His 93 rushing yards across three preseason games led the Falcons this summer. One of those carries went 49 yards for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Falcons kept two running backs on their initial 53-man roster, Bijan Robinson and Brian Robinson Jr. Atlanta waived Goodson on Aug. 31 and signed him to its practice squad on Sept. 1.
Goodson, 25, is listed at 5-foot-9 and 197 pounds. At the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.42 seconds.
In 2024 with Indianapolis, he carried 32 times for 153 yards and 1 touchdown and caught 11 passes for 61 yards and 1 touchdown in 16 games. Last season he played in 11 games for the Colts, with 9 carries for 24 yards and 2 catches for 8 yards. Goodson has 54 carries for 264 yards and 1 touchdown in 33 career games. He also has 19 receptions for 103 yards and 1 touchdown.
On special teams, he has returned 11 kickoffs for 297 yards. He has played 306 special teams snaps in his career.
The Green Bay Packers signed Goodson as an undrafted free agent out of Iowa in May 2022. Green Bay elevated him from its practice squad on Dec. 31 of that season and waived him with an injury designation on Aug. 29, 2023. Two weeks later, the Colts signed him to their practice squad. Indianapolis signed him to its active roster on Dec. 19, 2023.
At Iowa, Goodson ran for 2,551 yards and 18 touchdowns. He also caught 70 passes for 565 yards and 1 touchdown. In 2021, his final college season, he ran for 1,151 yards and 6 touchdowns. He was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2020.
Cowboys Running Back Moves After Malik Davis Hip Surgery
Davis won the No. 2 job behind Williams in a training camp competition that ran through most of August. On Aug. 20, the last practice of camp in Oxnard, California, Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Davis and Abanikanda had earned more first-team reps than the rest of the running backs.
Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones said on 105.3 The Fan the afternoon of the injury that the team did not yet have final details on Davis.
“Unfortunately, I think he’s looking at a pretty serious injury that could take him out for some period of time,” Stephen Jones said.
Last season, Davis ran 52 times for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns in 10 games. In 25 career games, all with Dallas, he has 90 carries for 411 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Dallas claimed Demercado off waivers from the Kansas City Chiefs on Aug. 31. He ran for 312 yards in his third season with the Arizona Cardinals and moved into the No. 2 role behind Williams for the opener.
“Emari is a guy that [offensive coordinator] Klayton [Adams] has exposure to,” Schottenheimer said after the claim.
Dallas waived Abanikanda on Aug. 31 in the cuts to 53 and signed him back to the practice squad on Sept. 1. The New York Jets drafted him in the fifth round in 2023, 143rd overall, out of Pittsburgh. He ran 22 times for 70 yards in six games as a rookie.
The Cowboys host the Washington Commanders on Sunday, Sept. 20, at AT&T Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3:25 p.m. CT on Fox.
