Javonte Williams Ran For 155 On 25 Carries, And The Secret Ingredient Was The Carries

Folks, I have spent all season telling you the ceiling is the point. Last night in Philadelphia, a Cowboys running back took the stand as my star witness. @FantasyPros posted, "If Javonte Williams just ruined your fantasy week you may be entitled to compensation". That is the first lawyer ad I have ever agreed with.

The Cowboys beat the Eagles 38-21 and snapped a two-game losing streak, per Todd Archer. Javonte Williams ran for a career-high 155 yards on 25 carries with a touchdown, per Clarence Hill Jr., the most rushing yards in a game by a Cowboy since Ezekiel Elliott's 159 against Tampa Bay in 2016.

It was his first 100-yard game this year, and he got there on a 34-yard run, per Archer. Exhibit A is the week before. In Week 6 against Green Bay, he had a season-low 11 carries for 41 yards, per Archer. Same back, more than double the carries.

Twenty-Five Carries And One Emphasis

Archer summed up Monday in one line: "The more Williams got the ball, the better he was." Williams said, "It was good to give Schotty the confidence to keep calling the runs," and added, "He made a big emphasis on that this week."

Schotty is Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer. His postgame news conference lasted about 4 minutes, per Jon Machota, and asked if everything was OK, he said, "I’m great. Excited for our guys." Hill called Monday's game a job-saving win. A man who called that many runs has earned a short news conference.

Dak Prescott explained why volume matters for this back, per Archer: "He's a guy you got to get in a groove". Prescott said the last couple of weeks were probably frustrating for Williams: "He's not getting that chance again and again to get in that groove".

Exhibit B Wore A T-Shirt

Prescott wore a postgame shirt that read "Linemen lead the way." The Cowboys ran for 204 yards as a team, per Archer, and left guard Tyler Smith said "we were just moving guys at will." Even John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia noted the Eagles "did not have a sack, quarterback hit, or tackle for loss."

Analyst Tej Seth wrote, "Just a masterclass by the Cowboys run game tonight." By his SumerSports data, 112 of the 204 rushing yards came after contact. The Cowboys ran 26 times in the A and B gaps for 157 yards, and they used a sixth offensive lineman on 9 rushes for 81 yards.

I ran a pressure-washing company called Full Blast Solutions, and the second story of every house stayed out of reach until somebody brought the ladder. Talent and blocking set a running back's ceiling. Carries are the one number on his stat line the play caller controls, and they are the ladder. I call it the ladder rule.

Every running back has a ceiling. Only the play caller can hand him the ladder.

The Defense Gets Its Turn

The other side's best witness is Troy Aikman. Asked whether the win changes how he sees the team, he said, per Jon Machota, "this is a beat-up Philadelphia team." He added, "let’s not get carried away."

Nick Harris wrote, "The story of Monday night will be told in how Dallas follows this up." I agree. The work was also shared: Tyler Goodson got 14 snaps and 10 carries, per Calvin Watkins. And yes, it is one game.

At 3-4, the Cowboys are second in the NFC East, and Arizona (2-5) is next, per Archer. The Cardinals have beaten Dallas four straight times and eight of nine. That is a fair exhibit for the other side, and I hate it.

Gordy, a test drive tells you what the engine does with the pedal down, and on Monday somebody pressed it. If the carries drift back toward 11, I will hand back the keys myself.

Prescott has already turned the page, per Machota: "It’s Arizona." So here is my call, Your Honor, signed and dated. Javonte Williams will rush for at least 100 yards against the Cardinals on Sunday. It leans on Monday's 25 carries and on the emphasis Williams described. If he comes up short, I will take it on the chin here.

What I Am Doing About It

1. I am starting Williams against Arizona. Twenty-five carries is the volume I chase, and the man who controls the carries just made them a priority.
2. Carries are my trigger. If his count drifts back toward the 11 he got in Week 6, the ceiling goes with it.
3. Tyler Goodson's 10 carries go in my notebook, and nowhere else yet. One game of shared work is a note. If it becomes a pattern, I will say so.
4. In dynasty, I think his price peaks this week. I sold used trucks, and you list one the morning after you wash it. If you want to sell, take calls now. I would keep the ceiling.
5. I revisit after Sunday. Then we will know whether the ladder stays up.

In July, Gordy wrote that the Cowboys re-signed Williams and added nobody else of consequence, and he warned you off the backup hype. I wrote the rebuttal and took the backup's side. Gordy, of all people, called the starter. I will be hearing about it until the 2014 bar tab gets paid.