We proceed scouting the 2026 NFL Draft class of the Dallas Cowboys by trying on the undrafted free agent class. At present we’re taking a look at working again Dominic Richardson from Tulsa.
RBTulsa Golden Hurricane Senior3-star rating6’0”207 lbs
Richardson’s recruitment had an uncommon twist. He initially signed with TCU, however after TCU added extra working backs, together with five-star Zach Evans, he was granted a launch and reopened his recruitment. Oklahoma State added him to its 2020 class in July.
In his first school season at Oklahoma State, Richardson performed in seven video games as a real freshman, together with every of the ultimate six video games, and completed with 44 carries for 223 yards and three touchdowns. His breakout got here at Baylor, the place he rushed 23 occasions for 169 yards and three touchdowns. Oklahoma State mentioned that was the second-highest speeding whole by a real freshman at school historical past, behind solely Thurman Thomas’ 206-yard sport towards Kansas State in 1984.
His second school season was his first full rotation 12 months. He performed in all 14 video games for Oklahoma State, labored on offense and particular groups, and completed with 79 carries for 373 speeding yards and 4 touchdowns, plus seven catches for 54 yards. His finest sport was towards TCU, when he rushed for 134 yards and scored two touchdowns.
In 2022 he was lead-back and Oklahoma State highlighted him as the following man up after quite a lot of proficient working backs had moved on or transferred, and Mike Gundy mentioned early within the 12 months that Richardson may obtain 18 to twenty touches per sport. In 9 video games, he led Oklahoma State with 149 carries for 543 speeding yards and eight touchdowns, whereas additionally catching 22 passes for 220 yards. His standout video games included 27 carries for 131 yards and a landing towards Arizona State, 22 carries for 72 yards and a landing plus three catches for 79 yards towards TCU, and three speeding touchdowns towards Texas.
After the 2022 season, Richardson transferred from Oklahoma State to Baylor. He instantly turned Baylor’s main rusher and performed in 11 video games with 4 begins, lacking one sport due to harm, and completed with 125 carries for 519 yards and one speeding landing. He additionally added 21 catches for 152 yards and one receiving landing.
In 2024, it was a reset 12 months at Baylor. Richardson performed in 4 video games earlier than stepping away from the remainder of the season to protect a redshirt 12 months and preserve eligibility. He rushed 31 occasions for 109 yards and caught one cross for 19 yards.
Earlier than his sixth school season, Richardson briefly joined New Mexico State. The Aggies introduced him he could be becoming a member of the workforce, however there was a sudden change and Tulsa later listed him as having transferred to the Golden Hurricane from New Mexico State.
In his remaining school season,Richardson had the perfect statistical 12 months of his profession. He appeared in 12 video games with 11 begins, led Tulsa with 212 carries for 1,065 speeding yards and 5 touchdowns, and added 20 catches for 130 yards. He turned the twenty third participant in Tulsa historical past to hurry for 1,000 yards in a season and earned second-team All-American Convention honors. Throughout his full school profession, Richardson performed 57 video games and rushed for two,832 yards on 640 carries with 21 speeding touchdowns. He additionally turned a productive passing-game outlet, ending with 72 catches for 587 yards and one landing.
569 Offensive Snaps212 Rush Attempts1,065 Rush Yards5.0 YPC5 Rush TDs20 Receptions130 Receiving Yards1 Fumble66 Damaged Tackles799 Yards After Contact53 First Downs1 Penalty
RB- 95percentSlot-1percentWideout- 3%
2025: Second Group American Convention
Total- 41.9Speed- 58Acceleration- 66Agility- 57Strength- 88Contact Steadiness- 86Elusiveness- 55Ball Safety- 82Vision- 78Receiving- 58Blocking- 56Discipline- 94
His finest trait is his willingness to press the road, decrease his pads and end runs by contactConsistently falls ahead and tries to punish tacklers on the finish of runs His body and working temperament enable him to remain alive by glancing contactGets downhill with urgency which helps scale back unfavorable performs Has an pressing and aggressive working fashion Reveals good stamina to shut out gamesFeature-back experienceShows good sturdiness Extra of a grinder than an explosive home-run menace His lower-body stiffness limits how immediately he can redirect Not a fast accelerator Doesn’t challenge as a again who constantly wins on wide-zone tracks, perimeter runs, angle-breaking cuts, or open-field playHis bodily mentality is a energy, however it will probably additionally work towards him by being too reckless Common long-speed Not an elite receiving weapon
Richardson’s finest NFL match is as a bodily RB3 and short-yardage rotational again in an offense that desires a downhill runner to deal with inside-zone and late-game grinder carries. He isn’t suited as a wide-zone house again or a featured third-down receiving again. His finest work comes when he runs behind his pads, finishes by contact, protects the ball, handles the soiled yards and proves he can contribute on particular groups.
For the Cowboys, Richardson initiatives as a roster-bubble working again with a sensible practice-squad path and an outdoor shot to stay if he proves helpful on particular groups. Dallas didn’t draft a working again, however Richardson nonetheless enters a crowded room and should distinguish himself with physicality, ball safety, cross safety and short-yardage reliability.
Dominic Richardson’s sport is constructed round toughness, contact stability and a downhill working fashion. After a protracted school profession that included stops at Oklahoma State, Baylor and Tulsa, Richardson lastly dealt with a real feature-back workload in 2025 and responded with the perfect season of his profession. He’s a broad-shouldered runner with a thick core who makes use of his body to complete runs violently. His sport is just not constructed on suddenness or open-field creativity, it’s constructed on urgency, energy and a willingness to run by contact. That fashion offers him worth as a tone-setting depth again who can deal with inside-zone, hole and short-yardage work.
His finest trait is his mentality as a runner. He presses downhill, lowers his pads and fights to show modest beneficial properties into constructive performs. He doesn’t dance within the backfield, and his physicality helps him keep away from unfavorable runs even when blocking is imperfect. That was seen late in his Tulsa season, when he closed with two of his strongest performances.
The limitation with Richardson is that he’s not a dynamic explosive-play again. He lacks high-end playmaking capability, with tight hips and heavier lower-body motion that may take time to construct velocity. Which means he could not create many chunk beneficial properties on his personal on the NFL degree, and he’s extra more likely to win as a bodily chain-mover than as an area participant who constantly stresses defenses horizontally.
Total, Richardson is a mature, skilled, hard-nosed working again whose sport is extra reliable than flashy. He lacks elite burst and lateral creativity, however his measurement, toughness, ending capability and confirmed workload capability give him a transparent NFL lane. His most practical projection is as a developmental RB3/RB4 candidate who can compete for special-teams snaps and short-yardage work, with the upside to turn into a helpful backup if he proves he can shield the quarterback and constantly create powerful yards towards NFL fronts.
CONSENSUS OVERALL RANKING
