IRVING, Texas –After he received zero offensive touches in a game for the first time since Week 4 of his rookie season, Felix Jones' role on the offense appears to have shriveled to an all-time low point.
Jones was twice targeted by Tony Romo in the passing game, but couldn't come up with either throw, and didn't get any carries. When DeMarco Murray needed to come out of the game for a breather in the third quarter, Jones was having some rib pain checked out, and Phillip Tanner took the snaps.
On Wednesday, head coach Jason Garrett admitted Jones' decreased used was partly because of the flow of the game, and partly by design.
"Probably a little bit of a combination," Garrett said. "Felix is a guy who's going to come in and play halfback for us, both in the run game and the pass game. He's been coming off of an injury. He had the shoulder injury through a lot of training camp. He played more toward the end of the preseason."
Following a failed conditioning test to begin training camp, Jones was rather ineffective in the preseason, dropping several passes and failing to pick up much yardage on the ground. While he has taken over kickoff return duties, Murray is the Cowboys' clear-cut featured back.
Still, Garrett claims the Cowboys have a spot for Jones offensively.
"DeMarco Murray is our starter at tailback, and there's definitely a role for Felix," Garrett said. "We like what he does for our offense, both in the run game and pass game. Depending on how the game goes, he's going to get more touches or fewer touches. He's a big part of what we're trying to do."
