Darren McFadden Departs For Dallas

The Darren McFadden era in Oakland has finally come to an end. After staying for one more year last season, Darren McFadden has found a new home down in Texas. McFadden and the Dallas Cowboys have come to an agreement for a 2 year $5.85 million deal. With the departure of DeMarco Murray to Philly, the Cowboys had to fill in their running back void.

A part of us here within the Raider Nation is probably celebrating right now that he's finally left the team. It's understandable, considering he just couldn't stay healthy for a full 16 game season. Ironically, the year he finally stood healthy is last season, his last season with the Silver and Black, but he didn't contribute too much with the eventual emergence of Latavius Murray. He only had a 1000+ yard season under Hue Jackson and the next year with Hue as the head coach, he looked like he was on pace another great year till he got hit with a Linsfranc injury and the rest was history for McFadden's tenure. We may be glad that he's out considering the amount of times his injuries cost the Raiders promising seasons during his breakout years, but you can't deny his loyalty to the Raiders. He could've walked out last offseason when he was a free agent, could've taken Adrian Peterson-like money to play for another team, but he wanted to stay, take less money, and play with a chip on his shoulder to give something long overdue to the Raiders. It just wasn't meant to be.

Now with McFadden going to Dallas, those two years on the contract are definitely going to be pivotal. The Cowboys have a stout O-line, the paved a lot of holes for DeMarco Murray to run in. Basically, McFadden is going to get what he hasn't had in his 6-7 year tenure with the Raiders, a stout O-line that can open up big running lanes. The verdict is still out there whether McFadden failed to be the star running back the Raiders expected him to be because of an awful O-line he had to play with or is it because of the injuries that have derailed his growth into one of the league's premiere running back. Only the next season will tell and it will definitely give us a big picture on McFadden's NFL career. Can he benefit from the same O-line that made DeMarco Murray last season's leading rusher? Only next season will tell. But overall, I wish McFadden good luck on his new team and hopefully a change of scenery will rejuvenate his career.