Rasheen Ali, a possible draft choice by the Cowboys, paid the team a visit this month.
The Dallas Cowboys need a running back after Tony Pollard left for Tennessee. According to almost every mock draft out there, the team will fill the need early in this month’s NFL draft, usually in the second round, when elite backs like Jonathan Brooks and Trey Benson are available.
However, players outside of the Top 2 or 3 backs in the draft class will still be available, and it’s important to keep in mind that Pollard was selected in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. In addition to selecting Benson in the third round, the Cowboys are also expected to select Marshall’s Rasheen Ali in the seventh round, based on a seven-round mock draft from 24/7 Sports.
Regarding Ali, who did visit the Cowboys but might not be available for Dallas in the seventh round, here is what 24/7 wrote: Rasheen Ali, who Senior Bowl Executive Director Jim Nagy recently described as a potential Day 3 steal for whoever selects him, is a rising star in this year’s draft process. In this mock draft, that team is the Cowboys, who are expressing interest in him before the selection.
Cowboys Waiting for the Third “STEAL”
Nagy, who has overseen the Senior Bowl for the last six seasons in addition to serving as an NFL scout for 18 years, had in fact expressed interest in Ali as a possibility in the past. Although Ali was unable to participate at the Combine due to a biceps tear sustained during the Senior Bowl, he still made an impact. The Cowboys are obviously interested.
Last week, Nagy posted the following on Twitter/X: “Marshall RB Rasheen Ali is one athlete who’ll be a Day 3 pick for some team. I’m not finding much information about Ali on this site, however at the Senior Bowl, he was dominating the Top-100 prospects (below) with his spectacular COD abilities until sustaining an arm injury. About as much juice as any RB in the 2024 draft is on tape for @fsosheen1.
He kept raving about Ali’s agility and cutting prowess before stating, “Last thing on Rasheen Ali.” This year, Ali’s name kept coming up when I asked scouts and coaching buddies who’s impressing in interviews during @seniorbowl week. Teams enjoyed hearing about how Ali’s father instilled toughness in him at an early age and reared him as a competitive boxer, though I’m not sure the whole story.
In terms of rushing, Rasheen Ali led college football in 2021.
Among the players in the forthcoming draft with higher potential is Ali. His sophomore year at Marshall was incredibly successful; in 2021, he ran for 1,401 yards—the most in the entire FBS—and 23 touchdowns. However, in 2022, he sustained an unexplained injury and only returned to participate in the season’s final three games.
It was eventually discovered that he had suffered a knee injury, but coach Charles Huff also declared at the time that he would not be returning to the squad until he was “mentally, physically, and emotionally ready.” In 2023, Ali played in 12 games while fully recovered, rushing for 1,135 yards and 15 touchdowns. He completed 34 games with the Herd, totaling 2,831 yards and 39 touchdowns on the ground.
Huff once likened Ali to Lions great Barry Sanders because of his elusiveness and his ability to make the Marshall offensive line seem good. The Cowboys would definitely take notice of that.
According to the Huntington Herald-Dispatch, Huff stated, “I don’t know if the Detroit Lions didn’t have a good O-line or if Barry Sanders was a good back.” “You may argue for or against Barry, but he put things right. He improved the way those people looked. It goes without saying that we looked better last year after Ali fixed a few things for us. defenses with distinct plans. A 20-yard play could be called for an 8-yard play.
