Two Touchdown Night Against Rams Has Dallas Cowboys' Dwayne Harris Staring At Roster Spot

  by Ryan Bush

Dwayne Harris & Teammates celebrate after one of two touchdowns against the Rams

 

To say that Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dwayne Harris had a breakout game Saturday night against the Rams might be considered a gross understatement.  For the second year player out of East Carolina, his two touchdown performance in the Cowboys’ 20-19 victory can safely be said to be his only NFL game of statistical significance to date

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And it couldn’t have come at a better time for him either.  Tony Romo was without his top two wideouts for the game, and needed a go-to guy to emerge.  Lo and behold, the long-haired speed-demon Harris became just that guy, finishing with 118 yards receiving on three catches.  

Miles Austin and Dez Bryant are the only two receivers with a firm grip on a roster spot, yet each were sidelined with minor ailments.  Any one of three wide receiver slots behind them are open for the taking, and Harris threw his hat into the ring with a monster first-quarter performance that included scoring grabs of 61 and 38 yards, staking the Cowboys to a 20-6 halftime lead.   The fact that he did this against the first-team Rams defense only adds more icing onto his already decorative cake.

“Dwayne did a good job,” Romo said.  “It’s never been about the big things for Dwayne.  It’s just about the little things.  If he gets the little things down, he’s got a chance to really help our football team.”

Last season, Harris waited until the third week of the preseason to show up on the radar, turning a short pass reception into a 76-yard scoring jaunt against the second-unit of a spineless Vikings defense, yet only made the 53-man roster when fellow receiver Ramon Radway broke his leg on the final play of the exhibition finale in rainy Miami five days later.  This year Radway is nowhere to be found, buried amongst a group of roster hopefuls desperate for a break of positive implications to fall their way, while Harris has quickly become a leading candidate for a role in September and beyond.