Nick Piccone
Imagine if the Eagles traded DeMarco Murray back to the Dallas Cowboys this past offseason. You may not be hearing how great Ezekiel Elliott is, but Murray isn’t having too shabby of a season so far with the Tennessee Titans.
I say imagine if the Eagles traded Murray back to Dallas because it apparently was very close to happening, according to Murray himself. Speaking to the Star-Telegram, Murray noted he was heavily involved in trade talks and a reunion with the Cowboys was very close to happening.
“It was like 95 percent sure I was going to come back there,” Murray said in a phone interview. “I have a lot of respect for those guys — the Jones family, Will [McClay], coach [Jason] Garrett obviously and [Tony] Romo and Wit [Jason Witten], all those guys. I still consider them a great franchise, and they’re great friends of mine … I was very close to going back there. There were some things that fell through and just didn’t happen. I think everything happens for a reason. I’m here, and I’m supposed to be here. They’ve got a pretty good young back over there as well.”
The Star-Telegram notes that a source within the Cowboys confirmed Murray’s words, saying a reunion between the two sides was “close.” The Eagles, who were probably asking for a lot, reportedly didn’t want to trade Murray to a division rival, much less the Cowboys.
Murray said he was “very involved in the talks” and upon meeting new Eagles head coach Doug Pederson, but said his “heart just wasn’t there.” He said he needed a fresh start and the Eagles’ brass made it happen.
Murray currently has five total touchdowns (three rushing, two receiving) with 461 yards rushing on 93 attempts and 172 receiving yards on 24 receptions.