is probably one of my favorites All Time Cowboys. Love watching him run. Look forward to seeing what the 10 lb loss will do for his game.

But it’s a different league now, and running backs by committee are by far more common than the San Diego LT and now Sproles work horse systems. Those guys are just so rare these days, the Cowboys need to stick with the three-headed monster approach until they find that next epic back.

just when I was getting going on my “Barber to Fullback” shtick…

With his running style and the chances of more injuries with age, it’s hard to think he will be around at 28 – 30 years old. This is his 6th season, I hope I’m wrong.

is exciting but never gave you the impression that he would have a long career

I still want el Gato to start.

When the talking point is about his weight? It’s like the admission that he’s gone downhill and there’s nothing worth bringing up.

Do you hear about Dez’s weight? No, you hear about his hands.
Do you hear about Felix’s weight? No, you hear about his speed

"I think he spends a lot of energy that may not be necessary," Smith said. "For a starting back, I’m all about putting your heart into it, but you’re doing a lot of kicking, running up, bucking and you’re exerting a lot of energy."

This is very true. What he’s talking about is the after whistle stuff. It’s 2nd and 8, Barber has a three yard run and hops up kicking, yelling and thrashing his arms about. I’ve got no problem with players celebrating or trying to fire their teammates up but honestly Barber just looks silly a lot of times and Smith is right, it’s a waste of energy. Put that effort into your runs.

The problem is MB isn’t going to suddenly become a speed back. I’d really like to see Felix and Tashard as our primary runners anyway. Because of the money Barber makes he’s not long for this team, just like RW.

Emmitt was the smartest, most efficient RB I’ve ever seen. That is one of the main reasons he is the most productive RB of all time. He never took unnecessary contact, always seemed to fall forward at the end of runs, and rarely took a big hit. His durability was not luck. He had great skill in protecting his body while maximizing his runs. Marion can certainly learn something there.

Having said that, I want Barber to run with the same bruising style he always has, just for fewer carries per game. We don’t need him to be a workhorse like Emmitt was. Emmitt never had any kind of viable backup to share carries with him. The best were Chris Warren and Troy Hambrick, and neither was as good as Felix Jones, or even Tashard Choice. Use a little more discretion, Marion, but continue to be Marion the Barbarian for certain times in games. Recipe for Cowboys running game success: lots of Felix, mix in Choice, and then Marion as the closer.

I do not understand why the coaching staff kept putting him out there when TC has proven he could pick up the slack very well.

MBIII knows what everyone is saying. I think he will play with great vengeance and furious anger,and you will know he is healed when he lays his vengeance upon the NFL Defenses.

Barber’s biggest problem was his injury last year. It’s ironic because it wasn’t even contact that brought him down, just pulled up lame with a hammy. and he wasn’t the same for most of the season, and everyone could see it, he couldn’t even run down the field without falling down, and he didn’t have nearly the power. what was frustrating is it seemed like the coaches didn’t see that and didn’t get Choice even more involved when Barber obviously wasn’t himself.

But going back and watching games from last season, MB3 makes a lot of great plays early in the season and late in the season. He killed in the Giants game week 2 with 155 all-purpose yards and a TD but then pulled a hammy. Missed the next game, and wasn’t the same for a long time. Never got another 100 yards rushing and most of the time was around half that. But then at the end of the regular season the old MB3 was back to gash the Eagles and made some big plays, with 105 all-purpose yards. Then he had a swollen knee and was pretty much out again for the playoffs.

I think it will serve Barber well to be part of a committee with Jones (and hopefully Choice) taking more carries, and adjusting his running style to protect himself some, hopefully he’ll be fresh thru in each game to play his role and do his damage, and healthy thru the season for the playoff run.

But I definitely think he’s still a very good back, he plays a very important role on this team both for his production and attitude. He can still have that attitude and fire up the team with his plays without having to always go for the big hit and every last inch.

Sometimes I think we have gotten down on Barber because we saw how he struggled last season, but he clearly wasn’t himself, and I love hearing that he trimmed down a bit and looks quick and powerful and healthy, and I can’t wait to see the old healthy MB3, just running a bit smarter this season to keep himself that way.

I’m sorry, but Barber has been worn down by injuries and is no longer the barbarian he used to be.

In 2009, 20% of Barber’s runs were for no gain or for loss. That ranks at the bottom of the league.

Compare that to Choice, who only had 13.5% of his runs go for no gain or loss. That is the 3rd fewest in the entire NFL.

Barber was the real deal, he was a harder runner than anyone in the league. But he’s worn down. He’s just nostalgia.

Choice is the real deal in 2010. It’s Choice and Felix who should be splitting the carries.