IR
Injury Hip
Est. Return 2/15/2027
2026 Rush/Rec Stats
ATT
0
YDS
0
TD
0
YDS
0
TD
0
Rest-of-Season Projections
2026 Fantasy Outlook
Originally an undrafted free agent out of Florida, Davis has hung around in the Cowboys' organization since 2022 and finally got rewarded with a significant role in the final weeks of 2025, rushing for 103 yards on 20 carries in Week 17 against Washington. Davis doesn't offer much as a pass-catcher and lacks a plus trait as a runner, breaking zero tackles on his 52 carries last season and averaging a very average 1.9 yards per carry after contact. He's reliable when called upon though and offers some special-teams utility, which has allowed him to hang onto a roster spot. Dallas didn't make any additions to the backfield depth chart in the offseason, and 2025 draft pick Jaydon Blue was waived in late August. Davis is thus set up as the No. 2 running back, putting him one Javonte Williams injury away from fantasy value. Read Past Outlooks
RANKS
Signed a two-year, $2.18 million contract with the Cowboys in November of 2025.
Done for 2026 after hip surgery
The Cowboys placed Davis (hip) on injured reserve Saturday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
ANALYSIS
Davis underwent surgery Saturday for a hip injury, and Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News reports that the procedure will sideline the 27-year-old running back for the entire 2026 season. With Davis on the shelf, the Cowboys bolstered their backfield depth by signing Israel Abanikanda from the practice squad to the active roster, with the latter serving as the RB3 behind Javonte Williams and Emari Demercado.
Davis underwent surgery Saturday for a hip injury, and Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News reports that the procedure will sideline the 27-year-old running back for the entire 2026 season. With Davis on the shelf, the Cowboys bolstered their backfield depth by signing Israel Abanikanda from the practice squad to the active roster, with the latter serving as the RB3 behind Javonte Williams and Emari Demercado.
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Fantasy/Red Zone Stats
See red zone opportunities inside the 20, 10 and 5-yard lines along with the percentage of time they converted the opportunity into a touchdown.
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2026 NFL Game Log
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2026 NFL Game Log
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Snap Distribution / Depth Chart
Snap Counts
Snap %
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Receiving Alignment Breakdown
See where Malik Davis lined up on the field and how he performed at each spot.
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This Week's Opposing Pass Defense
How does the Buccaneers pass defense compare to other NFL teams this season?
The bars represents the team's percentile rank (based on QB Rating Against). The longer the bar, the better their pass defense is. The team and position group ratings only include players that are currently on the roster and not on injured reserve. The list of players in the table only includes defenders with at least 3 attempts against them.
vs Buccaneers
Thursday, Oct 8th at 8:15PM
Overall QB Rating Against
85.2
Cornerbacks
78.1
Safeties
110.4
Linebackers
85.4
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2026 Malik Davis Split Stats
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2024
2023
The Cowboys' decision to let Tony Pollard leave and replace him with just retread Ezekiel Elliott points to a backfield committee in 2024, which could provide opportunities for depth players to make surprising contributions. Davis has plenty of experience in committees dating days to his college days at Florida, but he didn't see a single snap on offense last season, spending most of the year on the practice squad. He doesn't have any standout traits, and while he can handle duties on all three downs, he's limited to gaining the yards his blocking creates for him.
More Fantasy News
Will undergo hip surgery
Davis is slated to have surgery on his injured hip Saturday and is expected to be placed on IR, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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May miss 'some period of time'
Cowboys COO Stephen Jones said on 105.3 The Fan Dallas that Davis (hip) suffered a "pretty serious injury" at Friday's practice that "could take him out for some period of time."
ANALYSIS
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Ruled out for Week 1
Davis won't play Sunday at the Giants after suffering a hip injury at Friday's practice, Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News reports.
ANALYSIS
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Injures hip Friday
Davis sustained a hip injury at Friday's practice, Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News reports.
ANALYSIS
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Suffers injury at practice
Davis (undisclosed) needed a cart to get off the practice field Friday, Clarence Hill Jr. of AllDLLS.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
May have uphill battle for spot
Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star Telegram labels Davis as being on the roster bubble among the Cowboys' running backs heading into training camp.
ANALYSIS
Davis presents an interesting case, since at 27, he's older than two of his primary competitors for a reserve role -- Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah. However, Davis has also been the most productive of the trio at the NFL level, recording 90 carries and 12 targets across 25 regular-season games over the last three seasons. Harris notes that Blue and Mafah, both rookies a season ago, appear to have made notable strides this offseason, potentially leaving Davis on the outside looking in come final cuts if the aforementioned duo carries the momentum into training camp and preseason play.
Davis presents an interesting case, since at 27, he's older than two of his primary competitors for a reserve role -- Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah. However, Davis has also been the most productive of the trio at the NFL level, recording 90 carries and 12 targets across 25 regular-season games over the last three seasons. Harris notes that Blue and Mafah, both rookies a season ago, appear to have made notable strides this offseason, potentially leaving Davis on the outside looking in come final cuts if the aforementioned duo carries the momentum into training camp and preseason play.