Felix Jones Felix Jones , Jr . ( born May 8 , 1987 ) is an American football running back who is currently a free agent in the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for the University of Arkansas , and was a consensus All - American . He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft . Early years . Jones was born in Tulsa , Oklahoma . He attended Booker T . Washington High School in Tulsa , where he was a football standout and a teammate of Robert Meachem , a current member of the New Orleans Saints and Mark Anderson , a 2010 member of the Houston Texans . College career . Jones attended the University of Arkansas , where he majored in kinesiology and played for the Arkansas Razorbacks football team . While serving primarily as the back - up for All - America n and two - time Doak Walker Award winner Darren McFadden , Jones was used in a variety of ways alongside McFadden and fullback Peyton Hillis in the Arkansas backfield . In the Wildhog formation , Jones was used as a runner , receiver , blocker , or simply a decoy . Jones gained fame for his ability in returning kickoffs , returning four for touchdowns during his college career . Sophomore season . In the 2006 season , Jones rushed for 1 , 168 yards and scored 6 touchdowns on 154 carries , and averaged 8 . 7 yards per carry . He was also an all - American kickoff returner and had one touchdown on a 100 - yard kickoff return against Ole Miss , and caught 15 passes for 107 yards and three touchdowns . Jones alongside McFadden and Peyton Hillis , it was the first time in University of Arkansas history that two different running backs rushed for more than 1 , 000 yards in the same season . Jones was a first - team All - SEC by the conference ' s coaches , and second - team All - SEC by the media . That team finished 10 - 4 and won the SEC Western Division title . Junior season . Jones finished with 123 carries for 1 , 162 yards and 11 touchdowns , while averaging 9 . 1 yards per carry , leading the nation . In addition , he led the Southeastern Conference in kickoff returns with 18 for 564 yards and two touchdowns , averaging 31 . 3 yards per return . Jones also had 13 receptions for 111 yards . 2007 marked the second straight year that Jones and McFadden have each eclipsed the 1 , 000 yards rushing in a season . The 2007 Razorbacks finished 8 - 4 before losing to Missouri in the January 1 , 2008 Cotton Bowl Classic . Jones was named to the first - team All - SEC squad as a kick returner , and the second - team All - SEC as a running back . He was also named an All - American kick returner . After being hired as the Razorbacks ' head coach , Bobby Petrino stated that Jones was his " highest recruiting target " and soon met with Jones to discuss his future with Arkansas . However , Jones decided to forgo his senior season to enter the 2008 NFL Draft where numerous publications projected him to be taken in the first or second round . Professional career . Dallas Cowboys . Looking to acquire a running back that could compliment the bruising style of starter Marion Barber III , the Dallas Cowboys drafted Jones in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft ( 22nd overall ) , passing on other running backs like Rashard Mendenhall , Chris Johnson , Matt Forté , Ray Rice and Jamaal Charles . The decision process for his selection was captured in the fourth season ( 2008 ) of HBO ' s " Hard Knocks series " . He signed a professional contract on July 26 for $ 10 . 53 million , with $ 7 . 67 million guaranteed , including a $ 3 . 57 million signing bonus . The expectations were high in his rookie season , on his first rushing attempt in the NFL Jones ran for an 11 - yard touchdown during the third quarter in a 28 – 10 victory over the Cleveland Browns . On September 15 , during a Monday Night Football game versus the Philadelphia Eagles , Jones returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter of the 41 – 37 win , which earned him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week . In his third NFL game , Jones ran for a 60 - yard touchdown against the Green Bay Packers on November 21 . In Week 6 , in the game against the Arizona Cardinals , Jones injured his left hamstring . It was reported by ESPN on December 20 that Jones would be out for the rest of the year due to a torn ligament suffered during the rehab of that injury . In his second season he received more carries per game than in his rookie year , despite being a backup and one of three running backs used in the Cowboys offense . In his rookie season he never rushed for more than nine carries a game , but he reached the double digits mark . Against the Carolina Panthers he had his first career start in place of an injured Barber , recording eight carries for 94 yards ( 11 . 8 ) , but also suffered a knee strain in the third quarter that ended his day and would make him miss two additional games . In the regular season , Jones set a Cowboys franchise record in average yards per carry with 5 . 9 yards , the tenth most since the AFL - NFL merger . In the first Cowboys playoff win since 1996 , playing against the Philadelphia Eagles , he led the team with 16 carries for 148 yards ( including a 73 - yard touchdown run ) . His 148 yards are the third - most rushing yards in a playoff game in team history and his 73 - yard run is the longest in franchise postseason history . He also became the first NFL player with 400 rushing yards on fewer than 50 career carries since Bo Jackson did it in 1987 . In 2010 he played in all 16 games for the only time in his career , starting seven games together or in place of Barber and leading the team with 800 rush yards on 185 carries ( 4 . 3 yards average ) with one touchdown . Against the New York Giants he had the longest reception in his career ( 71 yards ) . In 2011 after Barber was released by the team , the expectation was that Jones would be the primary running back , but after injuring his ankle in the fifth game of the season against the New England Patriots , the four games he missed gave rookie DeMarco Murray the opportunity to earn the starter position for good . Jones missed the entire 2012 offseason workouts because of shoulder surgery and failed the conditioning test at the start of training camp . His best game came against the eventual Super Bowl champions the Baltimore Ravens , when he replaced an injured DeMarco Murray and finished with 18 carries for 92 yards and one touchdown . After playing in all 16 games and having 7 starts , the Cowboys decided not to re - sign Jones after the season , making him a free agent . During his 5 years with the team he registered 2 , 728 rushing yards , with a 4 . 8 yards average and 11 touchdown s , while also adding 1 , 062 receiving yards with 3 touchdowns . Philadelphia Eagles . On May 14 , 2013 Jones signed a one - year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles . Pittsburgh Steelers . On August 23 , 2013 , the Philadelphia Eagles traded Jones to the Pittsburgh Steelers for linebacker Adrian Robinson . He was the starting back with Le ' Veon Bell injured .