Hunter Luepke

38 games, 28 receptions, 1 rushing TD — and 1 receiving TD. The exact dual-threat FB line.

As a 2023 UDFA out of North Dakota State, Luepke locked down the Cowboys' fullback role and hasn't relinquished it. His first season (2023) saw limited passing-game usage — just 4 targets and 3 catches — but 2024 and 2025 settled into a consistent band: 15–16 targets, 12–13 receptions, ~110 yards per year. The 2025 step-up came on the ground: rushing yards went from 19 → 38 → 71, with 2025's per-carry average (4.4) the best of his career.

From RB to FB in Week 3 of 2024 — and the depth-chart label has stuck.

Luepke entered the league listed as RB in every roster slot, but starting Week 3 of 2024 the Cowboys moved his depth-chart position to FB — a designation that has held through all of 2025. The position column in official NFL data still reads 'RB,' but the depth-chart label reflects how he is actually deployed: lead-blocking and short-yardage work, with targets primarily on schemed flat routes and screens rather than as a traditional backfield runner.

First career receiving TD — Week 6 of 2025 vs Carolina.

After 2 years and 24 NFL games without a receiving touchdown, Luepke caught his first one in Week 6 of 2025 vs Carolina (2 targets, 2 catches, 7 yards, 1 TD). It joins his only other career TD — a 3-yard rushing score as a rookie in Week 4 of 2023 vs the Patriots.

Two career touchdowns, both single-digit yards, one rush + one receiving. The textbook fullback TD line.

30+ rushing yards in a single game — accomplished just once. In Week 17 of 2025.

In Week 17 of 2025 vs Washington, Luepke had 7 carries for 30 yards — a career-high in both carries and rushing yards in a single game. Across his other 37 NFL games, his rushing-yard high was 16 (Week 15 of 2025 vs Minnesota).

For a player listed at FB on a roster with multiple RBs (Pollard departure, then a rotation including Williams/Vaughn), even a 7-carry game is an outlier. The Cowboys explicitly used him as a short-yardage hammer down the stretch.

41 receiving yards on 2 catches in Week 3 of 2024 — over 1/3 of that season's total.

Luepke's career single-game receiving yardage high (41 yards in Week 3 of 2024 vs Baltimore, on 2 catches — 17 and 24 yards) represented 37% of his entire 2024 receiving total. The fullback role rarely produces volume — when a chunk play comes, it's a one-off downfield seam off play-action.

3-year catch rate: 80% (28-of-35). Higher than most receivers.

Across his 3 NFL seasons, Luepke is 28-of-35 (80.0%) as a receiver. That's a higher catch rate than nearly every team's WR1 — but on a fraction of the volume.

The targets that come his way are schemed throws: flat routes, screens, dump-offs out of the backfield. He's averaged exactly 8.5 yards per reception — the trade-off for the high catch rate. He's a release valve, not a route runner.