Cowboys’ Rookie Deuce Vaughn, Shortest Player in the NFL, Goes Viral in Training Camp Clip

As the Dallas Cowboys prepare for their 2023 season, footage of the team's training sessions have cropped up across social media. Now, rookie running back Deuce Vaughn has become a viral sensation.

Five-foot-five-inch Vaughn, the shortest player in the NFL since the league began tracking that information in 2003, was seen in a video practicing drills with teammates who appear twice his height.

At the time of his draft, Vaughn was called “productive but undersized.” A regional scout for the AFC team at the time described him as "tough and he’s fun to watch but that’s an impossible sell in our building because of the size. I think he makes it in the league, though.”

Vaughn’s father is Chris Vaughn, assistant director of college scouting for the Cowboys. Although he removed himself from the decision that placed his son on the team, he still got to deliver the good news.

In a clip of that moment, Vaughn speaks with his son on speakerphone as he’s surrounded by Cowboys executives and a camera crew.

“You want to come and work with me next week?” Vaughn asks.

“I wouldn’t mind that at all,” his son replies.

“We’re so happy to have you on the Dallas Cowboys,” Jerry Hall, the team’s owner, then tells Deuce Vaughn. “You earned every ounce of me being able to make this call. You are now a Dallas Cowboy, your daddy just handed the card in. Congratulations!”

In three seasons with Kansas State’s Wildcats, Vaughn took 116 catches for 1,280 yards and nine touchdowns. He also netted 651 carries for 3,604 yards and 34 touchdowns.

He is already earning comparisons to fellow Kansas State alum Darren Sproles, who was only 5'6", but made a formidable opponent during his time as a running back for the Eagles and Saints.