A couple of years ago, the Cowboys had an embarrassment of riches at the receiver position. Amari Cooper was one of the top route runners in football, CeeDee Lamb was thriving in his second year in the league, and Michael Gallup was playing well enough to be some teams’ top wideout. Even Cedrick Wilson showed enough in spot duty to earn a three-year deal with the Dolphins in free agency.
Last year, things were quite different. Dallas traded , CooperGallup struggled with consistency after returning way ahead of schedule from a torn ACL, and Wilson was gone. The idea was to make Lamb the focal point of the offense, which became a necessity with the injury to James Washington, the struggles of rookie Jalen Tolbert, and inconsistent play from Noah Brown.
In 2022, there was a clear talent issue at the receiver position. The Cowboys worked to fix that for 2023, trading for veteran Brandin Cooks to fill in as the WR2 while remaining confident in progression from both Gallup and Tolbert. There were also plans to getmore involved on offense.
For the most part, those things have panned out. Cooks has produced two touchdowns, Tolbert just caught his first career touchdown, and Turpin has seven catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns. Second-year tight end Jake Ferguson has also burst onto the scene, becoming a reliable safety blanket option.
Yet, there’s still a general sense that this receiving corps isn’t where it needs to be. That’s why the team just added Martavis Bryant to thei KaVontae Turpin r practice squad, after all. Gallup has had some flashes this year, but still plenty of struggles. Cooks isn’t getting thrown to often enough. And Lamb is still commanding the vast majority of work in the pass game despite the team’s efforts to beef up his supporting cast. So what gives?
It’s just the way it’s meant to be. The top receiver in this offense is Lamb, who is targeted on 26.8% of passes. That isn’t much in doubt, especially given the effort he is putting in with an NFL-second-best catch percentage of 79.2% for 827 yards and three touchdowns.
James Harrison beefed with Commissioner Roger Goodel
James Harrison and Roger Goodell represent the perfect example of a workplace dynamic going to shit. Employee severely breaks the rules by repeatedly engaging in illegal hits. Bossman lays down the punishment of hefty fines. Leaving the employee to respond with an extremely pointed threat that he would rather let the commissioner burn than take the opportunity to piss on him to put out the flames. And that’s just one of the many menacing remarks. In other words, it’s a sure-fire recipe for beef.
The issue some have is that the Cowboys aren’t really using their other weapons. However, unlike 2022, this isn’t an issue with the talent at the position. Cooks is a proven commodity, and the trio of Gallup, Tolbert, and Turpin have shown enough to justify their spots on this roster. Ferguson is emerging more and more each week as well.
What this ultimately comes down to is the scheme. Mike McCarthy introduced West Coast principles to this offense over the offseason, and chief among them has been a focus on getting the ball out quick. That’s held true, with Dak Prescott averaging a lightning quick 2.66 seconds per throw.
What that also means is that the progressions for a pass play get shorter. One valid criticism of Kellen Moore’s offense was how long some plays took to develop, with Prescott frequently having to get to his third or fourth read to find someone that was open. Case in point: Moore’s new quarterback, Justin Herbert, is averaging a rather high 2.76 seconds per throw.
Leave a Reply