The Dallas Cowboys wide receiver group never fully unveiled itself in the 2020 season. Injuries along the offensive line and more importantly to the quarterback limited the impact of their dynamic wide receiver trio. Still, Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, and CeeDee Lamb were able to have productive, if underwhelming seasons (as did many of the Dallas Cowboys).
As good as that trio is, the one thing they’re missing is a legit speed threat in the wide receiver group.
Now, Cooper, Gallup, and Lamb are more than capable of winning downfield. However, they lack a speed element that threatens defense down the field.
That’s what is so intriguing about De’Vonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle. Two guys with blazing speed that can take the top off of the defense. It’s an aspect missing from Kellen Moore’s vertical passing offense.
But the Cowboys don’t have to wait to find that speed. The NFL Draft is just around the corner and the Cowboys will have some options to choose from. It’s unlikely the Dallas Cowboys would take a wide receiver like Waddle or Smith at the top of the draft, so they’ll have to look at adding a wide receiver in the middle to later part of the draft.
A player like Anthony Schwartz of Auburn could add an element that the Cowboys don’t have in their offense. Schwartz ran a 4.26 at his pro day. If he would have been able to run at the combine and pull that that off, it would be the third fastest 40-time ever. Schwartz had 54 receptions for 636 yards and three touchdowns. Not great production but the Auburn passing attack wasn’t the most dynamic in college football.
The speed to threaten defenses down the field would open things up a little bit more in the short and intermediate passing game for the Cowboys. Schwartz can provide that. His speed could see him go as high as the second round, but it’s likely that he could be available for one of their third or fourth round picks.
As it stands, the Cowboys still have one of the best receiving groups in the NFL, if not the best. Yet, there’s an element missing that could help take their offense to another level. Adding the kind of speed that Schwartz brings to the NFL would unlock an element of the Dallas Cowboys passing game that we haven’t seen yet.
