We’ve put the Front Office, the Coaches, Quarterback, and the Running Backs under the microscope so far.
Today we take a look at the room that was the biggest disaster in 2022: The Wide Receivers.
A HOT MESS OF THEIR OWN MAKING
The saddest fact of the state of the wide outs is that they were a hot mess in 2022. Even worse, it was the weakest link on the offensive chain because of Jerry Jones and the Front Office.
Who in their right mind trades away the best receiver the team has had in years in favor of paying a player coming off a significant leg injury? The Jones boys, that’s who.
Amari Cooper was sent off to Cleveland, with a hot mess at the quarterback position. All he did this year in 17 games was catch 78 passes for 1,160 yards and nine TDs,
By comparison, Michael Gallup had 39 catches for 424 yards and four touchdowns. He played in 14 games with 11 starts in 2022. He also couldn’t get separation downfield from a plastic grocery bag.
The Cowboys decided to send off their best wide out. That left CeeDee Lamb with a gimpy Gallup, Noah Brown and a bunch of no-names.
Basically, the receivers were set up to fail in 2022 and that’s exactly what they did.
A NEVER-ENDING DUMPSTER FIRE
Things got so dire, the Cowboys had to drag in T.Y. Hilton off the street late in the season. And he still managed to look better than everyone else in the room, save Lamb.
The only way things could have gotten worse would be if they’d signed Odell Beckham Jr.
Unfortunately, as things stand right now, this is a dumpster fire that is carrying over into 2023. Worse still, I don’t see anyone showing up to put it out.
THE SOLUTION
Look, I’m an amateur General Manager, not a miracle worker. I didn’t even stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night, or for the last year for that matter. This is a problem without an easy answer.
Right? Right!
So here’s how we’re going to fix it.
First, under no circumstance whatsoever, do we sign OBJ. If Jerry even hints at it, Stephen Jones needs to go to the nearest Judge and have Jerry committed.
Adding OBJ into the mix would be like loading up a bazooka, aiming it at your own face, and pulling the trigger. It won’t end well.
And since I very much doubt the Browns would be willing to give the Cowboys a do-over and give Cooper back, that leaves two options.
Free agency and the draft. Because aside from Gallup finally coming back to pre-injury form, Noah Brown is about the only receiver on the roster worth keeping. The lone exception would be Hilton, assuming he would sign an affordable contract.
The two free agents I would take a long look at are Juju Smith-Schuster and D.J. Chark Jr.
Smith-Schuster would come in with a championship ring on his finger, giving the Cowboys a player who knows how to win. He collected 78 catches for 933 yards and three TDs for the Chiefs last year.
Chark battled injuries in 2022 but rallied for a strong second half of the season as the Lions made a playoff push. Despite missing six games he still hauled in 30 passes for 502 yards and three scores.
A healthy Gallup stretching the defense along with Lamb and either of those two free agents would be a force on the Cowboys in 2023.
If the Cowboys go to the draft to address this issue – assuming the first-round pick isn’t Bijan Robinson – there are four good options.
TCU’s Quentin Johnson is the best wide out in the upcoming draft. End of discussion. If Dallas has a chance to grab him, they need to do so.
USC’s Jordan Addison, Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt and Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Nigba would also be immediate help to a weak wide receiver room in Dallas.
Either way, the receivers are the weak link on offense. A link that needs to be replaced with a link of hardened steel. Not wrapped in aluminum foil, held together with a prayer and a wad of chewing gum.
