Even with CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, Cowboys' WR room lands outside Top 10
CeeDee Lamb is still the focal point, but the Cowboys need more from their supporting cast to crack the top 10.
The Dallas Cowboys' wide receiver unit will head into the 2025 season facing numerous questions, particularly beyond their top two receivers, which is why Pro Football Focus placed Dallas at No. 15 in its receiving corps rankings ahead of the season. The ranking also includes running backs and tight ends.
Starting withe the obvious, CeeDee Lamb remains one of the league's most dynamic wideouts and is easily the engine of this group. But after a slight dip in production last season, where he earned a 79.9 PFF receiving grade, down from 91.2 the year before, there's hope that a fully healthy Dak Prescott, as well as a healthy Lamb who dealt with a shoulder injury and was held out of the final two games of last season, can help him bounce back to All-Pro form.
CeeDee Lamb carries the Cowboys' ranking here. His 79.9 PFF receiving grade in 2024 was low for his standards, but he recorded a 91.2 mark the year prior when Dak Prescott was fully healthy. Dallas traded for George Pickens, who is coming off a career-high 78.6 PFF overall grade, but they need more from Jake Ferguson, Jalen Tolbert and someone — anyone — out of the backfield.
Dallas' biggest swing of the offseason came in the form of George Pickens, acquired in a bold trade to give Lamb a true complement on the outside. Pickens posted a career-high 78.6 overall grade in 2024 and brings a level of physicality and vertical speed that could open things up underneath.
Still, beyond those two, the issue lies in depth. Tight end Jake Ferguson wasn't able to replicate his Pro Bowl campaign in 2023 and failed to score a single touchdown last season. Jalen Tolbert enters Year 4 and is looking to carve out a larger and more consistent role. The running backs, whether it's Miles Sanders, who has 175 receptions and over 1,200 yards in his career, Javonte Williams, who caught a career-high 52 receptions in Denver last season, or rookie Jaydon Blue, who had six touchdowns through the air at Texas last season, will all look to prove they can reliably contribute in the passing game.
If there's a silver lining, it's that Prescott has developed good chemistry with the current receiver core, which also includes KaVontae Turpin, Ryan Flournoy, Jonathan Mingo, Jalen Moreno-Cropper, Kelvin Harmon, and Jalen Brooks. They will compete for spots at training camp alongside new additions such as veteran Parris Campbell and rookies Traeshon Holden and Josh Kelly.
For now, the offense confidently knows it has two outside receivers who can win one-on-one matchups, which should make things easier for everyone, especially if Brian Schottenheimer is serious about pushing the ball vertically
In a conference loaded with elite weapons, including Philadelphia's dynamic duo that ranked first on the list, the Cowboys still have some work to do if they want to stack up. But with Lamb and Pickens leading the way, Dallas at least has a foundation to build around.
Now it's just a matter of who steps up behind them.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How to watch Fever at Storm: Caitlin Clark leads Indiana against surging Seattle
Caitlin Clark is looking to get right, and her Indiana Fever are trying to salvage their last leg of a dispiriting West Coast road trip. Clark's crew has another tough draw on Tuesday night, visiting the experienced and steely Seattle Storm. Paced by perennial All-WNBA talents Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins, the hosts take their floor with six wins in their last seven games. The forecast is calling for buckets. How to watch Indiana Fever at Seattle Storm Venue: Climate Pledge Arena — Seattle Advertisement Time: 10 p.m. ET, Tuesday TV: NBA TV (national), CW Seattle and WTHR Channel 13 (in market) Streaming: Fubo (try for free) Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub. It's a relief and a delight to see Clark balling out again, after a late-May quad injury sidelined her for five games. Her immediate return was brain-scrambling in the very best way — 32 points, nine assists, eight boards and seven made 3s — as the Fever dealt the defending champion New York Liberty their first L of 2025. It hasn't been nearly as clean since then, though. Indiana hits Tuesday with two consecutive losses, while Clark is 1 for her last 17 behind the arc. Advertisement Sunday's stumble in Las Vegas must have stung. Aliyah Boston (26 points) and Kelsey Mitchell (20 points) led the way for the Fever, the pair combining to shoot 62.5 percent from the field with just two turnovers. Reigning MVP A'ja Wilson was held to 8-of-21 from the field. It was undone by 16 giveaways (eight from Clark) and a colossal free-throw disparity (21 for Vegas, nine for Indiana). The Fever now wrap up their bummer of a Pacific Coast cruise against the red-hot, emerald-lit Storm. Behind the starry duo of Ogwumike and Diggins, Seattle has bloomed with a 6-2 record in June. Better still, the Storm have convincingly beaten two juggernauts, East-leading New York and the West-best Minnesota Lynx, by a combined 20 points. The veteran leads have been buoyed by career years from Gabby Williams and Erica Wheeler. Both are averaging double figures in scoring and shooting better than 41 percent on 3s. All nine members of the rotation had a positive plus-minus in Sunday's win versus the shorthanded Liberty. Downtown Seattle continues to have one of the best crowds in the WNBA, no matter the date or opponent. A national TV look against the ultra-popular Clark will be feverish. Off [They] Go. Fever at Storm odds Jersey crossovers: Indiana forward Natasha Howard won Defensive Player of the Year with Seattle back in 2019. That same year, current Storm spark plug Erica Wheeler was the All-Star Game MVP in Fever threads. Advertisement Mascot mashup: A bad fever is nothing to mess with, but a bad storm can do widespread damage. Both are reasonable excuses for staying home from the summer barbecue. The Athletic This article originally appeared in The Athletic. Seattle Storm, Indiana Fever, WNBA, Sports Betting, Fubo Partnership, WNBA Highlights 2025 The Athletic Media Company
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Boston Celtics' Trade for $100 Million Player Has Fans Turning
Boston Celtics' Trade for $100 Million Player Has Fans Turning originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Boston Celtics came into this season being favorites to repeat as NBA champions. But instead of enjoying another parade, they were paraded out of the second round of the playoffs by the New York Knicks. Advertisement Regardless, there was a feeling that significant moves were coming for them this offseason due to the NBA's ultra-restrictive salary cap and their overall salary situation. Sure enough, on Monday, they reportedly agreed to trade point guard Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers for shooting guard Anfernee Simons and two second-round draft picks. ESPN's Shams Charania broke the news on X. Fans had a range of reactions to the news. "Why the blazers do this?" one fan asked. "celtics downfall has begun," another user wrote. "CELTICS FLEECED OMG," a third user wrote. "FLEECED BY THE BLAZERS!!!!" another fan wrote. "Wow!" a fifth user wrote. "The Celtics get but losing his vet presence will hurt." "BROOOO WHY DO BOSTON ALWAYS GET THESE GOOD TRADES," another user asked. Holiday, 35, had spent his first 14 seasons in the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Pelicans and Milwaukee Bucks while making two All-Star teams before joining the Celtics prior to last season. Advertisement Interestingly, he was already a member of the Trail Blazers for a few days two summers ago. The Bucks sent him there in the deal that brought them Damian Lillard before Portland shipped him to Boston for Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams III and two first-round draft picks. Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday (4) dribbles past Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) in the first quarter at the Chase Center. © Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images As one of the NBA's best defensive guards, Holiday played a key role in Boston winning it all a year ago. The team will now receive a promising young player in Simons, who averaged 19.3 points and 4.8 assists a game this season but shot 42.6% from the field. Holiday agreed to a four-year, $135 million contract extension last April and will make $32.4 million next season. As part of the $100 million contract he agreed to in 2022, Simons will be paid $25.9 million next season. Advertisement Related: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Sends Message About Tyrese Haliburton After NBA Finals This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 24, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Mets' Juan Soto Sounds Off After 2-Homer Game Against Phillies
Mets' Juan Soto Sounds Off After 2-Homer Game Against Phillies originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The New York Mets ended their seven-game losing streak with plenty of offense against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday, spearheaded by their $765 million man. Juan Soto went 4-for-5 with two homers and four RBI in the 11-4 victory, and the Mets are now tied with the Phillies atop the NL East. Advertisement The four-time All-Star got off to a slow start this season, hitting .232 in April and .219 in May. However, he was hitting .300 in June before Saturday's outburst, and he now has six games in the month with multiple hits. Soto was asked postgame if this is the best he's felt all season, via SNY. New York Mets right fielder Juan Soto (22).Lucas Boland-Imagn Images "I've been feeling good since day one," the 26-year-old said. "Things just haven't gone my way, finally I'm getting some luck and going from there." He's now slashing .256/.393/.484 with 16 homers and 41 RBI over 76 games this season. Fellow outfielder Brandon Nimmo added two solo home runs on Saturday, and shortstop Francisco Lindor also hit a solo shot. Starting pitcher Griffin Canning allowed four runs (three earned) in five innings, and the bullpen tossed a shutout the rest of the way. Advertisement This sets up a rubber match on Sunday night with the division lead on the line. Southpaw hurler David Peterson (5-2, 2.60 ERA) will start against Phillies southpaw Jesus Luzardo (6-3, 4.41 ERA), and the game will be on ESPN at 7:00 p.m. EST. After that, the Mets will host the Atlanta Braves before hitting the road to play the Pittsburgh Pirates. Related: Mets Sign Ex-Yankees Player After Loss to Phillies Related: Mets Outfielder Sends Aaron Judge Message After Seventh Straight Loss This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 22, 2025, where it first appeared.
