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FRISCO, TX — It feels like it was just yesterday when the ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵÏÂÔØÈë¿Ú were trying desperately to sell themselves on the notion of WR-by-committee, to regrettable results. The post-Dez Bryant era was met with a list of personnel decisions that ultimately led to a hard reset in trading for Amari Cooper and then using a first-round pick on CeeDee Lamb.
And, just like that, the Cowboys were once again cooking with fish grease.
As they enter the 2025 season, they'll do so knowing they have a Hall of Fame talent in Lamb, sure, but also in trying to figure out what the depth chart will look like behind their latest megastar member of the 88 club.
Past: Not so many moons ago, the Cowboys decided to move on from Dez Bryant and opt for the aforementioned WR-by-committee approach, headlined by Cole Beasley, Terrance Williams and Deonte Thompson (with Ryan Switzer, Allen Hurns, Cedrick Wilson, Noah Brown, Lance Lenoir and K.D. Cannon providing rotational depth).
That experiment ultimately led Dallas to pivot away from it and send a first-round pick to the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for Amari Cooper in 2018; going on to earn two additional Pro Bowl nods (four total in his career) in Dallas. Months before the trade, however, the Cowboys acquired Michael Gallup in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft.
They added Randall Cobb in 2019, but that stay was short-lived and preceded the acquisition of Lamb in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, the superstar receiver unexpectedly falling to 17th-overall; and the trio of Cooper, Lamb and Gallup was off to the races.
Fast forward to 2025 and it's the CeeDee Lamb Show, with a myriad of question marks attached to those around him in the receivers room, as Brandin Cooks mulls his future and a new face arrives via trade in November.
Present: As mentioned, Lamb has ascended not only to the throne of WR1 in Dallas, but to the upper echelon at the position. I could argue that the only wideout who delivered a more impactful season for his respective club was Tyreek Hill, and so it's no surprise to see Lamb named a finalist for NFL Offensive Player of the Year — alongside his own QB.
Now a four-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro, Lamb powered through a season that included the eventual loss of Dak Prescott to season-ending injury and also a severe shoulder injury, neither of those challenges slowing his ability to set new franchise and NFL records; and surpassing the almighty Jerry Rice on at least one all-time list.
But what of the others?
Future: Nothing about the 2024 season went as Brandin Cooks expected it would. The veteran wideout lost several weeks to a knee infection stemming from injections to manage pain, and though he'd flash peak ability a time or two after he returned, it didn't meet the expectation that existed ahead of the season — in that he'd be dominant alongside Lamb.
Others stepped up to try and fill the void, but it was an uneven mix.
Jalen Tolbert took more strides forward, so that's promising and it makes for a battle to come with Jalen Brooks and definitely Jonathan Mingo; and Mingo's acquisition ahead of the trade deadline, at the expense of a fourth-round pick, no less, virtually guarantees he'll be on the roster for likely the next couple of seasons (and if you don't believe me, see Trey Lance).
It's difficult to envision the Cowboys wanting to get Mingo and Tolbert more involved and seeking to pay Cooks. It's not impossible, but simply doesn't track, in my mind.
It's a youth movement at the position in Dallas, to say the least.
Mixing in KaVontae Turpin, the two-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro returner who did serious damage offensively when given the chance in 2024, and up-and-coming former draft pick Ryan Flournoy adds more kerosene to the fire for training camp and, in last year's camp and preseason, it was Kelvin Harmon making some waves along with Jalen Cropper before both spent their season on the practice squad with Seth Williams.
That's a long list of potentials, and that's before we make it to free agency and the NFL draft, where more will be considered for the 90-man roster.
Buckle up.
