The Dallas Cowboys’ wide receiver room may not be settled after all, and the surprise name pushing into the conversation is seventh-round rookie Anthony Smith.
Dallas already looks locked in at the top with CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy and KaVontae Turnpin, but there are still one or two openings lurking near the back of the depth chart. Before camp, the expectation was that one or two of Jonathan Mingo, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Traeshon Holden would land those final spots.
Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News sees a different outcome in his latest 53-man roster projection. He has Smith as the fifth and final receiver, and his reasoning centers on how the Cowboys have already been using him.
"The Cowboys have used Smith in intriguing ways," Hoyt said of his reason for picking Smith. "He’s caught a lot of screen passes.
I wonder if they have a plan for him. The joint practices and preseason games will be huge for deciding this race."
Smith has given the staff something to think about because of his speed. The East Carolina product ran a 4.32 40-yard dash, a striking number for a player listed at 6-foot-3.
Hoyt also pointed to undrafted wideout Camden Brown as a name worth watching. Brown is still viewed as a longshot to make the roster, but he has done enough early to stay on the radar as a possible practice squad addition.
"Undrafted free agent wide receiver Camden Brown is someone to keep an eye on. He’s a longshot to make the roster, but he’s made some plays and could warrant a practice squad spot at this point," Hoyt said.
Brown’s final college season at Georgia Southern was productive, with 1,079 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns in 13 games.
Both rookies have flashed in training camp, and Smith has already shown a little fire after a scuffle with cornerback Caelen Carson. Still, the real tests are coming once the Cowboys get into joint practices and preseason games.
For now, it remains a tough ask to imagine Dallas carrying a rookie as its fifth receiver, even with an elite top two and a strong group above them. If Lamb or Pickens were to miss time, the Cowboys would suddenly be thin, which is why another veteran could still make sense.
If one of the rookies does sneak onto the 53, the Cowboys could still keep a sixth receiver in a veteran or Holden.
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