Why the Cowboys new WR trio is among the best they’ve fielded

Over the last decade and change, we’ve seen the Dallas Cowboys go through some wide receiver makeovers as they’ve tried to place talent around their last two franchise quarterbacks, Dak Prescott and Tony Romo. Whether it was a big free agent signing, blockbuster trade, or finding a premiere college talent in the first round of the NFL Draft, the Cowboys always like to keep a star wearing the star. With each big shake-up comes a new administration of wide receivers. Here are some of the different receiving groups we’ve seen:

• 2006 – Terrell Owens and company (Terry Glenn and Patrick Crayton)
• 2010 – Dez Bryant and company (Cole Beasley and Terrence Williams)
• 2018 – Amari Cooper and company (Allen Hurns and a rookie Michael Gallup)
• 2022 – CeeDee Lamb and company (Noah Brown and an injured Gallup)

Now, the Cowboys have hit the upgrade button once again and acquired the services of former Texans wide receiver Brandin Cooks. Bringing on a proven separator like Cooks is a refreshing move and should make us feel considerably better about the position group. Additionally, Gallup is now much further removed from the knee injury he suffered late in the 2021 season, so we should also see a better version of him this upcoming season.

Having a strong trio of receivers is not something this Cowboys organization hasn’t seen before. In fact, they have a long history of some quality trios that go back decades. Some of you might remember these names.

In the 60’s/‘70s, they had Bob Hayes, Lance Alworth, and Ron Sellers.

In the 70s/‘80s, they had Drew Pearson, Tony Hill, and Butch Johnson.

In the ‘90s, they had Michael Irvin, Alvin Harper, and Kelvin Martin.

In the 2000s, they had Joey Galloway, Terry Glenn, and Antonio Bryant.

And that doesn’t even include some of the other great receivers who have been mixed in over the years, guys like Miles Austin (2006-2013), Keyshawn Johnson (2004-2005), Rocket Ismail (1999-2001), Lance Rentzel (1964-1967), and Frank Clarke (1961-1967).

Some of these players mentioned above are Pro Bowlers, some have had at least one 1,000-yard season, and some are Super Bowl Champions. A few of them are even gold jacket wearers.

While having three good wide receivers on the roster at once isn’t something new for the Cowboys, there is something about this current trio that is rather unique. Did you know that this year will be the first time in the Super Bowl era that the Cowboys will start the year with three wide receivers who have each had at least one 1,000-yard season?

That is an astonishing statistic considering all the great talent the Cowboys have had at wide receiver over the years. Collectively, this group has nine 1,000-yard seasons between them. It breaks down as follows:

Brandin Cooks has done it six times (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, and 2021).

CeeDee Lamb has done it twice (2021 and 2022).

And Michael Gallup once in 2019.

What is interesting about these three is that none of them reached 1,000 yards in their rookie season, but all of them reached it in their second season. Cooks has made it a habit of hitting the 1,000 mark, and it looks as if Lamb is on a similar path with two-straight seasons above the mark, including a 1,359-yard season last year. It’s also worth noting that this isn’t just some “has been” receiver added to an “up and coming, still proving himself” receiver where accomplishments are way off in different directions. While it’s true that this group does contain a seasoned veteran and a rising star, all three of these guys are under 30 years of age and you don’t have to go back too far to reach their last 1,000-yard season.

This is a fun nugget of information, and by no means is this to suggest we’re in the graces of the best trio of Cowboys receivers we’ve ever seen. That’s not what we’re selling here. Instead, it’s an attempt to point out that this current group is collectively pretty darn terrific and should be a significant upgrade over what they had last year. Package that with a defense that just keeps getting stronger and suddenly you got a formidable football team.