WR Garrett Wilson would fit seamlessly into Cowboys offense, if only he was a realistic get

The Dallas Cowboys’ offseason is riddled with questions, mainly surrounding who they are going to resign. WR Michael Gallup has been an absolute home run, selected No. 81 overall in the 2018 third round. Are the Cowboys going to be able to resign him or will they prioritize other needs and think they can replicate his production in the draft?

Ohio State’s Garrett Wilson is almost assured to be off the clock by the time the Cowboys are on the clock in the upcoming NFL draft. Still, the same thing was thought about CeeDee Lamb in 2020, so it pays to be prepared for any scenario. Here’s a look at Wilson’s impressive film and why the Cowboys would have to consider selecting him were he available when they arrive on the clock.

Measurables and Stats

Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Listed Height: 5-foot-11

Listed Weight: 192

Jersey Number: 5

Stats (2021): 70 catches, 1058 yards, 12 TDs

Rushing Stats (2021): 4 carries, 76 yards, 1 TD

Film Study Information:

Games Watched: Indiana (2020), Alabama (2020), Purdue (2021), Michigan State (2021)

Best Game: Purdue (2021)

Worst Game: Alabama (2020)

Physical Skills Evaluation:

Route Running: Gives hesitation moves at the break point to throw the CB off and gain some separation. Works back to the QB on broken plays. Attacks the CBs blind spot mid route. Disguises route concepts very well. Finds soft spots to sit in vs zone coverage. Sinks hips well going into breaks. Has excellent route tempo to time up throwing windows.

Blocking: Not his strongest department here. Will be an extra body and get in the way but won’t wow you by any measure. Times of minimal effort.

Contested Catch Ability: Able to adjust his body mid jump on balls thrown at his opposite shoulder.

Beating Press: Worked primarily from the slot so we didn’t see a wide release package. But he displayed a few which leads me to believe he is fully capable of adding more.

Long Speed: Has decent long speed, able to create separation on 9 routes, but wouldn’t label him as a burner. Probably likely runs in the mid to low 4.5s.

Performance Evaluation:

Separation: Gives shimmies and hesitation moves at routes breaking points to gain separation.

Ball Skills: Great ball skills, almost catches everything thrown his way. Has a couple moments where it didn’t look like he was expecting the ball to be thrown his way. Can sometimes resort to the clap catching technique, will want him to iron that out. Has unreal vertical leaping ability. Incredible high pointing ability. Fantastic body control while in the air.

YAC Ability: Surprisingly has some talent post catch. Wont turn into a RB in open field by any measure but more than capable of making one man miss and throwing in a stiff arm to gain a few extra yards.

Ball Tracking: Fantastic ball tracking on deep throws, slows down or speeds up his route tempo to match with how the ball is thrown.

Versatility: Primarily used in the slot in 2020, but believe he has the ability to hang on the outside as he showed in 2021.

Strengths:

Great route runner, in terms of running the route and route tempo. Fantastic body control when in the air. Has great contested catch ability. Versatility, lined up in the slot a lot and got a good amount of usage as an outside X receiver. Incredible ball tracking ability.

Weaknesses:

Glaring weakness for Wilson is run blocking. He shows very minimal effort here and is more often than not just an extra body. He also can show minimal effort on rollouts designed to the opposite side of the field as him. Has displayed alligator arm catching motion on a couple occasions, but this can be ironed out.

Fit with the Cowboys:

(AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)

It’s fully expected for Wilson to be gone by the time the Cowboys are on the clock, but he would be an absolute seamless replacement for Gallup. Wilson, like Gallup, is a phenomenal deep threat due to his contested catch ability and ball tracking. He could step in and the Cowboys offense wouldn’t lose a step at all. Wilson is a very good route runner who gives stutter steps and shimmies throughout the stem of the route to throw the CB off, once he develops a more advanced release package he could become an elite player.

Dallas knows they have Amari Cooper and Lamb at the top of their depth chart, but aside from Gallup, Cedrick Wilson, Noah Brown and Malik Turner are all free agents. There could be an immediate need for a wideout.

Prospect Grade:

Final Grade:

89.1, 1st round player

1

1