Dallas Cowboys should target Courtland Sutton
The Dallas Cowboys don’t have to look very far for a future No. 1 wide receiver for young quarterback Dak Prescott and an offense that needs a boost.
Over the next few months, expect to hear the name Courtland Sutton applied often to the future of the Dallas Cowboys.
If you’re a supporter of Southern Methodist University, then this topic will be nothing new. But if you’re one of those members of Cowboys Nation from beyond the Dallas-Ft. Worth area, then here’s a player who won’t need to move very far to go from the college football to the NFL.
Courtland Sutton has been a standout wide receiver at SMU over the last couple of seasons and he’s one of the most highly respected receivers entering the NFL offseason, which has already arrived for the Dallas Cowboys, who play roughly 20 miles away from Dallas in the city of Arlington.
His sophomore (2016) and junior (2017) years have been noteworthy and it was believed by some that Sutton could have been a first-round selection in the 2017 NFL Draft. It won’t be a question this year as Sutton announced on Friday that he’ll enter the 2018 NFL Draft, which is set to take place at AT&T Stadium next April. See how this whole thing is lining up?
In 2016, Sutton caught 76 passes for 1,246 yards and 10 touchdowns. His longest went for 88 yards and his average reception of 16.4 yards is eye-popping to say the least. This season he dipped slightly in most categories while drawing maximum attention from all opponents, but still hauled in 68 catches for 1,085 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Here’s what’s so attractive about Sutton playing in Dallas: This young prospect stands 6’4” and weighs in at just under 220 pounds. In the future he’ll likely play at around 225, or better, and this means a terrifying matchup problem for any cornerback in the NFL.
Courtland Sutton does not possess the sudden burst that’s going to allow him to run right passed defenders like Randy Moss used to do, but he does have good top-end speed that’ll still test secondaries.
According to NFL.com, Sutton actually possesses some of the same limitations that many are now pointing out where Dez Bryant is concerned. Sutton is not polished by any means, but there’s a pretty high ceiling for this Texas native.
"Sutton has build-up speed, but his speed isn’t immediate. He doesn’t “wow” you with his burst in his release. He can also clean up some of his technique as a route runner. He has a tendency to drift at the top of his route when he works back to the quarterback. Sutton doesn’t run the entire route tree in this system and he’ll need time to adjust to a more pro-style system at the next level."
Sutton might end up comparing favorably to Terrell Owens, to put it simply – let’s hope that Sutton’s hands remain better than those of either Owens or Bryant. I’m hoping he’s more like Marques Colston with a blue star on his helmet.
But here’s where Sutton becomes much more attractive than some of the divas that the Dallas Cowboys have employed at wide receiver during the post-Michael Irvin era: Sutton seems like a good, smart player that doesn’t exhibit some of the obnoxious personality traits as plenty of other star pass-catchers whose names I won’t mention. Sutton seems like the kind of player that you really want in the locker room and that’s always been preached as being very important by head coach Jason Garrett. Sutton absolutely looks – and sounds – like the right kind of guy.
Next: Seven Dallas Cowboys who should be fired in 2018
As Bryant continues to fade from the Dallas offense, the Cowboys are expected to address a highly inconsistent passing game during the offseason, which should result in some not-so-subtle changes in personnel. Regardless of what happens in free agency once March roles around, drafting Courtland Sutton would seem to be a huge part of ‘the process.’