Jon’Vea Johnson might be the Dallas Cowboys next slot receiver

Randal Cobb is the primary slot receiver for the Dallas Cowboys. With only one year on Cobb’s contract, rookie Jon’Vea Johnson might be a starter in 2020.

After the departure of slot receiver Cole Beasley, the Dallas Cowboys signed former Green Bay Packers’ receiver, Randall Cobb, to a one-year deal. Although it is possible Cobb decides to take a team-friendly deal to stay in Dallas past 2019, odds are he’ll find another team willing to pay him more in 2020.

The Cowboys are certainly not blind to this potential void. One of the most admirable traits of the front office is their ability to form a plan for both now and the future. Though Dallas did not draft a wide receiver in this year’s NFL draft, they signed several undrafted free agent receivers. Most notably, Jon’Vea Johnson.

In his last year at Toledo, Johnson recorded nine touchdowns for 660 yards and 32 catches. Even though these numbers are pretty good, they do not show the whole picture. Johnson is 5-foot-10 and 191 pounds. 

When it comes to traits, Johnson’s most known for his speed. He was not invited to the combine, but he ran a 4.38-second 40-yard dash at his Pro Day. This speed is also paired well with exceptional speed. In college, Johnson not only was successful running deep routes down the field but also in catching screens and short passes and breaking them for big gains.

So far in his NFL career, Johnson has impressed coaches and players throughout practices and minicamp. According to toledoblade.com, Cowboys wide receiver coach Sanjay Lal recently praised the rookie’s progress thus far.

"“It’s surprised me that he’s translating it. Everything we saw on tape, he’s doing here, which is a surprise because usually rookies don’t do it right away. So he’s doing it much sooner than I would have expected.”"

By no means, Johnson has looked like a superstar. On the first day of minicamp, Johnson reportedly dropped three balls. But, after quarterback Dak Prescott talked to Johnson, he seemed to turn it around.

This report shows that even Prescott believes Johnson has real potential, after all, he is just an undrafted rookie. Making the roster will be an uphill battle for Johnson, as he will be competing with other receivers like Allen Hurns and Noah Brown.

Training camp and preseason play is always the determining factor whether or not a player makes the team. With his special traits and obvious attention to detail and coachability, the arrow is straight up for Johnson.

The goal for the Cowboys, and Lal, in particular, should be to develop Johnson into a reliable starter for the future. His unique set of skills could make him an X-factor in Dallas’ offense.

Do you think Jon’Vae Johnson will be a starter in 2020? What do you think the long term plan is at wide receiver? Feel free to share your thoughts and ideas in the comment section below!