3 Cowboys players to watch in first preseason game against Broncos

2. Noah Brown, Wide Receiver

With Michael Gallup still not fully recovered from ACL surgery in January, the Cowboys were expecting James Washington to be a contributor early on. That won’t happen either as he suffered a fractured foot and will be out for roughly two months.

Dallas has seen good things from rookie Jalen Tolbert, but they were hopeful a veteran option would be there as well. While that won’t come from Washington right now, there’s another seasoned player who has been making waves — Noah Brown.

A seventh-round pick out of Ohio State in 2017, Brown is often overlooked and hasn’t really taken off as a pass-catcher. He’s been praised for his blocking but he has just 39 receptions for 425 yards with no touchdowns in his career. But if camp is any indication, this could be the year he breaks out.

Brown has shown a lot of growth as a route-runner and has been pulling in everything that’s been within his reach. He’s shown an ability to high-point the ball and also made an impressive catch on Saturday where he had to adjust to the ball and held onto it while hitting the turf hard.

As is always the case, we shouldn’t get too excited over catches in camp. Everyone has seen a certain player take off in these practices only to struggle when the games start.

For Brown, the good news is that he does have experience in the NFL, so unlike a rookie, he should be able to continue his play. Still, it would be best to see him do so against another team, and Saturday night against Denver will give him a chance to prove he’s the best option while Washington and Gallup are inactive.