You know it’s officially August when a down-roster wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys is making plays in training camp and the preseason. And after a few good weeks of practice, the fan base is losing their minds about whether or not they will be on the 53-man roster. It’s a tradition like no other in Dallas and across the entire NFL.
This year, that player is Traeshon Holden, an undrafted free agent receiver out of Oregon. Holden has had a nice camp, and he led the Cowboys in receiving yards during their first preseason game.
Brian Schottenheimer didn’t help settle down the hype as he told the media that Holden is rising up the depth chart and will get more chances this week.
Cowboys WR Traeshon Holden still on the outside looking in for a roster spot
The Cowboys are expected to keep six receivers, at most, on the 53-man roster this year. And typically, only five are active on gameday. We know that CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and KaVontae Turpin are locks as all three sat out Week 1 of the preseason. That leaves only three spots and two for gameday.
Jonathan Mingo has had a strong camp, and he seems to be a lock to make the roster, especially after the Cowboys gave up a fourth-round pick to acquire him last November. Mingo’s size and speed are something the receiver room lacks, and it would be a major surprise if he didn’t make the final roster.
Jalen Tolbert has not had the training camp everyone was expecting, but he still seems like a player who will be active on gameday. Tolbert was the team’s No. 2 receiver last season, recording over 600 receiving yards. While he won’t be the second option after Lamb this year, the fact that he can play all three receiver spots and contribute on special teams means his spot is rather safe.
That leaves just one spot available, and Holden is competing with Ryan Flournoy and Jalen Brooks to make the roster. You can make a strong case that Holden is the most talented receiver of the bunch, and there are parts of his game that are very similar to Michael Gallup. He is a very gifted receiver and has made several splash plays in camp over the last week.
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But the job of the No. 5 and No. 6 wide receivers on the roster isn’t really about how well they play receiver. It’s about what they can do on special teams. It’s rare for a No. 5 or No. 6 receiver to get snaps on offense, assuming the game isn’t a blowout. However, they can play upwards of 25% of the total snaps in a single game on special teams alone. And that’s how someone like Jalen Brooks could end up on the roster over Holden.
Brooks has been working with the first-team punt coverage unit as a gunner opposite C.J. Goodwin. While that doesn’t guarantee his spot on the roster, players working with the first-team special teams unit generally have a leg up on the competition.
It also doesn’t help Holden that the Cowboys have a lot of injuries in the secondary, and there are just fewer special teams options available as they wait for players like Caelen Carson and Josh Butler to return from injury. That could increase the need for more offensive-based special teams players, such as Tolbert and Brooks.
It's worth mentioning that the Cowboys have an entirely new coaching staff, including a new special teams coach in Nick Sorensen. John Fassel had a big say when it came to roster construction over the past few seasons, and that might not be the case with Sorensen. We might see the Cowboys lean more into developmental players at the bottom of the roster versus special teams assets, so that is something to keep an eye on during cutdowns.
But if Holden is going to end up making the 53-man roster, he’s likely going to need to beat out Jalen Tolbert or Jonathan Mingo. And while he’s taken significant steps over the last two weeks, there is still quite a bit of distance he needs to make up before that becomes a reasonable discussion.