CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens have been as advertised in Oxnard. Even with Dallas Cowboys defensive backs not giving an inch in coverage, Lamb and Pickens have caught everything thrown their way.
Incredibly, the Cowboys' entire wide receiver room came to play in training camp. Believe it or not, that includes one Jonathan Mingo, a player many had written off in conversations about who'll be kept as the fifth, and potentially last, wideout on the 53-man roster.
On the final play from Day 1, Mingo made a nice catch in traffic on a pass from Joe Milton. It wasn't a reception to write home about, but Mingo showed nice concentration, and he had a step on his coverage.
Mingo had another nice session Thursday, this time hauling in a pass from Dak Prescott over the middle after beating talented rookie cornerback Devin Moore.
Given all the talent at the position, WR5 has a strong argument to be the Cowboys' hardest roster decision. Mingo's surprisingly hot start is making it even tougher.
The Cowboys suddenly have a Jonathan Mingo problem they should gladly accept
Former Cowboys scout Bryan Broaddus, now with 105.3 The Fan, is in Oxnard and came away impressed by Mingo's showing on Thursday.
"He had a couple of really good routes today," Broaddus said. "You talked about the dig, and Dak [Prescott] put the ball right on him. ... When you put the ball in front of Jonathan Mingo, he's got a shot. He's a big guy. He's got the length. He can separate, too, for a guy that big and can cover some ground. ..."
Broaddus explained that Mingo ran the same route several players earlier. However, Prescott's throw was a little off target, and Mingo wasn't able to haul it in. The former Cowboys scout made a point that "you almost have to put the ball right on top of him" for him to catch it. To his credit, though, Mingo rebounded with two "amazing catches" to end practice, per Broaddus.
Mingo's truncated catch radius is a big reason why he hasn't lived up to his second-round billing -- and why he hasn't caught on with the Cowboys. That said, he's been among the biggest surprise standouts through two days of camp. If he keeps it up, Dallas will have an even harder decision to make at the end of August.
The Cowboys' WR room runs deeper than CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Ryan Flournoy
Competing with Mingo for WR5 are Traeshon Holden, rookie Anthony Smith, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, undrafted rookies Jordan Hudson and Camden Brown, Denzel Mims, Tyler Johnson, and Jaden Smith. Yeah, it's a crowded group.
By every indication, Holden and Smith have impressed in Oxnard as well, and Valdes-Scantling quietly worked with the starting offense in Pickens' absence during OTAs.
Each player not named CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, or KaVontae Turpin will have to prove their worth on special teams if they want to make the team. It's limited experience, but Mingo has played 140 special teams snaps over three seasons.
Choosing between Holden, Smith, Hudson, and Valdes-Scantling -- and a potential sleeper who shines in camp -- was going to be hard enough. It's only two practices, but Mingo firmly belongs in that conversation, as much as Cowboys fans may not want to accept it.
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