Make or Break Year for This Cowboys Receiver

The Cowboys made an aggressive trade deadline move last season when they acquired wide receiver Jonathan Mingo from the Carolina Panthers. Mingo was a second-round pick by the Panthers in the 2023 draft. He has yet to meet expectations, as he has yet to crack 600 career receiving yards. The Cowboys were willing to send a fourth-round draft pick to acquire him, signaling a belief in his potential. Will he have an opportunity to put together his first solid season in the NFL? There is a chance, but it will be an uphill battle.

The Cowboys made noise this offseason when they traded for Steelers wide receiver George Pickens. The Cowboys have been looking for a number two option to pair with CeeDee Lamb, and they found it with the sure-handed deep threat in Pickens. This move does not help Jonathan Mingo’s chances of seeing significant action in 2025. Their skill sets and value to an offense are similar, with both being tall, strong, and possessing a large catch radius. Although Pickens has obviously been more productive, and there is no real competition between the two, Mingo will have to beat out Jalen Tolbert for the third wide receiver position in this offense. Tolbert is a former third-round selection by the organization and finished last season with 49 receptions, 610 yards, and seven touchdowns. Mingo did not cut into any of Tolbert's snaps last year, but with a new coaching staff, they could view the wide receiver in three battles with fresh eyes.

CeeDee Lamb thrives when lined up in the slot, where he can use his finesse route running and yards-after-catch ability to the fullest. Therefore, whoever wins the wide receiver three role in this offense will see a lot of time on the outside opposite George Pickens. Mingo has better pure outside ability than Tolbert because of his size and ability to win against press-man coverage. However, Tolbert is a much smoother route runner and gets in and out of his breaks more efficiently.

Tolbert dropped three passes last season, and Mingo has also struggled with securing catches throughout his NFL career so far. The reality is that Dallas will likely rotate a variety of options at the wide receiver three position. Dallas loves to use Jake Ferguson, who is reliable and could break out in 2025, as well as KaVontae Turpin as a gadget player, and may believe they can unlock more of his skill set. This is also a team that plans to run the ball more than in recent years, which could further limit Mingo’s production in 2025.