Getty Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy
The Dallas Cowboys and head coach Mike McCarthy have added Martavis Bryant to the roster, but that could spell bad news for a starting wide receiver. Bryant signed with the team’s practice squad ahead of the Week 10 matchup against the New York Giants.
Bryant hasn’t played a regular season snap in the NFL since 2018, so there’s certainly no guarantee that he’ll be starter. But a report from Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz seems to suggest that Michael Gallup is the odd man out if Bryant were to be elevated to the roster.
“The have been in the market for another receiver to complement CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks. While Dallas still believes in the in-house options they have, Martavis Bryant was an intriguing choice that recently became available after reinstatement,” Schultz wrote on X on November 7. “The staff came away so impressed with his workout, to the point they’ve decided to give him a chance to play a role. Bryant was set to fly to Tennessee for a workout with the #Titans, had Dallas not signed him today. They didn’t let him leave.”
Schultz mentions a receiver to “complement” Lamb and Cooks, implying that Gallup isn’t that guy. Signing a new option already sends a message to Gallup, Cooks and the rest of the WR group, but Schultz’s post makes it seem as though Gallup could be in jeopardy of losing his role.
Michael Gallup vs. Brandin Cooks
It’s hard to predict what or how Bryant would do on the field after four and a half years away from the NFL, but we can analyze Cooks and Gallup. McCarthy needed another receiver this past offseason and got in Cooks. But it hasn’t panned out like the Cowboys hoped.
Pro Football Reference shows that Gallup has caught 22 passes for 243 yards, while Cooks has grabbed 17 receptions for 165 receiving yards. Considering that quarterback Dak Prescott has had a fairly strong start to the season, those numbers are almost confusing.
But the reality is that Dallas has to strongly depend on Lamb and running back Tony Pollard for their offensive success. Cooks and Gallup just aren’t dynamic. In six of eight games, Gallup’s longest catch in the contest was less than 15 yards. Cook’s longest catch on the season is 25 yards, and he did not cross the 15-yard mark in four of his seven games.
At nearly 32 years old, Bryant isn’t a spring chicken and he was never touted for his speed, but he is 6-foot-4. If the Cowboys aren’t going to have great speed behind Lamb, Bryant’s height could be a strength.
Cowboys’ Mike McCarthy Speaks on Cooks
Schultz’s report doesn’t bode well for Gallup. But Cooks isn’t exactly safe either. His snap share is being cut into by Jalen Tolbert, and he was an afterthought in the Week 9 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles with just two targets and once catch.
However, Mike McCarthy did shoot down questions of his usage after the game.
“Nothing happened. He was a big part of the production,” McCarthy said. “We had a tremendous amount of production in the pass game and Brandin and all the guys are part of that. I get it: You want to see the ball spread out to everybody, which it was. Anytime a guy comes up short, you want to see him get more targets and more opportunities.”
McCarthy was frustrated, and he may have good reason. Cooks just had his best game for the Cowboys the previous week against the Los Angeles Rams. The veteran WR made three catches for 49 yards and a touchdown.