The Dallas Cowboys are fortunate in that they should once again be one of the best offensive units in the entire league with all of their starters still intact from a season ago. This is one of the more talented units in the NFL, headlined by their impressive group of wide receivers.
The Cowboys have a dream WR duo in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens and some promising depth behind them. The only question about this position group is how many receivers Dallas will carry on the active roster and which
ones will make the cut? Below is how we see things shaking out and why.
What we know…
There’s no need to guesstimate which wide receivers are currently roster locks with the Dallas Cowboys. They are currently four deep with CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, and Kavontae Turpin, with Flournoy as the only one of the group without a Pro Bowl appearance. This group is highlighted by Lamb and Pickens, arguably the best WR duo in the entire league, leaving Flournoy as their primary backup and Turpin as Dallas’ return specialist/gadget player.
This is a WR core that will make nearly every team around the league envious and give opposing defensive coordinators nightmares. Lamb and Pickens should both easily hit the 1000-yard receiving mark once again in 2026 and Flournoy should have a career year facing favorable matchups due to the attention No. 88 and No. 3 will command. Turpin will be sprinkled in time to time on offense, but his value remains on special teams.
How will Dallas round out the rest of the position?
What we suspect…
The biggest question we need answered about the Cowboys WR position is how many they will carry on the 53-man roster. We’re guessing there will only be one spot up for grabs, but they could possibly carry as many as six. Due to the uncertain depth at other positions and the current top-heavy nature of the position, we believe they will choose to go little short here carrying only five on the active roster.
So, which receiver currently on the Cowboys roster claims that final spot on the depth chart? There are a number of veterans currently in contention for the WR5 job as well as some first- and second-year WRs. There’s still a lot of training camp and preseason to go before things need to be finalized, but the WR with the most special teams ability may give them the slight edge to round out the Cowboys WR position.
Final prediction
As things stand right now, based on what we’ve seen/heard in training camp, we believe the final WR roster spot will go to either Anthony Smith or Camden Brown, both rookies. Smith was a seventh-round pick out of East Carolina this year and Brown signed with the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent out of Georgia Southern. Both WRs have stood out in practice, creating an intriguing head-to-head battle.
Under the assumption the Cowboys only keep five receivers on the active roster, we believe Anthony Smith earns the WR5 job. His deep threat ability and the way he’s been used in a variety of ways in practice at training camp gives him the slight edge over his competitors. He will of course have to prove his value on special teams, a must for fringe players on the Cowboys roster.
Cowboys 2026 WR depth chart prediction
- CeeDee Lamb
- George Pickens
- Ryan Flournoy
- KaVontae Turpin
- Anthony Smith (R)
Agree or disagree? Will the Cowboys carry five or more WRs and who earns the final roster spot?
