Before the 2026 season began, the Dallas Cowboys were widely recognized as having one of the best, if not the very best, wide receiver rooms in the NFL. CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens were both considered top 10 caliber players, each capable of leading the league in receiving. Ryan Flournoy was a rising star, capable of playing all three receiver spots and filling in whenever necessary. And KaVontae Turpin was an explosive gadget man who was the threat from anywhere on the field.
Considering the Cowboys were once again expected to have issues on defense and most games would inevitably be shoot outs, there were a lot of reasons to be bullish on Dallas’ passing game this year. It’s no question the offense, the passing game specifically, was going
to be the engine of this Cowboys machine in 2026. After all, they were spending over $55 million on the WR group. The only question was how much would other parts of the roster contribute to the cause.
Six games into the season and the results have been rather disappointing. Lamb has shown he’s still firmly in the top five discussion, but Pickens has been a bit player, and Flournoy has been a ghost. Turpin hasn’t seen his gadget opportunities and even the tight end room has failed to make a positive mark.
Cloud coverage and an ineffective ground game carry a significant share of the blame, but the star players themselves have been shockingly guilty of this situation. Despite boasting an elite unit of pass catchers, Dak Prescott has suffered a shocking 18 dropped passes this season. Only the Green Bay Packers’ Jordan Love has more (19). Looking at EPA impact, Prescott is also the second most affected quarterback by drops.
The QBs most impacted by drops:
— Steven Patton (@PattonAnalytics) October 21, 2026
1. Aaron Rodgers (+0.29)
2. Dak Prescott (+0.26)
3. Tyler Huntley (+0.25)
4. Jordan Love (+0.24)
5. Cam Ward (+0.23)
6. Trevor Lawrence (+0.22)
7. Justin Herbert (+0.21)
8. Michael Penix (+0.20)
9. Sam Darnold (+0.19)
10. Matt Stafford (+0.16) pic.twitter.com/dyQnVV7V5G
This is shocking and inexcusable for a unit as good as Dallas’ but that’s exactly where they find themselves today. Building a gameplan that involves all the key players early might be a good way into establishing rhythm for pass-catchers. With only one ball to go around it won’t be easy, but it’s probably required.
There might be no saving the tight end room but there’s no reason Lamb, Pickens and Flournoy can’t turn things around. Lamb’s two drops, Pickens’ two drops, Flournoy’s three drops are correctable. If those three alone can eliminate these mistakes, the Cowboys should be in good position to change course in 2026
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Unbelievable Cowboys problem unfolding considering their $55M WR room
