Scouting the Cowboys UDFA class: Wide receiver Jalen Moreno-Cropper

[zekecowboy]

THIS is the wide receiver I am rooting for.

The Positives:

• A super high I.Q player and understands every play inside and out. Knows exactly as the play develops where he needs to go.
• Excellent at operating though his gears on routes and as a ball carrier.
• Elite explosiveness off the snap and into his route stem or to create separation.
• Smooth accelerator.
• His skills translate very well as a gadget or slot player in the NFL.
• Fantastic ball tracking.
• Has sneaky change of direction skills as a ball-carrier to make defenders miss.
• Versatile as a receiver playing across the line inside or out wide.
• Can run a full route tree.
• Special teams ability as a returner.

Areas of Improvement:

• Size is his biggest setback. He’s the fifth smallest wide receiver in his class.
• Strength and power is not a natural part of his game and gets out-powered often.
• With no power comes zero blocking ability.
• Further to his size, this will limit him in the NFL to being just a pure slot receiver, which Dallas already has covered pretty well.
• Struggles to beat press man when playing out wide.
• Can get lazy late in games and is often caught trying to take short cuts at the top of routes or rounding off his routes losing his sharpness.
• Has good potential top speed, but he doesn’t use it on tape as often as expected.
• Had too many drops when asked to make catches in traffic.

https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/202...gent-class-wide-receiver-jalen-moreno-cropper

 

[big dog cowboy]

Classic PS player. Beyond that I'm not sure he can sneak on the 53 in 2024.

 

[stilltheguru]

I liked what I saw. He will have every opportunity to make the team. He's behind the 8 ball since he prob won't be a sp teams ace

 

[plasticman]

McCarthy likes short players on his offense?

Meanwhile Quinn is stocking his defensive backfield with guys that are 6'2 and 6'3.

I get the feeling that practice is going to be rather one sided.

 

[Stash]

THIS is the wide receiver I am rooting for.

The Positives:

• A super high I.Q player and understands every play inside and out. Knows exactly as the play develops where he needs to go.
• Excellent at operating though his gears on routes and as a ball carrier.
• Elite explosiveness off the snap and into his route stem or to create separation.
• Smooth accelerator.
• His skills translate very well as a gadget or slot player in the NFL.
• Fantastic ball tracking.
• Has sneaky change of direction skills as a ball-carrier to make defenders miss.
• Versatile as a receiver playing across the line inside or out wide.
• Can run a full route tree.
• Special teams ability as a returner.

Areas of Improvement:

• Size is his biggest setback. He’s the fifth smallest wide receiver in his class.
• Strength and power is not a natural part of his game and gets out-powered often.
• With no power comes zero blocking ability.
• Further to his size, this will limit him in the NFL to being just a pure slot receiver, which Dallas already has covered pretty well.
• Struggles to beat press man when playing out wide.
• Can get lazy late in games and is often caught trying to take short cuts at the top of routes or rounding off his routes losing his sharpness.
• Has good potential top speed, but he doesn’t use it on tape as often as expected.
• Had too many drops when asked to make catches in traffic.

https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/202...gent-class-wide-receiver-jalen-moreno-cropper

If he can handle return duties, he could potentially challenge for Turpin’s spot, if Turpin doesn’t show more as an offensive player.

 

[Jarntt]

I won't pretend to know much about this particular player, but It seems that very often an UDFA WR makes our initial 53. If you look at our WR room we have a really really good top 3 and then we have Turpin as a STs only guy. Who is our #4 WR? I don't think it's Fehoko and I think he is PS at best and personally I don't suspect it's Tolbert but this team isn't likely to admit a mistake after just one year and I suspect they give him at least one more shot to stick around and TBH so would I if they liked him enough to draft him in the 3rd. So assuming Tolbert sticks around that's 5 guys but still no #4 WR which we really need. Is it Callaway? Is it TY? Is it another free agent we sign in the Summer? My choice would be TY but he doesn't run down on kickoffs so he would likely mean a #4 WR that is inactive unless injury to one of the top 3.

I guess my long winded point is how does Moreno-Cropper fit? He is likely only making the 53 if he can't run down on kickoffs and punts and at his size that seems unlikely. I guess the other option is he beats out Turpin for the return job but that would be very surprising. BUT...we desperately need a #4 WR and as we sit here today don't have one that has shown to be good enough. Maybe it's this kid, maybe it's Tolbert or Callaway or someone else. But to be active on game day as a #4 with 3 quality guys above you (not to sound like a broken record) you need to play STs.

 

[Mac_MaloneV1]

Is there a single UDFA WR who has come out of college in the last decade to make any sort of impact?

WR prospects don't slip through the cracks.

 

[reddyuta]

Is there a single UDFA WR who has come out of college in the last decade to make any sort of impact?

WR prospects don't slip through the cracks.

Cole Beasley.

 

[Mac_MaloneV1]

Cole Beasley.

Was a rookie in 2012...

 

[Creeper]

I cannot imagine 3 seriously undersized guys on the same offense. I think he would have to be special to make the team.

 

[gimmesix]

Is there a single UDFA WR who has come out of college in the last decade to make any sort of impact?

WR prospects don't slip through the cracks.

Adam Thielen (2013)

Willie Snead (2014)

Adam Humphries (2015)

Robby Anderson (2016)

That's from a list I found from 2019, so there are probably more in the last few years.

 

[darthseinfeld]

Is there a single UDFA WR who has come out of college in the last decade to make any sort of impact?

WR prospects don't slip through the cracks.

Jakobi Meyers, Alan Lazard, Greg Dortch (somewhat)

 

[gimmesix]

THIS is the wide receiver I am rooting for.

The Positives:

• A super high I.Q player and understands every play inside and out. Knows exactly as the play develops where he needs to go.
• Excellent at operating though his gears on routes and as a ball carrier.
• Elite explosiveness off the snap and into his route stem or to create separation.
• Smooth accelerator.
• His skills translate very well as a gadget or slot player in the NFL.
• Fantastic ball tracking.
• Has sneaky change of direction skills as a ball-carrier to make defenders miss.
• Versatile as a receiver playing across the line inside or out wide.
• Can run a full route tree.
• Special teams ability as a returner.

Areas of Improvement:

• Size is his biggest setback. He’s the fifth smallest wide receiver in his class.
• Strength and power is not a natural part of his game and gets out-powered often.
• With no power comes zero blocking ability.
• Further to his size, this will limit him in the NFL to being just a pure slot receiver, which Dallas already has covered pretty well.
• Struggles to beat press man when playing out wide.
• Can get lazy late in games and is often caught trying to take short cuts at the top of routes or rounding off his routes losing his sharpness.
• Has good potential top speed, but he doesn’t use it on tape as often as expected.
• Had too many drops when asked to make catches in traffic.

https://www.bloggingtheboys.com/202...gent-class-wide-receiver-jalen-moreno-cropper

I'm most interested in the David Durden kid. He's 6-1, 204, 9.60 RAS with 4.48 40

“We’ve had a lot of love for this guy,” Cowboys director of college scouting Mitch LaPoint said, per The Athletic. “We’ve been on David for a long time.”

“We gave David some good money,” LaPoint says. “But I think the pitch really was this guy’s ability to play inside and outside and then the return value and special teams value. You’re gonna have a chance to compete there.”

For the Cowboys, their seventh-round pick had come down to Durden or South Carolina’s Jalen Brooks. They felt Brooks had a higher likelihood of being drafted elsewhere; they hoped they could woo Durden after the fact with a priority free agent contract.

 

[Mac_MaloneV1]

Adam Thielen (2013)

Willie Snead (2014)

Adam Humphries (2015)

Robby Anderson (2016)

That's from a list I found from 2019, so there are probably more in the last few years.

I didn't realize Thielen was undrafted, but the other 3 I wouldn't qualify as impactful.

 

[Mac_MaloneV1]

Jakobi Meyers, Alan Lazard, Greg Dortch (somewhat)

The list is a lot longer than I realized lol

 

[darthseinfeld]

The list is a lot longer than I realized lol

You're still contributors, not stars though. Outside of maybeeee Meyers and Anderson that one year, Thielen is the only star

 

[Mac_MaloneV1]

You're still contributors, not stars though. Outside of maybeeee Meyers and Anderson that one year, Thielen is the only star

Yea, but it's still more than I thought I guess.

 

[conner01]

McCarthy likes short players on his offense?

Meanwhile Quinn is stocking his defensive backfield with guys that are 6'2 and 6'3.

I get the feeling that practice is going to be rather one sided.

I’d like to have some size at WR but this draft seemed loaded with smaller guys
One problem is with smaller WR is they are limited on ST unless they have return skills. And if you are at the bottom of the depth chart you have to contribute on ST

 

[Carson]

I didn't realize Thielen was undrafted, but the other 3 I wouldn't qualify as impactful.

Anderson was great from 2017-2020. He had 95 catches and almost 1,100 yards in 2020. He just is more a head case now than anything

 

[gimmesix]

I didn't realize Thielen was undrafted, but the other 3 I wouldn't qualify as impactful.

Snead had 69 catches for 984 yards and 3 TDs as a rookie. He had 72-895-4 his second year. How much of an impact are you looking for? All-Pro?