There has been a weird trend going around Twitter nowadays. Analysts, fans, and film experts keep posting their rankings of the best duos at WR in the NFL. Teams like the Cinncinatti and Seattle consistently make the list. Right beside them, every time is the Dallas Cowboys with Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb. The thing is they also have another excellent WR in Michael Gallup. Dak Prescott has so many weapons it’s unreal.
With all these options, you would assume that someone would have to be left out, and that’s why they tell us not to assume. All three guys, even with Dak missing 11 games, had at least 100 targets each last season. With Prescott driving the boat again, the sky is the limit for this offense, but which one should you go for in drafts? Today we’ll be looking at all three WRs to determine who will be the best value for you come draft day.
Like in my Philadelphia article, I will be providing three different ADPs from different sites (Sleeper, ESPN, and FantasyPros) so you can get a good look at where these guys are going and if they are worth the cost. Let’s begin.
Note: You can check out Club Fantasy’s rundown of the entire Dallas offense here!
The Squad
Amari Cooper, 27 Years old, 6’1, 211 Lbs
2020 stats (per player profiler) WR15
130 targets: 92-1114-5
12th in targets
35th in TDs
12th in YAC ( 417)
14.7 Fantasy points per game
1.81 fantasy points per target
Fantasy Points per game with Dak: 32.5
ADP
Sleeper WR20
ESPN WR15
Fantasy Pros WR14
CeeDee Lamb, 22 years old, 6’2”, 198 lbs
2020 stats WR22
109 targets: 74-935-6
24th in targets
24th in TDs
23rd in YAC (336)
13.1 fantasy points per game
1.92 fantasy points per target
Fantasy Points per game with Dak: 23.8
ADP
Sleeper WR17
ESPN WR17
Fantasy Pros WR18
Michael Gallup, 25 years old, 6’1”, 205 lbs
2020 stats WR38
106 targets: 59-843-5
30th in targets
35th in TDs
45th in YAC (240)
10.8 fantasy points per game
1.63 fantasy points per target
Fantasy Point per game with Dak: 18.6
ADP
Sleeper WR46
ESPN WR47
FantasyPros WR46
What To Expect in 2021
At the start of 2020, Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb were destroying people with Dak throwing the ball. Through four weeks, both were top-15 WRs and combined for over 700 yards (Amari Cooper was the WR3). This offense is just unlocked with Dak Prescott leading it. They are a shoot-out team, but they have been slowly making additions on defense and they don’t have a bad one right now. However, between injuries and inconsistent play, they can give up a lot of points. That’s where Dak comes in. He plays catch up very well and these aren’t your regular garbage time points. This is 50+ attempts per game kind of garbage time. That leads to fantasy gold for several players, including Michael Gallup. But which one is better at cost?
Michael Gallup is certainly the cheapest, however, he doesn’t have that league-winning upside the other two have. Partly because his upside is capped because of the other two. He will have his bad weeks and will have his WR1 weeks where he goes for a 30 burger. He is just a WR3 that has WR2 upside, which is fantastic value at WR46 on average, but I’m greedy and want more.
Is it Amari Cooper then? Based on his ADP, his value is fantastic. WR1 at WR2 prices? Like I said before, he was the WR3 in the first four games with Dak last season and not much else has changed on that offense. That’s a small sample size of course but that does give you a look at his overall ceiling with Dak. Amari Cooper has one problem and that is consistency. Whether it be bad QB play (cough cough Derek Carr), drops, or injuries, Amari Cooper has only finished inside the Top 10 one time. It’s not all bad though, as he has finished inside the Top 15 three times which is where he is being drafted this year. I think he has a chance to push the Top 12, maybe higher this year with Dak back. We saw his potential last year, now he just has to put it together.
Oh, just one more tiny problem. Cooper is playing across from one of the best young WR talents in the game today, CeeDee Lamb. If we are talking league-winning potential, here it is. I know it’s only a two-spot difference in ADP but most will be reaching for Cooper come draft day. I expect his ADP to rise by the time September comes around. Lamb’s will stay the same and that’s gold. The thing about Lamb is he is eventually going to take over this team. Already 2nd in targets with an average 68% snap share (86% for Amari, 91% for Gallup per PlayerProfiler), his usage is going to skyrocket in his 2nd year.
It usually takes a year for WRs to get accustomed to the pro level, but Lamb looked pro-ready from the start. Plus, he is in the fantasy gold mine, the slot, and that’s one of the best ways to unlock Lamb in a total mismatch. With just a little snap percentage increase, Lamb could be unlocked and we could be looking at a potential top-5 WR. His pace with Dak in his rookie year was 23 fantasy points per game. That’s awesome for a rookie. It won’t be at first, but slowly he will take the team from Amari Cooper, just in time for the fantasy playoffs and then BAM. You just got a league-winning WR in the 5th/6th round right after you went RB heavy the first four rounds.
But that’s just me. Truthfully, all of these guys are a value. In my opinion, however, I would go for the middle man. Or in this case, the middle LAMB–no? Alright, thanks for reading. Good luck out there.