The Dallas Cowboys 2024 offseason started much earlier than any of us anticipated.
Another early playoff exit has sent Cowboys Nation back into the draft process before Conference Championship weekend for the 28th straight season.
Today I continue my series of 2023 grades for the Dallas Cowboys underachieving campaign.
I have already covered the quarterbacks and running backs, and we will be discussing the tight end group today.
The Cowboys have been looking for the next Jason Witten since before the future Hall of Fame player even retired.
Dallas hadn't invested too much draft stock at the tight end position until the past couple of years.
After Witten retired following the 2017 season, the Cowboys immediately addressed the position by using a 4th round pick on Dalton Schultz in the 2018 draft.
They did not address the position with a draft pick until consecutive picks of Jake Ferguson and Luke Schoonmaker in the 2022 and 2023 drafts.
All stats courtesy of Pro Football Focus Premium Stats.
Tight Ends
The Dallas Cowboys had only two tight ends who played at least 10 games this year, and they both also appeared in all 17 regular season games.
Jake Ferguson
PFF Overall Grade (NFL Rank): 74.5 (10th)
PFF Receiving Grade (NFL Rank): 76.6 (10th)
Many were skeptical about whether 4th round pick Jake Ferguson would be able to step into the top tight end role on the offense.
Ferguson came from a run-heavy Wisconsin offense in college where his receiving skills weren't on full display.
After a rookie season filled with sporadic splash plays as the backup to Dalton Schultz, Ferguson gave us more consistency in his play in 2023.
He finished the season with 71 receptions on 102 targets for 761 yards and five receiving touchdowns.
Ferguson has developed a reputation of being the toughest guy on the field, constantly getting in opponents' faces after the play.
It's an attitude that has been lacking for this team, and it's refreshing to see improving play along with it.
Grade: A
Jake Ferguson exceeded all our expectations for his second season, and based on who the Cowboys drafted (we will speak on him just below) in the 2nd round, he exceeded the team's as well.
Dallas used a premium pick on a tight end, but did not exclusively run two-tight end sets during the season.
I believe they didn't have full faith in Ferguson, and he rewarded the team and fans by proving them wrong.
Luke Schoonmaker
PFF Overall Grade (NFL Rank): 49.8 (85th)
PFF Receiving Grade (NFL Rank): 43.6 (91st)
Schoonmaker was the Cowboys' 2nd round draft pick of the 2023 draft from the University of Michigan.
It was the highest pick the Cowboys have used on a tight end since using a 2nd round pick on the late Gavin Escobar in 2013.
To say Schoonmaker disappointed would be an understatement.
Fans were up in arms when the pick was made because we all felt there were more pressing needs (RB, OL, LB) than another tight end from a school where he wasn't asked to run many routes.
Schoonmaker finished the season with stats equaling what Ferguson averaged each game for the 2023 season.
He appeared in all 17 games, yet only caught eight passes on 15 targets for 65 yards and a couple of touchdowns, with only one game with multiple receptions.
As shown above, his PFF grades are putrid, and you can throw the rookie tight end excuses out the window.
With other teams having success with rookie tight ends, there's no excuse for Schoonmaker's subpar play.
Sam LaPorta, Luke Musgrave, Tucker Kraft, and Dalton Kincaid were all able to immediately contribute to their respective offenses.
Grade: F
If Schoonmaker were taken in later rounds, this grade wouldn't be so harsh, but in hindsight there were much better options left on the board to help the team in 2023.
Here are a few players who were available at pick 58 who could have better served the Cowboys in a win-now season:
- OL O'Cyrus Torrence
- LB Drew Sanders
- WR Tank Dell
- RB Kendre Miller
- WR Josh Downs
- RB De'Von Achane
- DT Kobie Turner
Any one of these stellar rookies could have contributed more to the team than Schoonmaker.
All we can hope is that he develops quickly like Ferguson, and the Cowboys can have one of the best tight end tandems in the NFL for the foreseeable future.
