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Yesterday we noted that the Cowboys worked out six players and that most of them were wide receivers. With Terrance Williams and Brice Butler free agents this offseason, the Cowboys are rightly concerned about depth at the spot. So they ended up signing two of the receivers. Neither of these guys seem likely to replace a Williams or Butler on the roster, though.
The Dallas Cowboys signed WR Quincy McDuffie (Central Florida) and WR Uzoma Nwachukwu (Texas A&M) to the Reserve/Future list on Tuesday.
— Rob Phillips (@robphillips3) January 31, 2017
McDuffie is listed at 5’ 10” and 180 pounds, decidedly not in the size range the Cowboys prefer for their outside receivers. The Cowboys like players over six foot and 200 pounds on the outside. Nwachukwu is a little bigger listed at 5’ 11’’ and around 200 pounds.
McDuffie, though, was clearly brought in for a reason. His speed and return skills are his bread and butter as he lead the CFL in kickoff return yards (27.7) last season and scored two touchdowns. The Cowboys return game under Lucky Whitehead and others was poor last season, ranking in the bottom of the league. Whitehead is basically on the team for his skills in that area, so McDuffie would be a direct threat to his position with the Cowboys. Also, we must remember that Whitehead was benched and left home for a game last season after being late for meetings.
McDuffie just might be able to juice up the Cowboys return game. One wonders if he can run the jet sweep?
Nwachukwu has bounced around the league and has no regular season stats. His would be a long road to make the roster, but the Cowboys saw enough to at least give him a shot over the offseason program to see if he can open some eyes.