One thing the Dallas Cowboys' offense didn't have a lot of last season was genuine home-run speed.
KaVontae Turpin was used sparingly, but we saw the benefits when he was. Brandin Cooks was injured, and when he came back, he wasn't the player who could take the top off a defence.
With the need to get CeeDee Lamb some help, adding a receiver who has home-run speed, like Texas flyer Matthew Golden, feels like a good fit, and the Cowboys could easily take him with the No. 12 pick.
But for head coach and offensive play-caller Brian Schottenheimer, speed is important, but it isn't the be-all and end-all.
“It's always something you look at,” Schottenheimer said. “At the end of the day, this is exciting time of year, speed in this league is important, it's not the only way to do it. The one thing about speed, it gives you something you don't have to coach. So the way we're going to play and the style that we're going to play speed is an advantage, but it's not the only thing that we look at.”
So yes, speed is important, but it won't be a deciding factor in who the Cowboys draft.
Golden and his 4.29 40-yard dash time at the scouting combine opened a lot of eyes, as we saw what that kind of speed can do in the NFL with Kansas City Chiefs speed merchant Xavier Worthy last year.
But with others like Tetairoa McMillan, Luther Burden III, and Emeka Egbuka, the Cowboys do have other options; it isn't all about speed.
Cowboys insider thinks there are hints being dropped here - three of them.
Says Fish: "They obviously like McMillan and Golden. Burden might not be their kind of guy. But this staff has a background with Egbuka and he's a character guy. ... and he runs a 4.46 - fast enough.
"Dallas can trade down from No. 12 and still land a guy like Egbuka. Fast enough.''
So while the Cowboys do have the need for speed in 2025, it won't be how they define themselves.
Although having a home-run threat on every play isn't a bad lever to pull.
