Dallas Cowboys

2017 NFL Free Agency: 3 Wide Receiver Targets for Dallas Cowboys

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 1:21 p.m. ET

Fansided, Stephen Forsha/FanSided via NFL Spin Zone

The Dallas Cowboys have a big question mark at their No. 2 wide receiver, but have a number of quality options to target in 2017 NFL free agency.

The question isn't if, but who should the Dallas Cowboys look at in 2017 NFL free agency to battle for their No. 2 wide receiver spot on their roster. Terrance Williams and Brice Butler are free agents this offseason. Williams will likely price Dallas out in relation to how they value him and Butler hasn't reached his potential.

Two members of the Cowboys receiving corps from last season, Dez Bryant and Cole Beasley, ranked in the top-15 grades of wide receivers by Pro Football Focus for the 2016 season, coming in at No. 11 and 13 respectively. As for two others, Williams was graded as the 49th best at the position, and Brice Butler was 92nd overall.

Those grades by PFF leave too many questions in the depth chart of the Cowboys before the 2017 season, making it a must to add some depth and to potentially replace either one or both of Williams and Butler.

There are a variety of ways the Cowboys can go with this. They can sign a player who has solid potential, a veteran with an off-the-field issue or a player who has really begun to make a name for himself after only one really solid year at playing wide receiver.

Much can and will happen from now until the start of training camp. But the Cowboys must make the right decisions in free agency and during the NFL Draft to make the offense even more explosive than it was this past season. Here are three options that the Cowboys could focus on at wide receiver during free agency.

Dec 4, 2016; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Kamar Aiken (11) runs after the catch as Miami Dolphins free safety Michael Thomas (31) and middle linebacker Kiko Alonso (47) defends during the first quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

3. Kamar Aiken – Baltimore Ravens

There should be many teams interested in Kamar Aiken, and maybe the Dallas Cowboys are one of them. Aiken can be a solid No. 2 wide receiver for the Cowboys and finally get his chance to showcase all of his skills. He has more potential than some of the wide receivers already on the roster, but he's yet to be given the full opportunity to showcase how good he can be.

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Last season, Aiken had 29 receptions for 328 yards and one touchdown. From 2014-16, Aiken had 128 receptions for 1,539 yards and nine touchdowns. His best season came in 2015, where he totaled 75 receptions for 944 yards and five touchdowns. A stat that stands out is, in 48 career games and 128 receptions, he's fumbled just once.

How could the Cowboys use Aiken in their offense? At 6-2, 215 pounds, Aiken can give quarterback Dak Prescott another big target to get the football to, and he could cause the defense to have less focus on Dez Bryant. Plus, there is always the stout rushing game that will help out whomever is at wide receiver for the Cowboys.

With Aiken, Dallas would get a player who is reliable and, if he can add to what he accomplished in 2015, any team who signs him will be better off. In his three seasons with the Ravens, Aiken averaged at least 11.1 yards per reception. This is the type of wide receiver the Cowboys need to add to their roster because he has something to prove in 2017. The offense could use another spark like last year when they drafted Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott. Aiken has yet to play his best in the NFL.

Jan 1, 2017; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Michael Floyd (14) celebrates a touchdown during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

2. Michael Floyd – New England Patriots

The former Arizona Cardinals and New England Patriots wide receiver needs to work on a few issues off the field, because he does have immense talent on the field when he's on the active game day roster.

Floyd is a 6-3, 220-pound wide receiver who has played five seasons in the league, all but two games with the Cardinals. After being cut by the Cardinals last season following a DUI arrest, Floyd played the final two games of his season with the Patriots, where he did have four receptions with the eventual Super Bowl champions.

Last season with the Cardinals and Patriots, Floyd totaled just 488 yards on 37 receptions (76 targets), while catching five touchdowns along the way. His best season came in 2013, totaling 1,041 yards on 65 receptions with five touchdowns.

That is what the Cowboys need, a No. 2 wide receiver on the roster who is capable of taking the extra pressure an Bryant as the No. 1 and turn that into a 1,000-yard season. Though Beasley was the leading wide receiver on the Cowboys last season, the odds of that happen on a consistent basis aren't likely. Beasley is a perfect slot wide receiver option for the Cowboys, but the addition of Floyd would make a big difference for the offense.

Even though Floyd graded at 88th overall by PFF, he's a better receiver than he played at last year and even the couple previous years. If Floyd can get back to the player he was in 2013, the team he signs with would get a steal, and maybe the team that takes a chance on him should be the Cowboys—at the right price, of course.

Nov 27, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns wide receiver Terrelle Pryor (11) runs the ball against the New York Giants during the third quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Giants won 27-13. Mandatory Credit: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

1. Terrelle Pryor – Cleveland Browns

A player who has just one year as a starting wide receiver after switching to the position from quarterback could be one of the best players in free agency this offseason. Pryor played in all 16 games for the Cleveland Browns in 2016, starting 15 of them. With a merry-go-round of quarterbacks who weren't the greatest to begin with, Pryor still had a 1,000-yard season (1,007 yards) on 77 receptions.

He was targeted 140 times by the Browns quarterbacks, averaging 13.1 yards per reception with four touchdowns on a team that won just one game all year. The 6-6, 240-pound Pryor proved he's capable of being a starting wide receiver, and if he were to join the Dallas Cowboys next season, just imagine what he could accomplish.

He still might be raw as an NFL wide receiver, but he has been in the league since the 2011 season, then as a quarterback. To make that transition so late into a career shows Pryor is smart, athletic and willing to learn from his coaches while using his athletic ability to become a quality player.

If there ever was a player who would accept a challenge to make his name as the No. 2 wide receiver for the Cowboys, and take the top spot if Dez Bryant were to be injured again like he has been in the past for a lengthy time, Pryor could fill that void better than some of the current Cowboys wide receivers.

Yes, there is only one year for his body of work, but when watching Pryor this past season, he showed he does possess abilities as a wide receiver that can help an offense. Pryor was graded 31st overall by Pro Football Focus for his 2016 season. Though he's a free agent, they Browns still want to keep Pryor on their roster.

Pryor would be a great addition to the Cowboys if he's able to continue his progression. That said, do the Cowboys have the patience to work with him as they are working to repeat as NFC East champions and make a run at the Super Bowl? That will be interesting to see, and it will also be interesting to see if the Cowboys make a move in free agency at wide receiver in the very near future.