Rookie TE shows up with Dalton Schultz out

Cowboys rookie TE Jake Ferguson caught 4 of 6 targets for 40 yards and the team's lone passing TD in Sunday night's loss to the Eagles. He checked in 3rd in targets, with TE Peyton Hendershot drawing another 5 and TE Sean McKeon 1 as well. WR CeeDee Lamb led Dallas with 10 targets, catching 5 for 68 yards. WR Michael Gallup ranked 2nd, putting up a 2-18 receiving line on his 7 looks. QB Cooper Rush attempted a season-high 38 passes but completed only 18 (47.4%) for 181 yards and 1 TD. He also threw 3 INTs.

Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson set season highs Sunday in targets (10), receptions (7), and receiving yards (91) in the loss to the Eagles. He also scored his third TD of the season, from 4 yards out. Ferguson has seen his usage increase vs. the beginning of the year, including running a route on 88.7% of QB Dak Prescott's dropbacks in Philly. He trailed only WR CeeDee Lamb in routes among Cowboys on Sunday. Ferguson took advantage of a positive matchup with the Eagles defense. Week 10 holds the Giants, who have been sixth-toughest on TE scoring by our adjusted fantasy points allowed and rank ninth in TE-coverage DVOA. Carolina in Week 11 looks similar by fantasy scoring but sits just 22nd in TE coverage. Ferguson totaled 7 receptions over the previous three games -- before Sunday -- so he's not quite in every-week starter territory for fantasy teams yet.

Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson caught all of his team-high 7 targets for 77 yards in Sunday's win over the Patriots. He narrowly missed scoring on the team's first drive, getting taken down at the 1-yard line after a 3-yard catch. He got Dallas down to the 4-yard line with a 14-yard catch-and-run before that. Ferguson continues to have a strong role in a good offense. That makes him a solid weekly starter in fantasy, though a Week 5 visit to San Francisco will challenge that.

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott talked about the growth he's seen from second-year TE Jake Ferguson. “I think he’s close to becoming a big-time guy," Prescott said, per The Athletic's Jon Machota. "As far as a playmaker, he’s there. ... And then you see him make a great catch in that preseason game, with a back-shoulder (catch). I think that just shows you, ‘Hey, you throw it to this guy, he wants to make the play and he expects to make the play.’ I think that’s where he takes this next step from just a playmaker to becoming a big-time player in this league.” Ferguson has taken full advantage of rookie TE Luke Schoonmaker's absence for much of the offseason and is primed to enter the season as Dallas' lead TE. He's a worthwhile late-round target in fantasy drafts.

Per The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf, Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson “has done nothing that would cause him to relinquish” the starting job. Rookie Luke Schoonmaker has enjoyed “some solid moments” since returning from a foot injury, but a big early-season role isn’t likely. Consider Ferguson a deep sleeper to star on your fantasy cheat sheet.

The Cowboys added Wisconsin TE Jake Ferguson in the 4th round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He opened his college career with a 36-456-4 line as a freshman but never progressed from there. Ferguson was primarily an in-line TE for the Badgers. He has reliable hands and is comfortable working in traffic at 6’5, 250 pounds. But he has 4.8 speed with a below-average vertical, leaving him as a low-upside fantasy prospect. Ferguson will compete for scraps behind TE Dalton Schultz in Dallas this year.