The Cowboys have exposed their true feelings for Dez Bryant

When you’re a qualified receiver under the age of 30, and Brice Butler is getting a job and you’re not, maybe it’s time to re-evaluate your career.

We are in Week 3 of the NFL season, and poor Dez Bryant has become the greatest tweeter of all time while an ex-teammate, who was unwanted in the offseason by the Dallas Cowboys, was welcomed back.

The Dallas Cowboys have 11 — that’s 11 as in eleven — people whose primary function is to catch a football, none of whom are much of a threat to do so at a high level.

There is a decent chance that number will soon be 10; receiver Terrance Williams may be facing a four-game suspension for his arrest for public intoxication in May. Why the league waited this long is a mystery.

And the Cowboys still like those guys better than Dez.

Not long after Dez hung out with Jerry Jones in his suite for the Beyonce and Jay-Z show, Jerry’s football team brought in nearly 20 players this week for tryouts. That’s 20 as in twenty. None of them was Dez.

At this point, any rational thinker must consider that Dez’s career is over.

Nonetheless, just as the case as the day he was cut, Dez is a better receiver right now than any current player on the Cowboys’ roster. That’s how much they don’t want him around.

The 200-yard stare

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has become the focus of warranted concern for his inability to pass for more than 200 yards in a game. While he’s accountable for that, it doesn’t help that his boss gave him no one of note to catch the ball.

We all suspected that in training camp, and the addition of Butler confirms it. Butler’s addition gives the Cowboys seven wide receivers to complement their four tight ends.

The number is not inordinate for NFL rosters; the troubling fact is that none of them look any different.

The team was always going to be built around the offensive line and running back Ezekiel Elliott, but the problem is still a problem: If the Cowboys are going to be as good as they want to be, they are eventually going to have to throw the ball forward.

They can’t play the New York Giants every week.

All good teams complete vertical throws.

The Cowboys’ passing offense ranks 30th in the NFL, and through two games it’s apparent they have neither a Dez nor Jason Witten replacement.

Of course, even with Dez and Witten last season, the passing game ranked 30th.

The most troubling stat: Dak’s 6.1 yards per attempt is one of the worst figures in the league; as a rookie, he averaged 8 yards per pass attempt.

Whether it’s 200 yards passing in a game, or pass per attempt, the Cowboys players dismiss the stats.

“In some games (it’s important) and some games it’s not,” offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said Thursday. “If you’re possessing the ball and controlling the game, it’s not that big. But if you’re in a game sometimes you need those explosive plays.”

They all insist Dak can make every throw, and sling the Cowboys to a win. If they needed him to.

Specifically, they point to a handful of games during his rookie year, namely the playoff loss to Green Bay. In that game, Dak passed the team back from a 21-3 deficit to tie the game with under a minute remaining.

His best receiver that day? Dez, who went for nine catches, 132 yards and two touchdowns.

As it relates to Dak, the stats the players care about is turnover differential, and third down conversions.

Dak has 46 TD passes and 17 interceptions. In his three years, the Cowboys have ranked fourth, 13th, and now 31st, in third down conversions.

Tight end trouble

For what felt like no less than 33 seasons, Witten was the ultimate safety valve; he always knew where to find a safe spot to make a catch for at least some positive yardage.

The Cowboys don’t have Witten’s replacement. Losing James Hanna, who also retired in the offseason because of continued knee issues, hurt this offense.

He knew what to do.

Through two games, Dak has targeted his tight ends, all four of them, seven times. The only tight end with a catch is Geoff Swaim, who had three in the season opener for a memorable 18 yards.

Tight end Blake Jarwin was wide open for a potentially huge gain in Week 1 at Carolina, but Dak threw the ball at his feet. Not even Witten, nor any other tight end in the history of the sport, was going to make that catch.

At this point, giving ex-Baylor basketball forward Rico Gathers a look in a real game as an NFL tight end, provided he knows where to stand and what person to hit, can’t hurt.

“Each of those (tight ends) has had a role all along,” coach Jason Garrett said. “Wit’ played virtually every snap when he was here, so when we were in one tight end personnel, we knew who that tight end was going to be. ... We obviously had a ton of plays for him in his career that were featuring him and we’re trying to get to that point with our tight ends right now.”

Look to the outside

The only wide receiver who looks like he could develop into a genuine deep threat is Michael Gallup. But he’s a rookie, and rookie receivers generally vanish for extended periods of time in their first season.

Tavon Austin has special speed, and is a unique toy for Linehan to move around, but he’s not a focal point.

With the possible exception of Allen Hurns, the rest of the guys look the same. Not bad. Not great. Just pros.

And none of them are as talented as Dez, but the Cowboys have thrown up their own X on that.

This story was originally published September 21, 2018 at 7:00 AM.