FRISCO, Texas -- After each of their nine selections over the three days of the 2025 NFL draft, there were the requisite high-fives, fist bumps and hugs by those inside the Dallas Cowboys' draft room.
With their first three picks, the Cowboys took the highest-rated players on their board at the time in guard Tyler Booker, defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku and cornerback Shavon Revel Jr. In Rounds 5-7, they added more depth on the offensive and defensive lines, as well as at linebacker. Nodding to the deep class of running backs, the Cowboys took a pair of them.
While the Cowboys helped Dak Prescott with the line and maybe at running back, what about wide receiver?
Work remains.
The Cowboys entered the draft looking for a WR2 to pair with CeeDee Lamb. Had Arizona's Tetairoa McMillan dropped to them at No. 12 in the first round, he would have been their pick, not Alabama's Booker, according to multiple sources.
Check out some of the top highlights from Alabama's Tyler Booker.
Many assumed the Cowboys would look for a running back in the second or third round. Instead, they took a pass rusher (Ezeiruaku) and corner (Revel). By the time they picked No. 149 in the fifth round on Day 3, 13 running backs were gone, but they still got Texas' Jaydon Blue, whom vice president of player personnel Will McClay called an explosive playmaker. In the seventh round they added Clemson's Phil Mafah, who ran for 1,115 yards last season.
With how things fell to them in the first three rounds, the Cowboys stuck to their draft board. Booker, Ezeiruaku and Revel were among the top 35 players on the team's list, according to multiple sources.
Teams shouldn't spend money and resources on establishing their board only to throw it out the window to fill needs. The Cowboys like to point out how they got Lamb and Micah Parsons in the first rounds in 2020 and 2022, respectively, when they had no designs of taking a receiver or linebacker/pass rusher early those years.
While the Cowboys followed their process in the draft, now it's incumbent on the front office to address the remaining holes in free agency -- especially if personnel is a process that runs, as executive vice president Stephen Jones says, 24/7, 365 days a year.
"We'll continue to always look to improve our football team," Jones said.
The Cowboys have plenty of salary cap room. According to NFLPA figures, it's roughly $37 million. Even if you take out the money needed for draft picks, practice squad, in-season call-ups and additions, injury settlements and a cushion in case of emergencies, they can add whomever they like.
Last week, owner and general manager Jerry Jones said the team was having talks about "substantive trades" regarding players, which could take place before or after the draft.
Leading up to the draft, the Cowboys had discussions with an AFC North team regarding a veteran wide receiver, but nothing came to fruition, according to multiple sources.
The top free agent receivers currently available include former Cowboy Amari Cooper, Keenan Allen and Nelson Agholor, among others.
Beyond Lamb, the Cowboys would have Jalen Tolbert as their No. 2 receiver at the moment. He led the Cowboys in touchdown catches (seven) last season to go with 49 catches for 610 yards. KaVontae Turpin can make big plays, but he has totaled 44 catches in his three-year career, making his mark as a returner.
Check out some of the top highlights from Boston College's Donovan Ezeiruaku.
The Cowboys also have Jalen Brooks, a seventh-rounder in 2023, and Ryan Flournoy, a sixth-rounder in 2024.
"Those guys have potential to be a No. 2, but they're not there yet. They haven't done it. They haven't hit that level yet. And that's why we have had an interest in upgrading that room," Stephen Jones said. "But I think once you get to three, four, five -- the positions you try to fill -- I think that receiving corps checks all those boxes."
In free agency, the Cowboys added Parris Campbell, but he has averaged only 9.1 yards per catch for his career.
And then there's Jonathan Mingo.
Picked up last season from the Carolina Panthers for a fourth-round pick (that they used to draft running back Trevor Etienne), Mingo caught five passes for 46 yards in eight games with the Cowboys.
The Panthers selected Mingo No. 39 in 2023, but after catching 43 passes for 418 yards as a rookie, he caught 17 passes for 167 yards last season. He has yet to score a touchdown in his career.
He also hasn't played a game with Prescott, who suffered a right hamstring avulsion that required surgery.
The Cowboys, however, are quick to point out they had a second-round grade on Mingo two years ago. And coach Brian Schottenheimer mentioned the changes coming in the offensive scheme and the influence of new receivers coach Junior Adams as hope for growth.
"Even just seeing the excitement CeeDee has for some of these guys and the traits that they have [brings excitement]," Schottenheimer said.
But Schottenheimer said the Cowboys will be on the look out for help not just at receiver but anywhere.
Jerry Jones said the addition of a more known commodity at No. 2 receiver would make the depth they currently have look better because of the experience gained already by Tolbert, the hoped-for growth of Mingo and the potential of Brooks and Flournoy.
"It definitely was a big-time thought," Jerry Jones said, "that the train has not left the station if improvement is needed from what we got on campus [at receiver]."
Now they have to prove it.