Philadelphia Eagles: Randall Cobb to the Cowboys is a big ol’ nothingburger

After missing out on Earl Thomas, the Dallas Cowboys have added WR Randall Cobb in free agency, but fear not Philadelphia Eagles fans; he’s no game changer.

After watching the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants bolster their wide receiving corps with a pair of veteran wide receivers in Desean Jackson and Golden Tate respectively, the Dallas Cowboys decided to get in on the action by signing their own pass catcher to replace the departing Cole Beasley.

And once upon a time, Randall Cobb was an absolute force.

A second-round pick out of Kentucky in 2011, Cobb looked like the new template for a hybrid wide receiver/running back offensive weapon the likes of which was seldom seen in the NFL, and over his first five years in Mike McCarthy‘s system, you’d be forgiven if you had fallen for it.

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As one of Aaron Rodgers favorite targets, Cobb averaged 875 yards and 7.5 touchdowns a season from 2012-15, earning a four-year, $40 million ($17 guaranteed) contract to remain in Wisconsin for the remainder of his quarterback’s prime.

But as Jordy Nelson‘s production declined and Davante Adams eventually rose to replace him as the Packers’ WR1, it became abundantly clear that Cobb was not on his way to a series of Pro Bowl appearances, not even close.

In the four seasons following his lone Pro Bowl appearance in January of 2015, Cobb recorded only 2,475 yards and 16 touchdowns in 53 regular season games, good for 12 fewer yards per game when compared to his first four seasons in the league (58 ypg vs. 46 ypg).

But wait, there’s more.

Not only did Cobb’s average yards and touchdowns drop after receiving his big money contract, but so did his yards per catch, a hallmark aspect of Cobb’s game. Over his first four seasons in the league, Cobb made a name for himself as one of the league’s premier yac specialists, as highlighted by his 13.43 yards per catch average. However, from 2015-19, those number sharply dropped to an average of 10.18 yards.

And the worst part? Despite appearing in only one more game, Cobb’s actually caught four more passes a season on his second contract then he did on his first.

No wonder the Packers allowed their homegrown, do-it-all receiver to walk in free agency for nothing.

So really, what are the Cowboys getting in 2019? Could some time off after an abbreviated, playoff-less 2018 season help to rejuvenate the 28-year-old’s career and deliver onto Dallas a dynamic, athletic, do-it-all slot receiving threat who can optimize Dak Prescott‘s dink-and-dunk mentality?

Probably not.

At this point in his career, Cobb is more or less just a guy, a solid guy, but a guy none the less.

With players like Devin Funchess receiving a one-year, $13 million deal to join the Indianapolis Colts, and Golden Tate, a 30-year-old  with a very similar skill set to Cobb, accepting a four-year, $37.5 million deal, Randall’s one-year, $5 million contract is pretty telling as to just how low his present standing is in the league.

Now, this could all change with a bounce-back season in big D, but if Randell Cobb can even return to his mean statistical career average, 58 catches for 690 yards and five touchdowns, it’s safe to say Philadelphia Eagles fans shouldn’t lose sleep over the Dallas Cowboys’ latest addition.