By Pat Ragazzo 

After the Dallas Cowboys acquired wide receiver Amari Cooper in 2018 to help solidify their reign atop the NFC East, they continued to build to their receiving corps this offseason by adding Randall Cobb on a bargain one-year deal worth $5 million.

Cobb spent the past eight seasons with the Green Bay Packers, where he served as one of star quarterback Aaron Rodger’s favorite targets. Cobb now flip-flops’ from the 12th ranked offense in Green Bay last season to the 22nd in Dallas.

On the bright side, the receiver will join the talented former first round pick Amari Cooper, as previously mentioned, along with Allen Hurns, Tavon Austin, and Michael Gallup to round out the top four targets in this unit. As he did with the Packers, Cobb looks to serve as the new slot man in this offense, as he replaces the speedy Cole Beasley, who recently departed this offseason signing with the Buffalo Bills.

Now without further ado, here are three things to know about the newest Cowboy slot receiver.

College Career 

Cobb is a native of Alcoa Tennessee and committed to play football at the University of Kentucky in 2008. Cobb originally played quarterback in his freshman year at Kentucky and was named to the SEC All-Freshman team. In 11 games he racked up two passing, two receiving, and seven rushing touchdowns.

Following his freshman year, Cobb ultimately switched to receiver for his Sophomore and Junior seasons.’ In 36 total games at Kentucky, Cobb collected 144 receptions for 1,661 yards and 13 touchdowns as a receiver. He also rushed for an even more impressive 1,313 yards on 228 attempts, with 22 rushing touchdowns, averaging 5.8 yards a carry.

Rookie Year 

Coming out of Kentucky, Cobb Ran a lightning quick 4.46 40-yard dash at the NFL combine. This helped him go on to be selected by the Green Bay Packers at pick number 64 in the second round of the 2011 Draft.

In his first season with the Packers, Cobb became the first rookie in franchise history to record a punt and kick return touchdown. The receiver recorded an impressive 1,136 total return yards with two touchdowns, which were good for 108 and 80 yards.

His team held the best record in the league this year and stood atop the NFC with a 15-1 record. The receiver finished his first season as a pro with 25 catches for 375 yards and three touchdowns in the high powered Packers offense.

Career

In eight seasons with the Packers, Cobb accumulated 470 career catches for 5,524 yards, along with 41 touchdowns. In this time, he also averaged 9.3 yards per punt return and 25.9 yards returning kicks with three total return touchdowns.

His best year as a pro came in 2014 when he was selected to the pro bowl. During this season Cobb posted career highs in receptions (91), receiving yards (1,287), and touchdowns (12).

Cobb also brings a more than solid postseason track record to the table, as well. In 11 career playoff games, the receiver collected 596 yards on 47 catches and five touchdowns.

Cobb had a bit of a down year in 2018 after suffering a hamstring injury that kept him out for five weeks. In only nine games, the receiver recorded 38 catches for 383 yards and two touchdowns. Despite very productive career numbers his main achilles heel as a pro has been his 16 career fumbles.

Conclusion

With a healthy Cobb, the Cowboys offense should take a big jump in the passing game this season. The veteran receiver had a strong bond with his former quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The Cowboys hope this connection translates over to his new signal caller in Dak Prescott. The receiver brings a ton of talent and experience to a relatively young group and the expectation is they will now be able to exceed the 221 passing yards and 21 points per game on the offensive side from a season ago.