With three preseason games still to play, the Dallas Cowboys are keeping their depth at wide receiver to sort out who deserves to be part of a retool on offense for 2018. Waiving injured wide receiver Marchie Murdock this week, the team responded by signing their second new receiver this training camp.

Already adding Ricky Jeune into the mix as a big-bodied target out of Georgia Tech, the Cowboys have added similar traits in Darren Carrington. The former Oregon Ducks and Utah Utes receiver was once a dynamic player on track for the NFL, but a troubled past has kept him under the radar until now.

As a redshirt freshman at Oregon, Carrington was suspended for the National Championship game against Ezekiel Elliott and Ohio State (at AT&T Stadium) following a failed drug test. He was released from the team prior to the 2017 season, but stayed in the conference to end his career at Utah.

It’s here that I picked up with some of Carrington’s tape, with his full scouting report below.

Strengths

When one thinks of skill players out of Oregon, the first thing that comes to mind is raw speed creating havoc for defenses. While long speed is part of Carrington’s game, it wasn’t his best trait at Utah.

This is a surprisingly physical player that excels as a “bad ball” catcher. Given Prescott’s inconsistent accuracy, it’s not hard to imagine Carrington making some immediate flash plays with his new team.

Carrington leaves a lot to be desired in his route running, but new Cowboys WR coach Sanjay Lal will have a solid starting point to work with in this area.

Carrington always lines up with his shoulders above his toes, allowing him to explode off the ball and get on defenders in a hurry. With broad shoulders and a fluid upper body, Carrington is comfortable playing through contact to create separation.

Tracking the ball in the air to extend for catches outside of his frame is another thing Carrington does effortlessly on tape. Carrington has soft hands and the desired go-get-it mentality with the ball in the air – especially in the red zone.

Continue for Carrington’s weaknesses and a summary report…

Weaknesses

Carrington’s most glaring weakness is his lack of precision as a route runner. It simply shouldn’t be as hard as it is for an athlete like Carrington to run away from defenders, but this is a major cause of concern for him at the next level.

Lacking the quick change of speed or direction abilities to play with any deception, most of Carrington’s targets at Utah came either down the field or behind the line of scrimmage.

Though he wasn’t always rewarded with the ball in these situations, Carrington showed the ability to uncover against the underneath zone very well. Targets in the middle of the field remained a problem for Carrington though, as he’ll fail to put his body in position to protect the football.

Summary

Testing as a well-rounded athlete with elite hand size (10 and three-eighths of an inch) and height (6-foot-2) at the 2018 Scouting Combine, there was never a doubt Carrington could play in the NFL.

Carrington’s first opportunity to do so coming in August with a team in the midst of a tight competition at wide receiver is less than ideal, but neither was the situation Carrington got himself into throughout a productive college career.

Carrington joins Jeune, Deonte Thompson, Allen Hurns, Michael Gallup, K.D. Cannon, Terrance Williams, Noah Brown, Lance Lenoir, and Cole Beasley in a crowded WR corps for Dallas.

With Brown missing significant portions of his second training camp with the Cowboys so far, keep an eye on who can potentially take his spot on the final roster.

Lenoir has impressed and the Cowboys offseason star should have a real edge over the rest of the field for a final spot at WR.

Should Carrington be motivated to put his past behind him and make a name for himself with the Cowboys, they’ll be getting much more than just an upgrade over Murdock. This is an NFL-ready receiver with the ceiling to be a highly productive scoring threat for any offense.

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