McCarthy: Cowboys Have 'Three No. 1 WRs' In Amari, Gallup & Lamb
FRISCO - No, new Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy doesn't think Michael Gallup is "the No. 1 receiver.'' He thinks he's "a No. 1 receiver.'' And that evaluation is compliment enough for Gallup.
"Let's make it clear,'' McCarthy said on Tuesday when discussing Gallup's status on the totem pole. "Michael Gallup's a No. 1 receiver in my view. I think we're very fortunate to have three players with that level of potential to go out and play at that level.''
The trio, of course, is Amari Cooper, Gallup and CeeDee Lamb - in that order for now, especially as Lamb - as spectacular as he's been in the first days of this training camp here at The Star - is a rookie. McCarthy is wise, though, to not offer an official ranking.
And Gallup is too modest to get involved in the discussion.
"You definitely want to think of yourself as a No. 1 receiver," Gallup said Tuesday in a conference call with the DFW media. "I'll never tell myself or anyone else that I'm the No. 1. But (a player should always) practice like you are and you play like you are.
"I appreciate it from coach but I would never say that about myself."
What we know is that Cooper is a perennial Pro Bowler coming off another 1,000-yard season, that his sidekick Gallup achieved that number for the first time in his young career in 2019, and that the Cowboys are openly talking about Lamb joining them this year - to become just the fourth NFL team ever to boast three 1,000-yard wide receivers in the same season.
Said Gallup: "When we drafted (Lamb), I'm already thinking, 'Amari went over 1,000 yards. I went over 1,000 yards. And then you pick up one of the best wide receivers coming out. This is a three-headed monster."
Dallas' offense, with QB Dak Prescott at the wheel and running back Ezekiel Elliott also featured, might have different "No. 1 guys'' on different weeks, depending on how NFL defenses attempt to keep up. But if those defenses decide that Gallup is less worth of their attention?
"I didn't know a whole lot about Michael until last year,'' McCarthy admitted, before adding, "He's primed to take that next step."
