The Dallas Cowboys thought they had a problem without a solution in 2023. After slapping the franchise tag on Dalton Schultz, they were able to buy an extra year of above average production from the tight end position. But Schultz turned down a long-term offer, leading to the club throwing a couple draft resources into finding an answer.

The team had drafted Jake Ferguson in the fourth round in 2022, but there was no reason to believe he was capable of producing like Schultz had. So in 2023, they spent a second-round pick on Michigan’s Luke Schoonmaker, hoping they found a long-term fixture in their offense. But Schoonmaker had foot injury issues that robbed him of his offseason preparation as a rookie. His rookie campaign was woefully uneventful and then shoulder and hamstring issues complicated his second offseason.

Now entering a pivotal Year 3, Schoonmaker is working to avoid the dreaded bust label. The club didn’t invest in the position, despite his lack of production, or the fall from grace and walk-year status of Ferguson. Schoonmaker will have every opportunity to stake his claim to being a central figure in Brian Schottenheimer’s plans.

Rundown

Position: Tight End

Age: 26

Height: 6-foot-5

Weight: 250 pounds

Hometown: New Haven, CT

High School: Hamden Hall (CT)

College: Michigan (Highlight Video)

Draft: 2023 Second round

Contract: Four-year deal (2023), $6.3 million

2025 Base Salary: $1.3 million

Career Earnings: $3.3 million (per Over The Cap)

Profile

Schoonmaker should some improvement from Year 1 to Year 2. The rate stats basically matched 2023 with minimal improvement in his yards-per-catch rate (from 8.1 to 8.9). However Schoonmaker’s success rate (catches that resulted in a certain yardage gain based on down/distance) blossomed from an unacceptable 40% to 55.6%. That was in line with what Ferguson showed in 2023 (55.9%) and far exceeded the latter’s abysmal 2024 number (39.5%).

Behind Schoonmaker sits Brevynn Spann-Ford, who clocked 304 offensive snaps compared to Schoonmaker’s 410. The 2024 UDFA is a blocking tight end who wasn’t great at blocking as a rookie. The team has a further collection of UDFAs behind them, including John Stephens who is more a tall receiver than tight end, but coming off back-to-back ACL tears.

Schoonmaker’s additional year of team control gives him a leg up on Ferguson if all things are equal in training camp.

As it stands now, the 2023 class has done very little to maintain the Cowboys’ reputation as being a top-drafting organization. First-round pick Mazi Smith has been nondescript at defensive tackle and LB DeMarvion Overshown can’t stay healthy after teasing superstar potential. Fourth and sixth-round picks Viliami Fehoko and Eric Scott are already off the roster and sixth and seventh-round picks Deuce Vaughn and Jalen Brooks are longshots to make the roster.

Schoonmaker will need a strong offseason, but if he can duplicate the gains he made from 2023 to 2024, he could be in line for a promotion to TE1 and staple of the offense.

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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Dallas Cowboys player profile: No. 86 TE Luke Schoonmaker