DALLAS — Over the past decade, the Dallas Cowboys will occasionally have a skill player that is supposed to give the offense a speedy change of pace in the quick passing game.
In 2013-14, the Cowboys were counting on Lance Dunbar to fill that role, and he might have if not for a tear to his patellar tendon on Thanksgiving in 2013. Dallas experimented with receiver Lucky Whitehead in a similar role for 30 games from 2015-16, and the latest version was Tavon Austin in the "web back" role from 2018-19.
With burgeoning return ace KaVontae Turpin expected to see snaps on offense, it conjures narratives of another scat back filling a role that has been under utilized in the Cowboys' offense.
However, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore doesn't merely envision the 5-foot-7-inch, 158-pound skill player as a trick play specialist; the Cowboys have plans for Turpin.
"I think that's certainly the challenge when you have a guy like that, that you're not putting him in just for plays that are focused on him," Moore told reporters on Sept. 5. "I think that's the beauty of what he can provide us. We do see a receiver. It's not just a guy who is going to do an end around or a sweep or a handoff play or something like that. We see a receiver."
Turpin didn't earn his USFL MVP award in the spring from being a trick play specialist or simply from dominating as the Devin Hester of the league. The former TCU product had to demonstrate an ability to play wideout, and he was prolific with 44 catches for 540 yards and four touchdowns through 10 games.
What helped Turpin catch on quickly with the Cowboys in training camp was the fact that he was still at a high level after playing for the New Jersey Generals in the USFL.
"The coolest thing I think about him, he came in really at the end of August," Moore explained. "Came in right off the USFL. He obviously had a defined role that everyone kind of could see and project from a returner standpoint and the things a returner can do on offense. But it's been really cool to watch him become a receiver. I think that's the coolest thing, as the season and training camp progresses, other guys might be out a day and he can just hop in there and start taking advantage of plays and opportunities. We see him as a receiver and I think he's going to play a role that's a receiver and not just a gadget guy sort of speak. He showed it in the USFL and he showed it for us in training camp. We have no reason not to believe that it can happen in the regular season as well."
Turpin will get his chance in Week 1 as the Cowboys host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday night from AT&T Stadium. Moore will also have the chance to demonstrate that the Cowboys see Turpin as more than a gadget player, but as a legitimate receiving option for quarterback Dak Prescott.
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