The Cowboys' tight end room is bustling with talent, and as a result a former second-round pick could be left behind.
Often, when NFL teams draft for need, they can "reach for a player who shouldn't be drafted that high, and the Dallas Cowboys have been guilty of this over the past couple of seasons.
The two that spring to mind are Mazi Smith and, to an extent, Luke Schoonmaker.
Dallas needed a defensive tackle, so it took Mazi in the first round. The offense needed a tight end behind Jake Ferguson, and Schoonmaker was taken in the second round.
Mazi isn't on the roster anymore, and Schoonmaker is fighting for his Cowboys life as he enters Year 4.
Offensively, the Cowboys don't have many glaring roster battles heading into the offseason.
But one is tight end.
Our own Mike Fisher, in an early roster prediction, went through each position group, and when it came to the tight end room, there is a rather ominous look to it.
“Jake Ferguson, and my No. 2 tight end here is Brevyn Spann-Ford, Schoon [Luke Schoonmaker] and Princeton Fant," Fish said. "There's room for snaps, and the room isn't for Schoon. It's for Spann-Ford, who's going to get every opportunity to be the number two tight end here, and should.”
The fact that Spann-Ford is an undrafted free agent and has only been with the Cowboys for two seasons, and is now widely expected to be Ferguson's backup in 2026, says it all, really.
Schoonmaker, a second-round pick, has posted just 49 receptions, 438 yards, and 3 TDs in three seasons. That isn't great.
Now, it is worth noting that Dallas drafted Schoonmaker for his blocking ability, which might explain his lack of offensive stats.
But Spann-Ford can do both. Granted, his 6-7, 270lb frame certainly helps with that.
Last season, Spann-Ford posted 90 yards and a touchdown from nine receptions while playing 300 snaps (25 percent). Compare that to Schoon's 132 yards from 14 receptions from 391 snaps (33 percent), the pair are close.
But we have seen Spann-Ford's potential in the passing game, and it is here where he separates himself from Schoonmaker.
Year 4 for Schoon, and Year 3 for Spann-Ford will see a tight end battle in Oxnard that most think will see Brevyn win, and win easily.
And if he does, that likely spell's the end of Schoonmaker's time in Dallas.