One of the most important players for the 2025 Dallas Cowboys is none other than Jake Ferguson. The former fourth-round pick from the 2022 NFL Draft is in a contract year and, with a good season, could earn a life-changing deal in free agency next offseason. However, Ferguson is coming off a poor 2024 season where he dealt with injuries and wasn’t effective at all in the passing game.
The Cowboys are hopeful that Ferguson can rebound and play the best football of his career this season. But the 2024 performance by Ferguson can’t be ignored, and it’s fair to wonder just how much better he can get at this stage of his career. He's not a fantastic athlete, and he still has a long way to go as a blocker. Is there any hope for him to become a top-10 tight end in the NFL moving forward?
In a recent article by John Kosko of Pro Football Focus, he ranked all 32 tight ends in the NFL going into the 2025 season. Ferguson was in the middle of that ranking, coming in at No. 17, behind the likes of Hunter Henry, Taysom Hill, and Dalton Schultz.
Cowboys need Jake Ferguson to bounce back in a big way this season
Here is what PFF had to say about the starting tight end for Dallas going into the new season:
"Ferguson looked like a tight end on the cusp of cracking the top 10 a year ago before the Cowboys' struggles and injuries caused the decline in production and grading for the third-year Wisconsin Badger. While Ferguson should enjoy a bounce-back 2025 campaign, his 56.6 PFF receiving grade and four fumbles in 2024 are worrisome for his outlook."
John Kosko, Pro Football Focus
A healthy Dak Prescott and the addition of George Pickens should open up the middle of the field for Ferguson, which is great news for his receiving production.
But if he doesn’t improve as a blocker and show that he can be a more reliable receiver, it’s possible that the Cowboys could use Luke Schoonmaker or Breyvn Spann-Ford more this season. We already saw the offense use a heavy rotation last year at tight end and that could be the case again this year if Ferguson doesn’t rebound from a bad season.
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Expect Ferguson to open the year as the Week 1 starter against Philadelphia. He’s the most experienced tight end on the roster and has had some pretty good games against the Eagles in the past.
However, his starting job isn’t as secure as many may believe, and improvements will be needed for him to hold onto that spot. Ferguson is one of Prescott's favorite targets. His regression definitely played a role in Prescott's struggles last season.
If Ferguson can get back to how he played in 2023 and improve in the run game, don’t be surprised if he earns a big-time contract offseason from Dallas or another tight end-needy team.