It is that point of the NFL offseason when we can start to think that maybe anything is possible, when a little-used player who has no resume to speak of can look good enough to spark speculation that maybe, just maybe, he could be an out-of-the-blue rags-to-riches story. Given the way the Cowboys roster has been bedraggled by free-agency losses and the lack of cap space to make up for those losses, one or two of those stories in Dallas would be useful.
On the Locked on Cowboys podcast, they went looking through the current set of Cowboys for potential “sleeper” options who could come from (almost) nowhere to earn a spot on the 53-man roster and, from there, on to NFL glory.
And the guy host Marcus Mosher came up with as his Cowboys sleeper is interesting, indeed: Tyron Billy-Johnson, the sixth-year wide receiver whose last name has the potential to cause headaches for copyeditors everywhere.
“Tyron Billy-Johnson,” Mosher said, “who is a guy who I am sure it is completely random even mentioning his name, we haven’t heard his name very much, but we have heard his name kind of whispered in the wind a little bit from players—I hear other players talk about him—from coaches, randomly.”
Tyron Billy-Johnson Has Bounces Through Organizations
There is good reason to have heard others speak of Billy-Johnson. He is fast. The NFL will always take notice of 6-foot-1, 193-pounders like Billy-Johnson when they can run the 40-yard dash in under 4.4 seconds. Billy-Johnson can, having done a 4.36 during his pro day before the 2018 draft.
Whether he can perform the finer tasks required of a wide receiver is another question. Raw ability had Billy-Johnson rated as a five-star prospect when he signed with LSU out of high school in Louisiana, but he did not get on the field much and transferred to Oklahoma State. Even there, he was good-not-great, logging 845 yards in 13 games as a redshirt junior.
That’s why he went undrafted in 2018. Billy-Johnson has been rostered for four teams in his career, first with the Chargers, then with the Jaguars, Raiders and Texans, and has had stints with several other teams as a practice-squadder.
He caught 20 passes for 398 yards and three touchdowns as a rookie, but has just three catches since.
Cowboys Kept TBJ on Practice Squad All Year
The Cowboys kept him on the practice squad for all of 2023, and since they’re bringing him back for 2024, the assumption is they think Billy-Johnson could make the 53-man this time around.
“Basically, he was not a guy who was really in shooting range of making the roster but he hung around, he was part of the team, he made it through the offseason, he worked with these guys,” Mosher said. So, clearly the Cowboys liked him a lot. And you’re starting to hear, as we get closer and closer with OTAs, you’re starting to hear his name more and more. He’s a guy who has got really great speed.”
Indeed, in his predraft scouting report at NFL.com, Billy-Johnson was called, “Deep ball specialist with ability to take the top off defenses. Johnson’s game is geared to get down the field and make explosive catches, but the rest of his skill-set is still very raw.”
It could be that his game is still too raw for NFL teams. But he is 28 years old and probably running out of chances to cling to the fringe of an NFL team. The Cowboys need speed, though, and he’s got it.
“His speed is outrageous,” Locked on Cowboys co-host Landon McCool said. “He is so ridiculously fast. He ran a 4.36 at his NFL pro day and I am telling you, that’s not even close to how fast he plays. That’s why, despite barely having any production in the NFL and college, he continues to get shots.”
