IRVING, Texas -- It’s become a tired cliché to compare every short, white, undrafted slot receiver to Wes Welker. It’s also unrealistic.

Maybe we should call Cole Beasley the next Danny Amendola.

“He falls into that family of receivers,” Garrett said of Beasley.

Amendola caught eyes during the Cowboys’ 2008 training camp and spent a chunk of that season on the Dallas practice squad before the Eagles signed him to their 53-man roster. He signed with St. Louis that offseason and has been in the Rams’ receiver rotation when healthy since, catching 85 passes in 2010.

Beasley, the 5-foot-8, 175-pound SMU product, has looked like a slot receiver with a chance to stick this spring and summer. He’s a quick, pesky little fella with sure hands and a knack for getting open, especially on short and intermediate routes, although he capped minicamp by getting behind a safety to make a play on a post route.

Coach Jason Garrett describes Beasley, who caught 173 passes for 2,100 yards his last two seasons at SMU, as a slot receiver who has a “good feel” for playing inside. That’s to be expected from a coach’s son who was a quarterback for his dad’s team at nearby Little Elm High and played for passing guru June Jones in college.

“You’re never going to keep them because he’s big, he’s strong, fast, jumps through the roof, all that kind of stuff,” Garrett said. “The way he stays in this league is every day he catches five balls. Every day he beats a guy you don’t think he can beat. And he does it today, tomorrow and the next day, the next day, the next day. There are a lot of guys who made their way in this league that way, and he’s going to be one of those guys.”