The Dallas Cowboys are expected to be one of the best teams in the NFC this upcoming season. After acquiring Brandin Cooks from Houston Texans via trade this offseason, they have their top three receivers secured. However, they’ve apparently locked up their fourth receiver spot as well.
Jalen Tolbert was a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft and is expected to be the team’s fourth receiver. Tolbert has stood out throughout training camp this Summer and has also played well in the Cowboys’ two preseason games thus far.
Tolbert has six catches for 95 yards and a touchdown this preseason while displaying impressive speed, contested catch ability, and footwork. For instance, check out this play against the Seattle Seahawks:
Cowboys 2nd-year WR Jalen Tolbert putting the skillset on display 🔥 @Jalen8Tolbert
📺: #DALvsSEA on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/L9mPiySmuK pic.twitter.com/gX5IzNuFsT— NFL (@NFL) August 20, 2023
The South Alabama alum used his six-foot-one frame and 4.49-second 40-yard dash quickness to battle for positioning and haul in the 35-yard pass from quarterback Cooper Rush.
“Tolbert’s locked down that four spot and certainly shown that he can be productive for us,” said Cowboys Executive Vice President Stephen Jones.
While the team had high expectations for him as a rookie that he did not meet, they still feel strongly that he can make a positive impact on the Cowboys roster and that things are bound to change in his second NFL season.
There are a lot of mouths to feed in the Cowboys receiver room between Pro Bowl wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, NFL veteran Brandin Cooks, and Michael Gallup in addition to running back Tony Pollard’s role as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.
It will be fascinating to see where Tolbert fits in with the Cowboys offense as head coach Mike McCarthy has elected to fill the role of offensive play-caller for the first time in his four years with the team following the offseason firing of offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.
