Cowboys Rookies Report Card at Midseason: Grades for Jalen Tolbert, Tyler Smith & More
FRISCO - Dallas Cowboys rookie receiver Jalen Tolbert hasn’t set the world alight in his first NFL season, but he is making decent strides.
The upside: On Sunday in the Cowboys' 49-29 win over Chicago, Tolbert played his highest number of snaps for his career at 25.
The downside: While on the field, the receiver failed to see a target from Dak Prescott.
Still, as we work to grade Dallas' rookie class at midseason, we note that offensive coordinator Kellen Moore liked what he saw from Tolbert and says that he will gain confidence from the experience.
“It was great for Jalen to really have that opportunity to go out there,” Moore said. “I thought he hopped in there, handled himself really well. Obviously, he didn’t get the targets, but when you watch film, you watch his specific routes, he did a nice job. ... That’s a huge building opportunity for him to play close to 30 snaps in the game and now build off of that and build some confidence because of it. It will be huge for him.”
Nevertheless, of Dallas' rookie class, third-rounder Tolbert ranks as a disappointment, and our grade for him reflects that. The rookie report card ...
Tyler Smith - The first-round offensive lineman has been so good at left tackle that if Tyron Smith returns, Dallas will only reluctantly shift the youngster to guard. - A
Sam Williams - The dream was that the exit of Randy Gregory would be made more tolerable by the second-round selection of Williams. With two sacks, the dream is coming true. - A
Jalen Tolbert - The third-rounder is, in truth, still learning the game of football. He was expected to be a rotational receiver, or maybe even an early-season starter. Dallas was, so far, way off on all of those thoughts. - F
Jake Ferguson - The Cowboys really believed they knew what they were getting in the fourth round, a TE2 from Day 1. Dalton Schultz' injuries have asked him to be more than that. And Ferguson has answered. - B
Matt Waletzko - The fifth-rounder made a huge leap into the job of swing tackle, all along trying to go with a bum shoulder that now needs surgery. More than a prospect going forward. - B
Damone Clark - It was just a few months ago that the fifth-rounder underwent spinal fusion surgery. He and the Cowboys were largely alone in thinking he'd play this year. But he debuted against the Bears. A soon-to-be core special-teamer? Maybe something more? - C
DaRon Bland - He exploded onto the scene in training camp and now, with the Jourdan Lewis injury, steps in as the slot corner ... and the Cowboys defense doesn't seem to be missing a beat. - B
Devin Harper - Harper was a sixth-rounder who appeared in three games before he was recently moved to IR. Did Dallas find an NFL talent with its last pick? That's a "get.'' - C
Alec Lindstrom - The Cowboys had enough faith in the UDFA to let him dress when they were short-handed for one game, meaning they not only have some trust in him at his natural center spot, but maybe a little more. - INC
Markquese Bell - The UDFA safety hasn't been active enough to have made an impact. ... and the jump-up of Clark might keep in the shadows. But this is a special-teams standout waiting to happen. - INC
Peyton Hendershot - The UDFA tight end caught everybody's attention with his speed and grit in preseason games. He combines with Ferguson to allow Dallas to consider not re-signing Schultz next year - a large accomplishment. - B
Malik Davis - The UDFA running back has a lot of believers in the building. Will he someday offer evidence that an NFL team doesn't need a $15 million running back? - C
Rookie running back Davis earned some extra mention here after he got his shot with Ezekiel Elliott sitting with a knee injury.
Davis, working in relief of Tony Pollard and his 131 yards rushing, ran for 23 yards on eight carries and caught two passes out of the backfield for 18 yards in what was a good introduction to NFL football.
“He did a really nice job, it was awesome,” Moore said of Davis’ performance. “First game out there, it was just so smooth, smooth transition from Tony to him as far as comfort level, calling the plays. Credit to him, we felt very comfortable with him all the way through preseason, training camp.''
Davis and some of the others are bonuses. Tyler and some of the others are "hits.'' Tolbert is, then, the pivotal guy to decide on the true quality of the 2022 NFL Draft in Dallas ... with more report cards to be written.
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