Dallas Cowboys Draft: 7 Wide Receivers for 7 Rounds
Tylan Wallace, Oklahoma State
Value: Fine
A very good player with an unfortunate set of circumstances, Wallace seems to be the best wide receiver available in the third round. The Dallas Cowboy has started for three years in Stillwater and has accumulated 200 receptions, 3000 receiving yards, and 26 touchdowns in that span. The generic nature of the Oklahoma State offense is often seen as a negative for their wide receiver prospects, but Wallace’s game seems incredibly translatable to the next level because of his competitive and physical toughness.
The 5-foot-11, 194 pound wide receiver looks like a regular joe among the longer cornerbacks of the Big 12 but his good athletic ability and competitive toughness allow him to consistently out play his opposition. He wouldn’t fit Mike McCarthy’s traditional frame for wide receivers, but the way he plays could force the staff into a rewatch.
He uses his good change of direction, good agility, and good instincts to win releases with foot and hip fakes at the line of scrimmage against zone coverage.
Against free releases, he displays solid acceleration but his good instincts to manipulate the DBs hips in phase is what allows him to generate separation quickness in the intermediate and deep areas of the field.
His rocker and break steps wide his stem and gives his QB windows to throw passes. He then has good body control to complete contested catches and other passes above his frame with his good competitive toughness and explosiveness.
He displays solid ability to generate yards after the catch, good at generating separation quickness on slants but solid on other short routes, and is solid in run blocking showing good aggression against his matchup but adequate upper body strength to leverage the alley and prevent the defender from disengaging his block.
Wallace is a good receiver in a class with potentially great players. It is unfortunate that he doesn’t get the attention he deserves especially considering he rebounded fairly well from his 2019 ACL injury. His contested catch ability will give him a reason to stay in the league, but without a clear element of his game he gets muddled in with the other 5-foot-11, 190 pound wide receivers.
Perhaps an offseason in an NFL weight room can make him a more explosive athlete so he can provide matchup advantages against slot receivers if he wasn’t already one?