The Dallas Cowboys are coming off an impressive 44-22 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday that saw playmakers CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Jake Ferguson all make big plays in the passing game.
Although Cowboys fans were excited to see those players go off, they weren’t exactly pleased with the play of fourth-year wide receiver Jalen Tolbert. The former third-round pick, who many thought was due to have a breakout this season, only had one reception (two targets) for 16 yards while playing his fewest snaps (33) since Week 1 (27).
Jalen Tolbert Becoming More Expendable for Cowboys by the Week
It was the second consecutive game that Tolbert only had one reception and third this season. With teams having to focus a lot of attention on Lamb and Pickens, it looked like a great chance for Tolbert to emerge as Dallas’ WR3. However, the young wide receiver has only produced 12 receptions (22 targets) for 125 yards in seven games this season, putting his future in jeopardy.
That’s not good considering that second-year wideout Ryan Flournoy, who has played 30% of offensive snaps, compared to Tolbert (71%), has 13 receptions (20 targets) for 179 yards. And most of Flournoy’s production came in Week 5 against the New York Jets, where he had six receptions (nine targets) for 114 yards.
Meanwhile, Tolbert has yet to have a 100-yard game in his career. And let us not forget that Dallas has KaVontae Turpin, who is an outstanding return specialist, but is an explosive wide receiver. Despite missing two games, Turpin has recorded 12 receptions (14 targets) for 176 yards and a touchdown.
This isn’t promising for Tolbert as he's getting outplayed by guys like Turpin and Flournoy, who don’t play as many offensive snaps. For some Cowboys fans, Tolbert’s auspicious start to this season is giving them flashbacks to Jayron Kearse and Jeff Heath (h/t @DakToCeedee88), who had their good and bad moments in Dallas.
Things won’t get easier for the former third-round pick, as Jonathan Mingo is expected to return this week as CEO/director of player personnel Stephen Jones revealed last week on 105.3 The Fan, per Joe Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News.
Mingo was disappointing in eight games (five receptions for 46 yards in 8 games) with the Cowboys last season following the trade from the Carolina Panthers, so best believe he is also looking to prove himself.
Therefore, Tolbert has two ways he can go. He can either show the Cowboys’ brass that he can compete and be a playmaker in the offense. Or if Tolbert doesn’t show much of anything over the next two games, Dallas could think about trading him as he’s scheduled to be a free agent in 2026.
The ball is in his court.