The Dallas Cowboys have seen several players leave the Lone Star State since the start of NFL free agency, including wide receiver Jalen Tolbert. After a down performance last season, Tolbert took his talents to South Beach in favor of a fresh start, signing a one-year, $1.2 million contract with the Miami Dolphins to reunite with 2022 Senior Bowl quarterback Malik Willis.
Beyond reuniting with Willis, joining the Dolphins made sense for Tolbert, as their lack of wideout depth left the door open for him to find a bigger role. While that could still happen, there's also a chance that the former Cowboys WR will disappoint his new team sooner rather than later.
Dolphins Could Regret Signing Jalen Tolbert
A former 2022 third-rounder, the Cowboys once had high hopes that Tolbert would develop into an impact player. The jury was out on the South Alabama product after his first two seasons; however, it seemed like Tolbert turned the page when he converted a career-high 79 targets into 49 catches for 610 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 2024.
Even with George Pickens joining the fold in the offseason, Cowboys fans held out hope that Tolbert would still take that next step. Instead, his stat line dropped to 18-203-1 in 13 appearances with Dallas last season, giving owner/general manager Jerry Jones every reason to turn the page in March.
While a fresh start could help (in theory), there's a good chance that the same problems that plagued Tolbert with the Cowboys will follow him to the Dolphins, leaving them feeling a bit of buyer's remorse.
For starters, if Tolbert regressed despite Pickens and CeeDee Lamb garnering opponents' attention, it's hard to imagine he'll turn things around in Miami. He's currently the WR2 on most projected Dolphins depth charts, meaning he's going to see one of any opponents' top two cornerbacks more often than not.
Tolber Isn't a Difference-Maker
That's a grim outlook for a receiver who struggles to do more than the bare minimum. According to Pro Football Focus, Tolbert only caught five-of-17 targets (29.4%) that went longer than 10 yards for 110 receiving yards and a TD last season. Meanwhile, he was 13-of-16 (81.3%) for 87 yards on targets fewer than nine yards or that went behind the line of scrimmage.
Additionally, the former Cowboy only caught 40.0% (4-of-10) of his contest catches, while QBs Dak Prescott and Joe Milton only had an abysmal 70.6 passer rating when targeting Tolbert, per PFF.
If he doesn't thrive as a pass-catcher, it isn't as if the Dolphins can rely on Tolbert as a blocker, either. He's finished with a PFF run-block grade of 45.1 or worse in each of the last three season and has only pass-blocked once in his NFL career.
With seven top-100 selections in this month's draft, the Dolphins will likely add another WR or two by the end of the three-day event. Depending on who they select, it might not take long for them to show more upside than Tolbert, as the bar is already fairly low. So, if he can't make big receiving plays and struggles as a blocker, why would Miami keep him around for the long haul?
All of the above points to a likely early divorce between Tolbert and the Dolphins. He isn't good enough at any singual thing to help take Miami's WR room to the next level, making it clear that Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley will likely run out of patience sooner rather than later. A training camp could would free up over $1 million in cap space, per Spotrac.
Barring a surprise breakout similar to his 2024 effort, all signs point to the Dolphins feeling some sort of buyer's remorse regarding Tolbert. Whether it takes a few months or the whole season, Miami will wish it hadn't wasted a roster spot on the ex-Dallas wideout, leaving time to tell what'll be the breaking point to get to that realization.