What You Need to Know:

• Tolbert averaged 17.6 yards per catch across 4 seasons at South Alabama, going for 17.0 or more in each of the past 3 years.
• His final 2 campaigns saw him account for 39.9% and 30.4% of team receiving yardage; 44.4% and 36.4% of TD catches.
• Tolbert delivered above-average testing in the 40-yard dash, vertical and broad jump, producing an 85th-percentile relative athletic score.
• He also rates above average for the position in burst score and catch radius.
• Dallas drafted him in the 3rd round.
• Tolbert lands in an offense that has shed WRs Amari Cooper and Cedrick Wilson from last year. Those 2 combined for 25.5% target share and 34% of targeted air yards.
• Michael Gallup re-signed for big money, but is coming off a Jan. 2 ACL tear.
• Dallas also signed James Washington to a 1-year contract in free agency, worth just less than $1.2 million.
• According to Jon Machota of The Athletic, Cowboys rookie WR Jalen Tolbert "is expected to start Week 1." Machota said right after the draft that the 3rd-round pick had a chance to compete for a significant role right away.

Draft Sharks Bottom Line:

We’ll see about Tolbert’s readiness for the pros, but he steps into a great situation for immediate opportunity. Any delay in the start of Michael Gallup’s season leaves an outside starting spot open. And James Washington has done little through 4 years in the league. Tolbert looks like primarily an outside receiver, though he did run one-third of his senior-year routes from the slot, according to Pro Football Focus. The rookie makes for an intriguing late stash in early drafts – especially on best-ball rosters with Dak Prescott. Pairing Tolbert with Gallup in Prescott lineups for best-ball tournaments could reap benefits by covering the position early and holding Gallup for late-season upside.