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Cowboys WATCH: Jalen Tolbert '1% Better' - Rookie Connects with Dak Prescott at Camp

The rookie is planning to be one of the team's top pass-catchers to begin the season.

Zach Dimmitt

The first practice of the 2022 training camp for the Dallas Cowboys officially got underway Wednesday in Oxnard, Calif. as the team got a chance to play together for the first time since last month's minicamp at The Star. 

One of the main storylines headed into this season is the Dallas receiving corps following the Amari Cooper trade and Michael Gallup's steady recovery from his Week 17 ACL tear. CeeDee Lamb is set for his first official year as the surefire No. 1 passing option, but who else can quarterback Dak Prescott throw to on the outside once the Tampa Bay Buccaneers roll into town in Week 1?

Third-round rookie receiver Jalen Tolbert has been in the discussion for WR2 duties. And if the early footage from Wednesday's practice is any indication, the South Alabama product is on track to be one of the more productive rookie receivers this season based on his skillset and potential workload alone. 

"It's an awesome experience and an awesome opportunity,'' Tolbert said after the workout. "I'm just trying to get better every day - getting 1-percent better every day.''

Contested catches against seven-year veteran cornerback Anthony Brown certainly makes this hard to argue. 

At Dallas' rookie minicamp in May, coach Mike McCarthy compared Tolbert, the 2021 Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year, to Lamb and now former Cowboy Cedrick Wilson.

"He's somewhere kind of between CeeDee and Cedrick Wilson," McCarthy said. "The ability to play inside and outside."

PFF also released grades of FBS receivers against single coverage last season. Tolbert graded out as the second-best receiver by .1 of a difference at 94.4

Tolbert's numbers improved in each of his four seasons at South Alabama. After having just five catches for 60 yards his freshmen season, the Alabama native produced back-to-back 1000-yard, eight-touchdown seasons in 2020 and 2021. It proved to be more than enough to impress the Dallas front office.

In a draft class stacked with receiving talent, Tolbert was the 15th pass-catcher selected by the time the back half of the third round began. Despite being overlooked, his clear offseason connection with Prescott could pay major dividends headed into Week 1 and beyond.

You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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Zach Dimmitt
ZACH DIMMITT

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