The Landry Hat
Fansided

Grading the Cowboys’ rookies midway through the 2022 season

By Brandon Martinez

Oct 23, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (54) celebrates making a sack and a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 23, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (54) celebrates making a sack and a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 18, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (54) tackles Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon (28) in the second quarter at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 18, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (54) tackles Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon (28) in the second quarter at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports /

Day Two Selections

WR Jalen Tolbert (Round 3, pick 88)

This was one of my favorite picks for the Cowboys after the draft. Times change quickly because Jalen Tolbert has been one of the least impressive draft picks by the Cowboys in recent memory through eight weeks into the season.

The opportunity for Tolbert to excel was there. He’s a great deep target and has all the tools to succeed in this offense. He had the chance to start with only CeeDee Lamb and Noah Brown ahead of him early on in the season, and now with Michael Gallup back, this season may be lost for the third-round pick.

This year, Tolbert has run just 28 routes in games and has been targeted only twice. Both of these happened in the same game, against the Giants in Week 3, and he only came away with one catch for four yards.

Grade: F

DE Sam Williams (Round 2, pick 56)

This pick is starting to age really well. Sam Williams, who was connected to the Cowboys for a long time prior to the NFL Draft by drawing comparisons to Micah Parsons, has become more and more impactful as time goes on.

He is one of the most productive rookie edges in the chances that he gets on the field, especially in Week 7 against the Lions where he completely took matters into his own hands, recording two sacks and snatching the ball from Jared Goff late in the contest.

The fact of the matter is that he needs more snaps. He wasn’t able to play against the Bears due to injury, but he should return against the Packers in Week 10. He has been everything that Jerry Jones said he was, and Dan Quinn needs to utilize him more.

Grade: A-

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