How Cowboys’ Jalen Tolbert overcame rough start to career to secure winning TD vs. Steelers

Almost two years ago, Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Tolbert was in the doghouse.

A rookie who had underwhelmed his high expectations after coming out of South Alabama, Tolbert was called upon to produce in overtime of a hard-fought game in Green Bay. Instead, he was called for an offsides penalty which erased a big run that would have set up Dallas to potentially win the game. Just a few minutes later, Green Bay came out on top.

After the game, head coach Mike McCarthy – playing in his first game back in Green Bay since being let go by the organization after 13 seasons – called the penalty “disappointing” as he saw a potential sentimental win fall through his team’s grasp.

Two years later, Tolbert has flipped the script.

Searching for his first career win in his hometown of Pittsburgh, McCarthy called on Tolbert again. On fourth-and-goal in the game’s final minute, quarterback Dak Prescott found his newly minted second option at wide receiver from four yards out to secure the hometown victory, 20-17, for their head coach and the team’s third win of the season

“I knew the play call,” Tolbert said. “I knew the options that were available on the play call. I knew the coverage they would run. All I had to do was get in between and make a play. That’s what big time players do in big time moments. When the ball is coming your way and the team is counting on you, you make plays.”

And just that, Tolbert did. With Steelers safety DeShon Elliott draped over him, Tolbert hauled in a tough sure-handed four-yard reception to seal the game’s fate and rewrite his own reliability in clutch situations.

“I worked hard for this,” he said. “God has given me the talent and the ability to continue to work and get better. I give him all the glory for it. I’ve been working for years for this, waiting on my opportunity and my time to be able to get more offensive snaps or more targets. Whenever that moment comes, you have to be ready for it.”

After a week back in Dallas that saw his mentor and veteran receiver Brandin Cooks land on the injured reserve with a knee issue, Tolbert was asked to assume the role of the team’s second receiver. Not only did he come through, the game-winning reception capped a memorable performance that saw him haul in seven receptions for 87 yards, both career-highs.

“There was no doubt in my mind that he would have a game like this,” Prescott said postgame. “Especially if we were going to throw it as many times as we did.”

Looking back on his young career, Tolbert holds his head high and his chest out these days calling back to his rocky rookie year in 2022. What was once a sore subject has now turned into a story of resilience for a player that never lost trust from the teammates around him and most importantly himself.

“We threw everything at him,” Prescott recalls from Tolbert’s rookie campaign. “We knew that he would be able to take it all in and learn it. It wasn’t the best first year or the first year he wanted, but the way he approached that offseason, his resiliency, the confidence in himself to be able to respond and understand that it wasn’t a lack of ability…I think tonight was a testament to that.”

“Game-winning touchdown on the road, I can’t make it up,” Tolbert said. “Like I say, it’s a special moment and it’s fun to be able to celebrate it with my team. It was special. Who would have ever thought?”

Well, Tolbert himself would have thought it. In the end, it’s how he got in the situation to make the game-winning play on Sunday night to begin with.

“Yeah, I knew it,” he later said with a laugh.