I lost my confidence, says Cowboys star as he reflects on tough start to NFL career in latest OTA interview

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America’s Team has been engaged with their offseason OTAs, as they brace for an unprecedented season.

Jerry Jones has gone against the grain and decided to cut ties with various veterans in the offseason and they left through free agency.

Moreover, Dak Prescott has not been instilled with glowing confidence by the front office because they continue to delay his contract extension.

Dak Prescott lays out his vision at the franchise OTAs, amid contract extension

The 30-year-old has stated that he is not concerned about the money but will leave the business side of football to his agent.

Additionally, their contractual backlog continues with star players CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons.

The front office has steered away from going on a shopping spree in free agency because of the costly contracts that all three could be signing this offseason.

Eric Kendricks, Royce Freeman, and Ezekiel Elliott remain the only outside free agents the Dallas Cowboys have signed.

Furthermore, America’s Team lost running back Tony Pollard to the Tennessee Titans. Dallas refused to use the franchise tag on the rusher for the second time and he secured his first veteran deal.

Cowboys search for WR3 after Michael Gallup was dismissed from his duty

Michael Gallup was the next offensive piece to close his chapter with the Cowboys after they decided to cut him to save $9.5 million.

Dak Prescott has lost key pieces of the offense and has seen no true upgrades on the two departures.

Michael Thomas has been linked with a move to the Cowboys as he resides in free agency. The Cowboys have no conclusive WR3 within their ranks and the position is vital to getting over the postseason hump.

However, the Dallas Cowboys may look closer to home and Jalen Tolbert could be asked to make the jump in his third season.

The coaching staff could look to Jalen Tolbert to support Dak Prescott

Tolbert has not made the strides he thought he would, being a third-round pick in 2022.

When speaking to Cowboys reporter Jon Machota at the OTAs, he admitted that his confidence took a beating in his rookie year.

“My rookie year, I think I lost almost every bit of my confidence,” Tolbert explained after practice.

Coming off a hamstring injury in OTAs and then trying to catch up, and then just moving around, playing every (WR) spot, I was thinking way more than I should instead of just going out there and having fun, knowing that I belong here, that I’m valuable at this level and can play very high at this level.”

His hamstring injury during his rookie year OTAs forced the promising wide receiver to play catch up.

Tolbert fell out of love with football and his confidence hit an all-time low

Furthermore, the 25-year-old articulated how he failed to enjoy his football but now has the right mentality.

The Dallas Cowboys are hoping that Tolbert can become the player that prompted them to draft the South Alabama rookie.

Ultimately, the Cowboys have always been advocates for developing their home-grown talent. Tolbert is in the best environment to get another shot to stake his claim on the WR3 spot.

Tolbert finished with 22 receptions for 268 yards and two scores in 2023.