Dolphins rookie receiver Wease making early case. What to know about him
Long before April, the Dolphins started laying the groundwork to snag the best wide receivers that wouldn’t hear their names called in the seven-round NFL Draft.
They were ready to pounce the moment the draft ended, signing four highly productive college receivers within minutes.
Missouri’s Theo Wease Jr. and Arkansas’ Andrew Armstrong were snapped up instantly, each given $234,000 in guaranteed money, which is on the high side for undrafted rookies.
The Dolphins gave a $125,000 guarantee to Northwestern’s A.J. Henning and a nonguaranteed contract to Baylor’s Monaray Baldwin.
Through eight practices, Wease and Armstrong have made the most plays of the four. But Wease has been the best of the quartet, catching multiple touchdown passes in the red zone and finding a knack to get open.
So is Wease happy with how he has played? “Not even close,” he said Friday. “Not at all. I still have a long way to go — every aspect, blocking, learning the playbook, making more plays, getting open as much as I can.”
But he said he already knows that he is “most definitely” an NFL-caliber receiver.
Wease said not being drafted “fueled me some more .. But I wouldn’t say I’m disappointed.”
He said other teams offered similar guaranteed money, but the Dolphins “felt like the best opportunity for me.”
Being bypassed in the draft wasn’t the most adversity he has faced.
In 2021, his third year at Oklahoma, he broke both feet in separate practice incidents six months apart.
“I broke the left one first, healed it, then broke the right one,” he said. “Normal football plays [in] practice.
“That was probably the biggest setback I had my whole life. First time being taken away from the game where I missed the whole season. I learned a lot about myself and I knew I really loved this game.”
Wease, 6-2, caught 60 passes for 884 yards (14.7 average) with four touchdowns last season, his second at Missouri after spending four at Oklahoma. He caught 173 passes for 2,610 yards and 20 TDs in 63 college games.
In different single seasons, he ranked in the top 10 in two different Power 4 conferences in receptions, yards and TD receptions. Last year, he was fifth in the Southeastern Conference in receptions and seventh in receiving yards.
Eric Galko, the executive director of the East/West Shrine Bowl, said by phone in May that Wease “came in with high expectations, but got an injury late in the season. He tried to come to the Shrine Bowl but wasn’t healthy. He’s a physical outside receiver and has juice to separate vertically.”
Wease said what he does well is simple: “Getting open and catching.”
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said his “ball-tracking and high-point timing stand out on tape” but explained why he wasn’t drafted, noting that even though he has good size at 6-2, he has “average explosiveness on the outside. His routes aren’t good enough to shake tight man coverage underneath and his small hands will make contested-catch wins more difficult to come by against pro corners.
“Wease is steady and productive, but he might not be dynamic enough to ascend beyond an average backup.”
But Wease — who ran the 40 in 4.59 seconds at the NFL Combine — has displayed a knack for getting open in practice.
Wease, who has no college experience returning punts or kickoffs, is competing for one or two jobs behind starters Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle and top backups Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Malik Washington.
Also competing: Dee Eskridge (who has value as a returner and a decent chance to stick), Armstrong, Erik Ezukanma, 2024 seventh-round pick Tahj Washington (who missed his rookie season with a lower-leg injury), Baldwin (who caught a deep pass in practice last week), Henning (who has several catches but also a few drops in camp) and Tarik Black.
But even if Wease makes the practice squad instead of the 53-man roster, “I will just go back to work. [It would be] nothing to be disappointed about.”
Wease appreciates the chance to pick up nuances of the game from Hill and Waddle: “I can learn a lot from both of them.”
He said Tua Tagovailoa “throws perfect. I’m not just saying that because he’s my quarterback. He throws perfect. If we drop it, it’s on us nine times out of 10 for sure.”
He also has developed a chemistry with No. 3 quarterback Quinn Ewers, noting both grew up in Texas. (Ewers grew up in San Antonio, Wease in Allen).
Catching passes from a left-handed quarterback (Tagovailoa) isn’t new for him; he played with former Oregon and Cleveland Browns rookie Dillon Gabriel at Oklahoma.
As a five-star recruit, Wease can handle pressure and still find a way to enjoy the experience.
“I’m living my dream right now,” he said.
This story was originally published August 1, 2025 at 3:14 PM.
