Dak Prescott on new Dolphins WR Wilson: ‘He’s gonna be a great receiver for a long time’
Chatter on what the Dolphins are getting with new receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr., the former Dallas Cowboys player who agreed to a three-year, $22.8 million contract with Miami:
▪ Yards after catch and creating separation were Dolphins shortcomings at wide receiver last season, excluding Jaylen Waddle.
In Wilson, the Dolphins snagged a young player who was in the top quarter of the league in both categories last season.
Per ESPN, Wilson — in 2021 — was 17th among receivers in average yards of separation per catch at 3.5.
And his 5.8 average YAC (yards after catch) was 14th best among qualifying receivers and 50th best among more than 200 receivers who caught at least one pass, per Pro Football Focus.
What’s more, he had a 130.6 passer rating when targeted last season.
“I love the Wilson signing because it’s vertical speed down the field,” ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky said. “That’s what Will Fuller was supposed to bring them. Now they have a reliable speed guy.”
The fact that Wilson was mostly a backup is no reflection of his ability, because he was playing behind three very good players (Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup). And he seized his opportunity when the starters were injured.
Dak Prescott targeted Wilson 10 times in Dallas’ playoff loss to San Francisco, and Wilson caught five for 62 yards.
“He’s a great receiver, and he’s gonna be a great receiver for a long time,” Prescott said last season. “He’s probably one of our best-prepared receivers. He was once a QB so he kinda sees the game from that perspective as well.”
▪ Then there was this from Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy earlier this month: “I mean Cedrick, I’ve been with him two years, and I know he was someone that has taken some big jumps in his early years. Love him as a player, love him as a person; extremely professional. With his father playing in the league, I think there is just a steady, calm confidence about him.
“There’s nothing that you can ask Ced to do that he [doesn’t] just step right in [and do]. He’s just an instinctive, aware, natural football player, obviously offensively. But he does a lot of the little things for us on special teams, too.”
▪ PFF rated him the 95th-best free agent and listed his strengths as “shifty before and after the catch; slot production and hands” and his weaknesses as “a lot of projection involved, one year of moderate production and durability concerns.”
He missed his rookie season with a torn labrum in his shoulder and missed time last season with minor ankle and shoulder injuries.
▪ PFF assessed him this way: “Wilson has the talent to be a No. 2 receiver or at worst a productive slot weapon, but he has dealt with some major injuries so far in the NFL and has few opportunities to show it. He might be a low-cost gamble with big upside.
“Wilson stepped up in 2021 with some injuries to the Dallas receiving corps and was productive from the slot. He has unusual size for an inside receiver [6-2, 195 pounds] and the shiftiness to gain yards after the catch as well as win on manufactured screen plays. He could potentially step up to a No. 2 role in a less stacked receiver room.”
▪ The Dolphins now have several players who do some of their best work in the slot — including Wilson, tight end Mike Gesicki and receiver Lynn Bowden Jr.
Waddle also can play the slot very effectively, but is needed on the boundary.
Per PFF’s Ryan Smith, Wilson lined up in the slot a greater percentage of the time than any other NFL wide receiver in 2021 — 90.5 percent of the time. Waddle ranked 33rd, lining up in the slot 60.1 percent of the time.
In fact, all of Wilson’s receptions came in the slot last season.
Waddle caught 62 of 79 targets for 494 yards and four touchdowns out of the slot.
Gesicki caught 44 of 60 targets out of the slot for 480 yards, the third-most slot yards among tight ends.
▪ Wilson’s 13.4 yards per reception tied for 31st in the NFL.
He finished 45th in the NFL in receptions (45), 63rd in targets (61), 49th in receiving yards (602) and 18th in receiving touchdowns (6). He dropped three passes.
He played 46 percent of the Cowboys’ offensive snaps last season, up from 20 percent the previous season.
▪ It wouldn’t be surprising if the Dolphins try to seize on his shiftiness by giving him a few carries. He ran twice for 11 yards last season. But he lost 12 yards on his only three previous NFL carries.
▪ Wilson has a perfect 158.3 NFL passer rating. In his career, he’s 5 for 5 for 111 yards and a TD. So he’s well suited to be used on trick plays. He was a quarterback in high school in Memphis and threw a 61-yard TD pass at Boise State.
▪ Wilson, a former sixth-round pick, has averaged only 3.3 yards on 18 career punt returns and 21.3 yards on three career kickoff returns for Dallas.
But his return numbers at Boise State were much better. Wilson averaged 23.9 yards on 31 kickoffs in his college career. He also averaged 13.2 yards on 10 punt returns.
▪ After missing his rookie season with the injury, Wilson was released by the Cowboys Labor Day weekend before his second season and spent 11 days on the Cowboys’ practice squad before being promoted to the 53-man roster (for good) when Tavon Austin sustained a concussion.
▪ The Dolphins now have a solid top three with Waddle, Parker, Wilson and a battle for the fourth and fifth jobs among Bowden, Preston Williams, Allen Hurns, former 49ers receiver River Cracraft, former CFL receiver DeVonte Dedmon and former Bengals/Giants receiver Cody Core and several more players likely to be added in the months ahead.
▪ ESPN’s Field Yates tweeted: “The Dolphins’ signing of WR Cedrick Wilson, Jr. (3-years, $22.8M) is one of my favorite of Day 1. Wilson played in a stocked WR room for Dallas, but stepped up last year when they needed him due to injuries. He’s bound for a larger role in Miami and I think will flourish.”
Here’s our Wednesday live blog updating Dolphins free agent developments and draft news.
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 2:19 PM.
