Jaylen Waddle has a new running mate in Miami.
The Dolphins have agreed with former Cowboys receiver Cedrick Wilson on a three-year deal worth $22.8 million with $12.75 million guaranteed, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported Monday.
Wilson joins a receiving corps headlined by Waddle, the standout former first-round pick out of Alabama who broke 1,000 receiving yards and scored six touchdowns as a rookie in 2021. With two years remaining on his existing contract, DeVante Parker remains in that group as well, forming a strong trio of pass-catchers when healthy for Tua Tagovailoa to target.
Wilson heads to Miami after making a name for himself in Dallas in place of usual standouts Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb, catching 45 passes for 602 yards and six touchdowns in 16 games (four starts) in 2021. The most recent campaign was a relative breakout year for Wilson, who proved he can make a difference in the passing game when given the opportunity.
Dallas likely would have had an easy decision to make on Wilson if it had ample salary-cap space, but bloated contracts elsewhere have forced the Cowboys to let players like Wilson walk and offer others for trade. Dallas already moved on from receiver Amari Cooper when it agreed to trade him to Cleveland for a fifth-round pick and a swap of sixth-round picks on Saturday. Wilson becomes the second receiver to leave the Cowboys, though he exits via free agency, while Lamb and Michael Gallup remain as the top two targets for Dak Prescott.
Wilson figures to be the third receiver in Miami, which enters 2022 with a new head coach in Mike McDaniel. Wilson will see more opportunities over the course of a season than he did in Dallas. We'll see if he can quickly establish a rapport with Tagovailoa and produce tangible results for the Dolphins as they begin a new era with a quarterback who needs to prove his viability as the long-term starter in Miami.