Charger: Tolbert made his NFL debut with the San Diego Chargers in 2008. Photo courtesy of San Diego Chargers
Praise is heaped upon Tolbert these days. Widely considered to be among the best fullbacks in the NFL, he has started cementing his legacy through the constant need to prove himself to others. Although Tolbert has more athleticism than he’s given credit for, there are certainly fullbacks in the NFL with better ball-carrying, blocking and pass-catching skills. But what Tolbert might lack in top-end skills, he makes up for in versatility. Sure, other players might be better than him at one thing or another, but it’s hard to find players as good at so many different roles. In the NFL, sometimes it pays — literally, in Tolbert’s case — to be better than average at everything instead of great at some tasks and terrible at others. Tolbert earned his first career Pro Bowl invitation in 2014,
capping a season that saw him rush 101 times for 361 yards and five touchdowns. He also caught 27 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns. The numbers may seem modest, but he was one of the foundational rocks that Carolina rode to a 12-4 record and the team’s first playoff berth in six years. The success came in the first year of new offensive coordinator Mike Shula, who used Tolbert much more in the running game than his predecessor, Rob Chudzinski. “When I came back for offseason workouts [in the spring of 2013], we talked for a good 20 or 30 minutes one day,” Tolbert said of Shula. “He said, ‘I’m going to be leaning on you heavy,’ and that’s not just to play fullback or running back or to block. He was leaning on me a lot to be a leader. That means a lot —
Coastal Carolina University Magazine
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