Cowboys trust CeeDee Lamb is ready to take on the role of #1 cashier – Dallas Cowboys Blog

Frisco, Texas – Dallas Cowboys gave CeeDee Lamb The number 88 is there for a reason.

Better that they are right.

With Cowboys agree to trade wide receiver Amari Cooper arrive Cleveland Browns, Lamb, their first pick in 2020, rose to the clear #1 receiver status. By trading Cooper, the Cowboys open up $16 million in the cap room.

The number 88 is very sacred in Dallas history. Maybe not as sacred as the number 12 to Cowboys legend Roger Staubach or maybe even the number 8 to three-time Super Bowl champion Troy Aikman. But to Hall of Fame recipients Drew Pearson and Michael Irvin, as well as Dez Bryant Once wearing the number 88 shirt, there is pressure on whoever wears that number to play to the right standards.

In his first two years, Lamb handled it very well. But the pressure will only increase this season.

He has to become a midfielder Dak PrescottPearson’s way for Staubach, Irvin’s way for Aikman, and Bryant’s way for Tony Romo.

“He’s a ballplayer, and when you’re very dexterous and perceptive, you easily get to the same page,” Prescott said of Lamb last season. , we’re talking, whether it’s optional routes or whatever it is. ”

In his first two seasons, Lamb made 153 contacts for 2,037 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2021 as an injury replacement after making 79 contacts for 1,102 yards and six touchdowns.

The Cowboys never thought they would be able to draft the Lamb in 2020. They guessed he would be gone long before they picked 17th and failed to transfer a player they had ranked out of 10. top players in their draft table.

Lamb had some electric moments in his first two seasons. His best record came in the overtime victory at New England Patriots in which he caught nine 149-foot passes and two touchdown passes, including a 35-yard touchdown pass to win the game.

“I touch the ball from now on, it will definitely come as a catch,” Lamb said after the win over the Patriots. “That’s how I play.”

The Cowboys used him as a back hitter and even gave him the ball as a means of transportation.

But there have been too many moments where Lamb was not a factor.

Looking at their last match, the wild loss first San Francisco 49ers. He caught a 21-yard pass.

Whether it’s the game plan’s fault, the attention from San Francisco, or him, that can’t be happening right now. He also needs to drop his team lead by seven from 2021.

Before Cooper arrived in exchange from the Raiders in 2018, Prescott struggled to hit the 200 meters a match. It is with Allen HurnsDeonte Thompson, Cole Beasley and a rookie Michael Gallup as his password catcher.

Cooper has changed momentum but Prescott has also evolved a lot since then. He needed to prove he could still be a strong passer without Cooper just as Lamb needed to prove he could be No. 1. The Cowboys clearly believed that was the case for Prescott told. since they signed a $40 million a year deal with him last year. Steps are.

And Prescott will have a better team around him from early 2022 than he did in 2018, starting with Lamb.

Gallup is nearing the end of his multi-year contract perhaps as early as next week but he is likely to start the season off the field because of surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. February.

The Cowboys have put the franchise tag on the top tight Dalton Schultzkeep Prescott’s security blanket in the fold for at least another season.

Cowboys may lose their machines Cedrick Wilson in free agent next week but could add help in veteran market or early in upcoming draft.

However, Lamb must take the next step in his development.

And it should be worthy of the number 88.