CeeDee Lamb extension: Cowboys can go full steam ahead on a new deal after Justin Jefferson reset WR market

FRISCO, Texas – “We would like to see more leaves falling. We would like to see more action,” Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said on April 23, two days before 2024. NFL Draft when asked why he didn’t sign players like Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb to extensions this offseason, as both are entering the final season of their current contracts in 2024.

When it comes to the wide receiver market for Lamb, Jones’ wish has been granted. Five high-value extensions have been handed out since his comments at the Dallas pre-draft press conference, two of which were made in about 24 (Amon-Ra St. Brown re-signed with the Detroit Lions) and 48 hours (A.J. Brown re-signed with the Philadelphia Eagles) following these comments.

The last deal to be closed, 2022 NFL Offensive Player of the Year Justin Jefferson re-signed with the Minnesota Vikings on Monday in a four-year, $140 million deal at $110 million guaranteed, it will have the most significant impact on the Cowboys’ negotiations with Lamb. With an annual average of $35 million, Jefferson is now the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL, just ahead of 2022 NFL Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa, with an APY of $34 million on his contract. of US$170 million over five years. Jefferson’s $110 million guaranteed is, of course, now the most guaranteed money among NFL wide receivers following the completion of this deal.

The Cowboys also may not have been thrilled with the idea of ​​making Lamb the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league, averaging $35 million per year on a new contract for their All-Pro. Because they waited, this is now the reality they are facing.

“Well, you don’t know what those big numbers might be,” Dallas COO and executive vice president Stephen Jones said April 23 about big-ticket deals for Prescott, Lamb and/or Micah Parsons. “Like I said, if your intuition was or Jerry’s intuition was that it was a good number, then you could do it.”

Following the additional context of Jefferson’s agreement, NFL expert Josina Anderson reports that negotiations between the Cowboys and Lamb are set to “accelerate.”

Notable WR Contracts Signed This Offseason

• April 15: Eagles re-sign DeVonta Smith to a three-year, $75 million extension with $33.997 million guaranteed ($25 million APY)
• April 24: The Lions re-sign Amon-Ra St. Brown to a four-year, $120.01 million extension with $34.666 million guaranteed ($30.002 million APY)
• April 25: Eagles re-sign AJ Brown to a three-year, $96 million extension with $51 million guaranteed ($32 million APY)
• May 28: The Texans re-sign Nico Collins to a three-year, $72.750 million extension with $32.116 million guaranteed ($24.25 million APY)
• May 30: Dolphins re-sign Jaylen Waddle to a three-year extension worth $84.75 million with $35.97 million guaranteed ($28.25 million APY)
• June 3: Vikings re-sign Justin Jefferson to a four-year, $140 million extension with $110 million guaranteed ($35 million APY)

Stephen Jones indicated that Jefferson’s negotiations with the Vikings would have a major impact on the discussion with Lamb at the Cowboys’ pre-draft press conference on April 23.

“If we felt like we could get a number, it would be a good number, because unfortunately, as we all know, representatives talk to each other. Don’t you think that representatives for Jefferson and CeeDee and [Ja’Marr] Chase aren’t they all talking? Don’t you think they don’t have their eye on something really big? Please. They’re not ready to come here,” said Stephen Jones. “Same thing with Micah. Same thing with Dak. He’s just a little cat and mouse. Total respect for them.”

It’s completely understandable for the Cowboys to view Jefferson and Lamb as peers from a production and compensation standpoint. Lamb was selected 17th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, just five picks ahead of Jefferson, who was taken 22nd overall in the same class. Lamb has three more career receptions (395 to 392) and two more touchdowns (32 to 30) than Jefferson in his four NFL seasons. Jefferson has the advantage in receiving yards (5,899 to 5,145). Lamb, however, has played six more career games than the Vikings’ WR1 (66 to 60).

However, Lamb is coming off a season in 2023 in which it could be argued that he played like the best wide receiver in football: He led the NFL in receptions (135) and was second in receiving yards (1,749), as well as in yards. of the struggle (1,862). He broke the Cowboys’ single-season receiving and receiving yards records, both set by Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Irvin in the 1995 season, Dallas’ last Super Bowl-winning campaign. Lamb broke both of these records in 16 games, the same total in which Irvin accumulated the previous marks.

CeeDee Lamb’s NFL Rankings (2023 Season)

*Cowboys single-season record

Now, it’s time for Dallas to pay up, and unfortunately for the Cowboys, waiting to get Lamb’s deal done will cost them dearly. Surprisingly, Jerry Jones stated that he was not concerned about the rising price of his star players when asked about it in April.

“You’re asking me if I worry about things going up. Don’t worry, but I probably have as good a feeling as anyone living on this Earth what the limit will be three years from now, four years from now, five years from now. from now on,” said Jerry Jones. “I really do. We have exceptional insight into where the limit will be.”

Dallas appears hesitant to sign big-ticket deals after resetting the market for positional running back contracts by re-signing Ezekiel Elliott to a six-year, $90 million extension when he still had two years remaining on his rookie contract. Lamb is entering the final year of his rookie contract at age 25 after breaking single-season franchise records in receptions (135) and receiving yards (1,749) in 2023. His 135 receptions led the NFL. As Dallas waits for other licenses to fall into the wide receiver market, the $35 million per year figure they may not have fallen in love with just over a month ago likely now becomes the starting point for Lamb’s next deal .

“Timing is obviously just as important as the prime value. Sometimes time can prevent you from making a mistake. . The silver lining is when it’s ready,” said Jerry Jones. … “It’s not, ‘Man, they should have done that last week because the price of tea in China went up.’ Frankly, that’s not how we do it, and it’s certainly not how we do it, and I’ve seen criticism that we wait too long to sign players or that sort of thing. They certainly looked back and said they did. five years ago and when the price of living was very low Well, that could have been the case, but we wanted to see how some players played and whether or not we want to keep them around. it is based solely on that decision or that scope, that person, that thing. Because of the nature of the limit, it affects everyone in the future, so that also has a big influence.”

For all the politicking and waxing poetic about the best approach to the timing and value of salary cap management, the Cowboys front office is genuine in its admiration for Lamb, who they view as one of the league’s best.

“I think CeeDee is one of the best players in the NFL,” Jerry Jones said. “I think he’s really important because of where he’s at for the quarterback’s success, personally. I think if you look at complementary football, it does everything for you. then. He is dedicated in his practice and is physically healthy. That really puts him at the top as a player. I’m trying to answer his question. the best players in the NFL.”

Lamb has made it clear that he also sees himself this way, which means he is looking for financial recognition that confirms Jerry Jones’ words about his worth.

“I can’t give you numbers right now, but I’ll tell you one thing, one of the highest-paid receivers, for sure, if not the[WR mais bem pago]. That’s always the goal”, Lamb[highest-paidWR)That’salwaysthegoal”Lamb[highest-paidWR)That’salwaysthegoal”Lambsaid in “The Edge with Micah Parsons” on February 11th.

As much as Jones thinks of Lamb, the All-Pro wide receiver feels the same way about playing for him and the Cowboys for the rest of his career.

“Absolutely,” Lamb said when Parsons asked if he wanted to be a Cowboy for the rest of his life. “There’s no secret about it.”

It’s time for both sides to sit down and come to a new agreement.