Tag: Lamb

Aug 29, 2021; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, owner Jerry Jones and receiver Amari Cooper talk prior to the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images

Super ‘shocker’ for Jerry Jones: Cowboys not in Super Bowl LIX

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX and the accompanying festivities, but the trip hasn’t been exactly what he expected, apparently.

In an interview with The Athletic, Jones said it is a “shocker” that his team isn’t in the big game, especially after he invested a total of $376 million — including $331 million in guarantees — in contract extensions for Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb.

“I wouldn’t have signed Dak Prescott, the highest-paid player in the NFL, if now wasn’t when we wanted to win,” Jones said. “This is a shocker to be here at this Super Bowl and not have the Cowboys here. I didn’t plan on that when I made that agreement with him. So we’re going to do everything we can to get there.”

Instead, the Cowboys finished the regular season at 7-10, and Prescott suffered a season-ending hamstring injury in Week 9.

Head coach Mike McCarthy and the Cowboys split after the season, with Brian Schottenheimer being promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach.

Jones told The Athletic he has all the confidence in Schottenheimer.

“I looked at 25 years of being on many staffs in the NFL,” Jones said of his new coach. “I looked at sitting around that dinner table with his daddy, Marty Schottenheimer, and I know what osmosis does. It doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

–Field Level Media

Sep 10, 2022; Conway, South Carolina, USA; Gardner-Webb Runnin Bulldogs head coach Tre Lamb walks the side lines in a game against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at Brooks Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Yeazell-Imagn Images

Tulsa hires Tre Lamb to rebuild program

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Tre Lamb has been hired as the new head coach at Tulsa, the school announced Sunday night.

Lamb, 35, replaces Kevin Wilson, who went 7-16 in two seasons as coach of the Golden Hurricane. Wilson was dismissed prior to the 2024 season finale.

Lamb will be introduced during a news conference on Tuesday.

Lamb went 7-5 last season in his lone campaign at FCS program East Tennessee State. He spent the previous four seasons as coach of Gardner-Webb, going 20-20 with two FCS playoff appearances.

“We are so excited for Tre and his family to join TU,” Tulsa athletic director Justin Moore said in a news release. “He is young, energetic and a proven winner. We feel he is exactly who we need to lead our program and restore a tradition of winning for Tulsa in this new era of college football.”

Lamb, a former quarterback at Tennessee Tech, is ready to revive a program that had five 10-win seasons between 2007-16 before falling on hard times.

“Being the head football coach at Tulsa is a responsibility I will not take lightly,” Lamb said in the news release. “We are going to compete for championships. Before we do that, I look forward to hiring a staff and building a roster our students and fans will be excited about.

“This (is) an opportunity of a lifetime. My family and I cannot wait to explore Tulsa and make it our home.”

The Golden Hurricane went 3-9 this season, including 1-7 in the American Athletic Conference.

–Field Level Media

Nov 28, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (88) looks up at the scoreboard during the first quarter against the New York Giants at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images

Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb (shoulder) misses practice, plans to play

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb did his best to silence alarms over his absence at Thursday’s practice and repeated his plan is to play Monday night when Dallas faces the Cincinnati Bengals in Arlington, Texas.

“Still have the shoulder injury, which I’ve been dealing with for four or five weeks,” Lamb said Thursday. “As far as Monday goes, I’ll be fine.”

Lamb leads the team with 79 receptions for 880 yards and four touchdowns in 2024.

He and the Cowboys are benefitting from an 11-day break between Thanksgiving Day and their primetime matchup with the Bengals on Monday night.

Lamb said the injury is similar to a shoulder issue he dealt with while at Oklahoma.

“I have my range of motion and I have my strength back.” Lamb said.

–Field Level Media

Jan 16, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) reacts with wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (88) after throwing a touchdown pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second half during the wild card game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Cowboys sense ‘promising’ talks with WR CeeDee Lamb

Posted on | by Field Level Media

A new deal for CeeDee Lamb suddenly looks more promising from the vantage point of the man writing the check, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

Jones said Tuesday there is marked progress is the delta between Dallas and its star receiver. Lamb was a no-show for training camp, refusing to play as negotiations proved to be largely unfruitful.

But Jones said there are positive signs in contract negotiations with Lamb and his quarterback. Jones said he likes the chances of Lamb being ready for the start of the regular season Sept. 8 at Cleveland.

“Well, I think I am and when I say that, it doesn’t sound too promising. The facts are that I believe we’ll come together. I don’t want to speak for him. That’s what I’m trying not to do. But we wouldn’t have offered him what we’ve offered him if we didn’t want him to be here,” Jones said.

Neither said has shed significant light on the dollar value behind Lamb’s ask or whether he’ll approach the $35 million annually the Vikings are paying All-Pro Justin Jefferson.

On the same side of the ball, Dak Prescott is in the final year of his $140 million contract and can’t be retained with the franchise tag if the Cowboys don’t come up with the cash to keep him in 2025 and beyond.

Jones said the Cowboys continue to hold contract talks with Prescott.

“One of the things that I’d like for the fans to really understand is that nine times out of 10, these are existing (deals) you have in place,” Jones said. “And you should be able to operate under those but we’ve gotten it now in the NFL, other teams are dealing with it too, where with time left on the contract you still might have a contract discussion. … None of us, players or teams, want it to hurt the preparation or the likelihood of playing at your best opening day.”

Jones ruffled feathers when he said the team feels no urgency to sign Lamb, but later clarified he intended to say the Cowboys “know what he can do” and the push to finalize any new contract was minimized by a limited desire to play the wideout in preseason games.

Lamb would have just over two weeks to prepare for Week 1, but first-year offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer implied that’s plenty of work for the 25-year-old.

“CeeDee’s going to be ready. Again, if the system was different, that always adds different challenges. He knows what we do. He and Dak have what I would say are 1,000 or 10,000 banked reps together. And one thing I know about him is he’s staying ready,” Schottenheimer said last week. “A younger player, (there would be worry) because the system is new or different. … There’s wrinkles that he’ll have to pick up on, but his (football intelligence) is unbelievable.”

Lamb set team records last season with 135 receptions for 1,749 yards and 12 touchdowns.

–Field Level Media

Nov 23, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (88) and quarterback Dak Prescott (4) talk during the game against the Washington Commanders at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb absent as voluntary workouts open

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb was absent at the start of voluntary workouts Monday as his contract situation in Dallas threatens to become a dramatic offseason subplot.

Lamb enters the final year of his contract, a fifth-year option worth a guaranteed $17.199 million, after being named first-team All-Pro in 2023.

Lamb broke Michael Irvin’s single-season franchise marks with an NFL-high 135 catches and 1,749 yards, adding a career-high 12 touchdown catches in 17 starts in 2023.

Dallas faces difficult footing in contract talks with multiple key players from a group that includes Lamb, quarterback Dak Prescott and pass rusher Micah Parsons.

Prescott is in the final year of a four-year, $160 million contract, and Parsons has one year left on his rookie contract but will be on the fifth-year team option in 2025.

–Field Level Media

Jul 31, 2023; Oxnard, CA, USA; Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and chief operating officer Stephen Jones (left) during training camp at the Marriott Residence Inn-River Ridge playing fields. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports

Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones says he understands fans frustration

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones acknowledged that the team’s front office is “very aware” of the club’s frustrated fan base after little splash was made during free agency.

Sure, the Cowboys added veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks on a one-year agreement on Wednesday, however the fans expected more — especially after Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said earlier this offseason that he planned to go “all in.”

And “all in” didn’t include signing two-time rushing champion Derrick Henry, who told Mad Dog Sports Radio that the Cowboys didn’t even reach out to him. That comes on the heels of seeing Saquon Barkley (Philadelphia) and Aaron Jones (Minnesota) — who lives in Dallas during the offseason — land with other teams while the Cowboys saw fellow running back Tony Pollard join the Tennessee Titans.

“Everybody certainly has that right (to be frustrated),” Stephen Jones said Thursday, via The Athletic. “I know where the frustration is, it’s the fact that we haven’t had success in the playoffs to their satisfaction. Until we do that, then the criticism is certainly something that’s going to be there. We know that’s going to be there, but we’re going to stick with what we believe will ultimately get us a championship here for our fans. We don’t define ‘all in’ by what you spend in free agency. It’s keeping the core (together).”

Dallas has little cap space to work with. The Cowboys also have quarterback Dak Prescott seeking a contract extension and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and linebacker Micah Parsons in line for large deals.

“It’s not frustrating because it means we’ve done a good job with the draft,” Stephen Jones said when asked about seeing big-name free agents land elsewhere. “That’s just a sign, in my mind, that our organization, Will (McClay) and the scouting department, the coaches, we’ve done our job in terms of developing players. It’s a great thing when you have Micah and CeeDee and the Dak (contract) challenge ahead of us, in terms of getting them under the cap. We’re certainly all in on getting that done.

“When you want to keep your players that you’ve developed and worked so hard to get … then you’re not going to be able to go out and chase those (high-dollar free agent) guys. … The way I look at things, I’ve always said it, player acquisition is 365 days a year. It’s not just the first or second or third day of free agency.”

Prescott, 30, is entering his ninth season and the final campaign of a four-year, $160 million contract he signed in 2021. Prescott’s salary-cap figure in 2024 is $59.5 million and the Cowboys reportedly have held preliminary discussions regarding a long-term extension.

Nine quarterbacks have signed contracts with higher total values since Prescott and the Cowboys completed their existing agreement.

Lamb, 24, heads into the 2024 season on the last season of his contract thanks to a fifth-year option.

However, after a season in which he set franchise records for receptions (135) and receiving yards (1,749), Lamb is expected to seek a significant increase from his $17.9 million fifth-year salary. That would bring him more in line with the annual salaries of other wide receivers in the league like Miami’s Tyreek Hill ($30 million) and Las Vegas’ Davante Adams ($28 million).

Parsons, 24, also has the numbers to earn a raise, having earned Pro Bowl team and All-Pro nods in each of his first three seasons. Selected by the Cowboys with the 12th pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, Parsons has one year left on his rookie deal, with this offseason being the first opportunity to extend his deal.

Parsons had 14.0 sacks to lead the Cowboys in 2023. He has a career total of 40.5 sacks in 50 games, all starts.

–Field Level Media

Nov 19, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (88) is hit as he makes a catch by Carolina Panthers safety Vonn Bell (24) during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb (ankle) limited Monday

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb is listed as limited on the Monday practice report with an ankle injury.

Dallas did not practice Monday and the injury report is an approximation of participation. The Cowboys (7-3) welcome the Washington Commanders (4-7) on Thanksgiving Day, the first of consecutive Thursday games with Seattle (6-4) visiting Dallas on Nov. 30.

Lamb appeared to injure his ankle planting in the turf after catching a crossing route in the Cowboys’ win at Carolina on Sunday. Lamb secured the pass from quarterback Dak Prescott moving horizontally across the field between the numbers with 35 seconds left in the first half.

When he tried to get outside of pursuing defenders, Lamb landed awkwardly and was slow getting to his feet.

Lamb did not appear to be favoring either leg entering the locker room. He caught six passes for 38 yards and a touchdown for Dallas and has four-plus catches in every game this season.

Already over 1,000 yards in 2023, Lamb leads the Cowboys with 74 receptions, 1,013 yards and five touchdowns.

–Field Level Media