Dallas Cowboys: CeeDee Lamb will be a Top 10 WR in 2021
Just over a year ago, the Dallas Cowboys had the opportunity to draft the top WR in the 2020 NFL draft class when Oklahoma Sooners WR CeeDee Lamb miraculously slipped to the 17th overall pick. Dallas did not hesitate to make the selection. At the time of his drafting, Dallas Cowboys owner and GM, Jerry Jones, said:
"We never really thought we had a chance to get him. Every mock draft we did, we had him long gone.Jerry Jones"
There were moments last season where we got to see a glimpse of why Dallas was thrilled to draft Lamb. One that comes to mind is his touchdown catch against the Vikings. However, with QBs like Andy Dalton and Ben DiNucci throwing the football, Lamb did not get to maximize his potential. But, this upcoming season with Dak and the rest of the offense back healthy for the 2021-2022 season, Lamb has the potential to not only be WR1 in Dallas but a top 10 WR in the league.
The first sign towards Lamb making this jump is his physical profile. Lamb was listed at 6’2″ and 190 pounds coming into the league last year. The Draft Network’s Kyle Crabbs raves about Lamb’s physical traits coming out of Oklahoma:
"CeeDee Lamb projects as an alpha WR in the NFL. No, he doesn’t have elite top end speed, but Lamb checks damn near every other possible box. He’s smooth with his feet, possesses elite body control, vacuum hands and is a dynamic, angry runner after the catch. Experienced in manufactured touches, boundary and slot work, Lamb should step into an offense and be comfortable filling any possible role than a coach could give him. A top-shelf WR prospect and impact starter early on.–Kyle Crabbs, The Draft Network"
Lamb’s great physical traits were on clear display when Dak Prescott was throwing him the football.
When Lamb was added to an already dangerous Cowboy offense, the Cowboys expected Lamb to take their offense to another level. Clearly, 2020 did not go that way and the Dak Prescott injury killed those hopes. When Prescott was on the field though Lamb showed his potential.
In five games with Prescott at QB, Lamb accumulated 29 catches for 433 yards. Without Prescott for the other 11 games, Lamb only produced 45 catches for 502 yards. Lamb’s yards per catch without Prescott dropped almost four yards a catch. Lamb also had roughly two fewer catches per game without Dak under center.
With Prescott at QB, Lamb averaged 86.6 yards per game which would have accumulated to a season of 1,385 receiving yards. With that pace, Lamb would have been 5th in the NFL in receiving yards.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper gave CeeDee Lamb a pro comparison of De’Andre Hopkins. Player’s Profile listed Jerry Rice as Lamb’s best comparison.
Clearly, the ceiling for Lamb has been set extremely high coming into the NFL and he is fully capable of achieving it this season. Lamb accumulated 1,017 total yards even with only five games with Dak. With Prescott and the entire offensive line back, an extra game, and a talented WR group around him which will allow Lamb to receive single coverage, Lamb is capable of catching 100 passes, having over 1,500 receiving yards, and scoring 10 TDs.
Those types of numbers would surely allow Lamb to cement himself as a top 10 WR in the NFL.