Getty Image / Perry Knotts
Contracts for the NFL’s top wide receivers are seemingly ballooning every day. and the Minnesota Vikings’ Justin Jefferson just set a new record at the position with a 4-year deal worth $140 million on Monday. Dallas Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb is next in line for a megadeal at wide receiver.
He knows that, and so do the Cowboys. That’s why it shouldn’t surprise anyone that CeeDee Lamb elected to take a $100k fine for not showing up to minicamp this week as he tries to get leverage for a new contract.
CeeDee eats $100k by missing minicamp. CeeDee will make $950k per week on his current deal, and his next deal will guarantee him $100+ million. Of course he ain’t there.
— David Helman (@davidhelman_) June 4, 2024
Lamb is set to make a little less than $18 million next year in the final year of his rookie deal after being taken in the first round in 2020. But, with no guaranteed money after this year and the prospect of the Cowboys placing him on the Franchise Tag next year if an extension doesn’t get done, he wants to get a deal done. Players dislike playing on the Franchise Tag due to the lack of long-term stability.
While most don’t expect CeeDee Lamb’s contract to match Justin Jefferson’s, it’s going to get pretty close. The Oklahoma product is really coming into his own, and had a monster year last year. He caught 135 passes for 1,749 yards and twelve touchdowns last year. In totality, it was one of the best seasons for a wide receiver in NFL history. He also set franchise records for yards and catches.
CeeDee Lamb will play the entire 2024 NFL Season at just 25 years old, too, and he’s a player that Jerry Jones has to lock up long-term. It seems like the future of the franchise will be built around Lamb on offense and Micah Parsons, who will need an extension of his own soon, on defense.
What kind of deal would CeeDee Lamb realistically get? I think a good starting point would be Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who recently signed a 4-year, $120 million deal with $77 million guaranteed. Both are 25-years-old, and it seems like Lamb’s deal will end up right around there.
But, in order to get a deal like that, he has to show that he’s willing to hold out this season in order to force Dallas’s hand. This is a big first step towards gaining some leverage, considering he has no realistic path to unrestricted free agency next year.