AUGUST 16: Lamb and the Cowboys spoke over the phone on Thursday in another attempt to finalize an agreement, Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News reports. His update confirms the team’s best offer is under $33MM per season, but it would be enough to surpass A.J. Brown‘s new Eagles pact ($32MM AAV) for second in the receiver pecking order. Notably, Watkins adds that the 25-year-old’s exact asking price is still not known. With no firm deadline in place on a Prescott resolution, efforts to end Lamb’s holdout will no doubt continue in the immediate future.
AUGUST 15: As training camp continues, attention for the Cowboys is still aimed at negotiations on the Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb fronts. The latter is holding out as he seeks out a deal near the top of the receiver market, but Dallas has yet to reach that level on an extension offer. 
Lamb was previously connected to an asking price which would make him the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback, but that may not be necessary to get a deal over the finish line. Justin Jefferson set the market with a $35MM-per-year Vikings extension, and any Lamb accord will no doubt come close to that figure. However, Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports the Cowboys’ offers to date have yet to reach an AAV of $33MM.
The latest update on the matter pointed to a Lamb extension being closer than a Prescott one, but Hill’s report confirms there is still work to be done for either to be finalized. Lamb skipped offseason workouts and has accumulated daily fines (which can be waived) by remaining absent from training camp. Owner Jerry Jones‘ comments about Lamb’s ongoing absence drew a quick social media response from the All-Pro, but efforts are ongoing to work out an agreement.
“We’re conscientiously working to get something done,” Jones confirmed (via ESPN’s Lindsey Thiry). “I don’t want to say anything is progress, but it’s ongoing and that’s just the nature of what you have when you’ve got an agreement and you’re still working to get a new one.”
Jefferson’s pact includes nearly $89MM in guarantees, and a similar figure will likely be a target for Lamb on a long-term pact. The next-highest locked in figure for wideouts is Tyreek Hill‘s new Dolphins pact ($54MM), so Lamb will look to bridge that gap. The Oklahoma alum cemented his status as one of the league’s top receivers and the focal point of Dallas’ offense in 2023 by posting a franchise record-breaking 135-1,749-12 statline.
Of course, any monster investment made in Lamb needs to have a Prescott deal (which could top $55MM per year) and a future Micah Parsons extension in mind. The Cowboys’ 2024 hopes will rest heavily on the play of that trio, but uncertainty continues to loom over its members’ long-term futures. In Lamb’s case in particular, it will be interesting to see if traction is gained by subsequent Dallas offers in the coming days.
Dallas is going to implode this year and it’s gonna be fun to watch!
But, but…just $33M? How do they expect the guy to feed his family?
He would have signed for 33 if the cowboys weren’t idiots and got this done earlier.
Because it’s just that easy, right?
No because 32-33 million at the beginning of the offseason would have made him the highest paid WR in the NFL at that time. If the cowboys had gone to him before AJ Brown and Justin Jefferson signed and said hey Ceedee we want to make you the highest paid WR in NFL history, there is a strong likely hood he would have signed that deal. But now because the Cowboys waited and let Brown and Jefferson reset the market Ceedee is asking for 35+. Just like with Dak’s contract the first time around, just like with Zeek Elliot, Jerry is going to end up costing himself several million dollars because he is a terrible negotiator.
Amon-Ra
St.
Brown
Put some respect to the guys name and get it right!
He would have most likely held out to see what Jefferson and the others got like Aiyuk did. Just because you offer doesn’t mean they are going to take it. I’m sure the Cowboys are still going lower then 32-33 million at this point. Cowboys have a tough road in front of them. Somebody is going to walk in this situation.
Not the player’s job to balance the books.
Kind of wild how some rule changes have made WR’s into princes and RB’s into paupers…to say nothing of taking QB’s from kings and making them into gods.
Same thing will happen to WRs. People will start letting them go to FA and they will realize that they can get close production from the talent coming out of school for way less and teams will keep drafting and letting players go. It’s exactly what happened to RBs.
That’s part of it, but the rule changes to amp up the passing game have super average QB’s and WR’s putting up Madden numbers and even the slightly above average ones are being paid like future HOF’ers.
Can’t win when you invest too much into too few players. Having all these excellent players… Great problem to have, until it’s not. Let Dak go. Seems impossible to move on without him, but he’s going to destroy their cap. There will be cheaper options. He’s not elite.
Won nothing with them, best to pay them all big and still not win anything with them.
Riiight…cept other teams seem to have a fraction of the drama and issues the Cowboys have. The Lions resigned Goff, St. Brown, Peneii Sewell and Taylor Decker, the first 3 to market setting deals, and still have some of the most cap space in NFL and projected to have some of most space over next two years.
It IS possible to take care of your stars and still build a competitive roster.
Waiting until several players have reset each position’s market before signing someone, while being more concerned with winning PR battles versus NFL games, is why the Cowboys are in this situation
Except the Lions don’t have the cap space you think they do. Look at Over the Cap they go from third most in 24 to 14th in 25 and in the bottom half of the league 24th in 26. Yes teams will spend in the next years and eat up their space but Detroit is not sitting Indy after this year.
Sitting as comfy is what I meant to say.
Too much cap space for a non QB
Do the Cowboys enjoy an alternative salary cap? There’s no way they can hit top of market on all their “key players”. This is the same dead-end salary management nonsense which led to Ezekiel Elliot bleeding the team dry and then being point-blank cut.
Trade CeeDee (probably still get a first for him from a bottom-feeder franchise, though those salary demands might nix it). Trade Dak. Pick up one of the very good backup QB’s about to be dropped (bunch of teams doubled up on backups this year).
Reinvest the saved cap in the the rest of the roster, double-down on the draft (Dallas drafts very well, more picks work for them). Win at salary cap, trade away top-of-the-market stars at end of rookie contract. Make it clear that those who want to stay at what is a premier franchise (and I loathe the Cowboys) should plan for a home team discount and to be team players. Trade the divas away to the worst teams in the league for the highest draft picks to motivate the others to stay home.
One down and Two to Go!!!
U have to keep the most dangerous duo together in Dak and Ceedee!!!
Elite connection that dominated the league last year and will do the same this year…no defense can stop those Two…
Pay Both Jerry whatever they want and watch them lead ur Cowboys to the Super Bowl!!!