Dallas Cowboys: PFF not optimistic about CeeDee Lamb

To just about everyone in Cowboys Nation, it’s CeeDee Lamb szn this year. The Dallas Cowboys top selection from 2020 has been a daily highlight reel in training camp and looks to carry that over into the season, reminding everyone why he was widely considered the top WR in last year’s draft.

But not everyone is drinking the CeeDee Kool-Aid. Pro Football Focus recently listed the second year receiver as an over-drafted player in their fantasy football projections. They think he’s going far sooner than his expected output warrants.

Not everyone is optimistic about CeeDee Lambs second season with the Dallas Cowboys.

In all fairness, their projections are based on fantasy football production and not actual impact on the field. While both are often related, one does not inherently come with the other. Either way, Dallas Cowboys fans are expecting a monster season from Lamb, and to think the masters at prognostication don’t share the same views is a little alarming, to say the least.

Why?

The simple question to ask is “why?” Do they not think CeeDee is good? Are they concerned about Dak Prescott’s health? Are they worried about the Cowboys offense?

None of those really. In fact, they go out of their way to say CeeDee has the talent to be a top-5 WR in the NFL. The reason they cite is essentially the market share. With Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup also demanding their fair share of receptions, not to mention Ezekiel Elliott, Dalton Schultz, and Blake Jarwin’s opportunities, there’s not enough balls to go around.

This explains why their top WR is Calvin Ridley of all people. Not because he’s the most talented but because Julio Jones is now gone and Ridley’s going to see a ton of balls going his way.

Fair?

It certainly makes sense. We all know there’s only one ball and everyone has to share in their opportunities. I just think CeeDee’s going to get a bigger market share than expected. With Amari Cooper demanding the bulk of the defenses’ attention this season, Lamb and Gallup should see some prime opportunities.

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While Lamb suffered from some drops last season, those are out of character and should be considered an anomaly. Lamb was arguably the most efficient deep ball receiver in the NFL last year (highest deep ball catch rate in NFL). In college he was targeted 58 times deep and didn’t have a single drop. As he’s shown everyone this summer – he’s a vacuum for the ball.

We’ll see how this all shakes out. PFF is pretty sound in their methodology so I’m hesitant to critique. But I have a feeling CeeDee is going to become Dak’s favorite target this year and the whole league is going to be reminded of their mistake of letting him fall to 17 in that infamous 2020 NFL Draft.

What do you think Dallas Cowboys fans? Is CeeDee Lamb going to explode or will he be limited because of the great playmakers around him?