Dallas Cowboys’ CeeDee Lamb at a critical point in his career

Cooper Rush dropped back in the second quarter of a defensive battle against the New York Giants on Monday Night Football. With points coming at a premium for the Dallas Cowboys, Rush finds CeeDee Lamb and lets it rip. You couldn’t put the ball in a better spot, right between the eights on Lamb’s jersey.

It could have been a turning point. In the game and in Lamb’s career. It would and will be entirely up to him on which way fate would turn.

We all know what happened then. Another drop from the Cowboys top Wide Receiver. This one felt big. It’s been a struggle in Lamb’s first two seasons, but this one seemed to leave a more significant sting. It wasn’t longer in the game that Lamb saw a tipped pass fall right into his hands and then fall right to the ground once again. Another drop.

As a matter of fact, CeeDee Lamb was credited with three drops against the Giants. If eight drops as a rookie and eight drops in 2021 were an issue then you could imagine three drops in three games, per PFR, are a dire concern. Lamb also had a three drop performance against the Giants in December of 2021.

CeeDee Lamb is at critical point in his Dallas Cowboys career. What direction he turns could dictate his future

That wasn’t the end of the worries for Lamb. He later found himself one on one down the middle of the field Monday night with Cooper Rush airing it out. The ball was slightly underthrown, but Lamb attempts to catch the pass over his shoulder, making it entirely too easy for the Giants defender to collect a PBU.

The last two notable 88’s would’ve never taken such an approach. Dez high points and fights for that pall. And The Playmaker goes up and fights for that ball.

Lamb didn’t. Not for that ball, at least.

FOLLOWING THE 2022 SEASON CEEDEE LAMB BECOMES ELIGIBLE FOR A NEW CONTRACT. THE DALLAS COWBOYS MAY BELIEVE HE STILL HAS MORE TO PROVE.

So how close, exactly, is Lamb from being a legitimate No. 1 receiver? Perhaps the drive extending fourth down catch and one handed corner endzone catch can be a springboard to push Lamb to the next level for the Dallas Cowboys. It’s badly needed for him and his team.

For as poor as the first three quarters were for the Dallas Cowboys most hopeful pass catcher, Lamb put together a brilliant drive that consisted of four catches for 48 yards and the highlight touchdown. Can that type of production and gutsy performance become consistent? That’s the big question for Lamb.

Granted, the Dallas Cowboys WR has had clutch moments before. He walked off with a big touchdown in OT against the Patriots last season. He pulled in over 900 yards as a rookie with highly questionable and ever changing quarterback play. But that’s the frustrating part of CeeDee Lamb. Everyone knows the ability is there.

Lamb doesn’t have to haul in four catches and score every drive, by any means, but rather a drive like that should be the icing on the cake of a great game. It shouldn’t be saving him from a nightmare.

So where does CeeDee Lamb go from here? There seem to be three paths.

Path A – Lamb simply continues down the path of producing, but with inconsistencies.

Path B – He allows the drops to get to him, and spirals downward. This seems the least likely option.

Path C – Lamb catapults into the player the Dallas Cowboys have always believed he could be.

In year three of his career it’s certainly reasonable to expect Lamb to approach Path C. Unfortunately we don’t quite have the evidence to confidently say “that’s about to happen.”

Perhaps, however, his fourth quarter against the Giants has hit true arrival. It’ll be up to only Lamb alone to be off the path of inconsistency and find superstardom.

We can start collecting pieces to the answer as soon as Sunday when the Dallas Cowboys face the Washington Commanders at Noon.