Cowboys' minicamp biggest storylines: CeeDee Lamb's contract situation in spotlight (2024)

While answering questions about CeeDee Lamb’s contract situation six weeks ago, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he wanted to see “more leaves fall” and “more cards played.”

Jones was indirectly referring to the wide receiver market. The biggest card was played Monday morning as the Minnesota Vikings and star wide receiver Justin Jefferson reached an agreement on a four-year deal for $140 million, with $110 million guaranteed.

The parameters have now been officially set for Lamb and the Cowboys. Lamb’s production over the last four seasons has been comparable to Jefferson’s. Both were drafted in the first round in 2020. Both have been to three Pro Bowls. Jefferson holds the advantage of being named All-Pro three times to Lamb’s two. Jefferson also has more receiving yards (5,899 to 5,145) in six fewer games. But Lamb has scored more touchdowns, 35 to 31.

“I can’t give you no numbers right now,” Lamb said in February on Micah Parsons’ Bleacher Report podcast when talking about his next contract, “but I’ll tell you this, one of the top paid receivers for sure, if not the (highest-paid WR). That’s always the goal.”

During that same interview Lamb said the goal was to remain a Cowboy for his entire career, saying: “Absolutely. There’s no secret about that.”

Contract talks could pick up now that the Jefferson deal resets the market. Lamb might not get as much as Jefferson, but his next deal will likely be in that neighborhood.

The Cowboys are facing a situation where they could be paying Dak Prescott $55 million to $60 million per season while also paying Lamb around $35 million and Micah Parsons around $35 million per season. That’s roughly $125 million per year for three players. The NFL salary cap is expected to continue increasing, but for this season, it’s set at $255.4 million per team.

Of those three players, Lamb seems like the best bet to get his next deal done first.

Lamb was not in attendance during organized team activities. Mandatory minicamp begins this week at The Star and Lamb is not expected to attend that part of the offseason program, either. Whether he’s there or not, his contract situation represents one of the team’s top storylines.

Here are some other key topics to monitor this week as Dallas holds its minicamp on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Micah Parsons

The star pass rusher also did not attend OTAs. With two years remaining on his rookie contract, Parsons is expected to be in attendance for minicamp. Making changes under new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, the Cowboys were hoping Parsons would attend OTAs.

“I think any time you have a chance to be together it’s an opportunity to improve,” Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said last week, “whether it’s in the mental realm, the physical realm, which is limited obviously for this time of year, but also the emotional connection and so forth. But it’s a long year. Training camp is really the heightened focus for all of that. But, yeah, it’s definitely an opportunity that’s been missed.”

If Parsons is in attendance, what will he do? McCarthy has stayed in touch throughout the offseason and said Parsons “looks to be in really good shape.”

Trey Lance

He looked comfortable working with the second-team offense during OTAs. How will that carry over into minicamp practices?

“You talk about a young quarterback that comes into a new system, you have the learning curve,” McCarthy said of Lance last week. “But now, he’s starting to get the timing with the routes, and he’s throwing to a lot of new players too, so there are always thresholds and reps that go into that, too. He’s close to being a master of the system. He has a very high understanding. He’s communicating very well. He looks more and more comfortable. He just needs as many reps as he can.”

The Cowboys will give Lance every opportunity to win the backup QB job. That determination will likely come down to the preseason games, where Lance will likely get the most reps of any quarterback on the roster. But until then, he’ll be one of the most monitored players on the roster.

Any role changes?

It’s clear that the Cowboys are looking for ways to get Deuce Vaughn more involved in the offense. The second-year running back was getting some reps at slot receiver during OTAs. He said he was approached about getting more work there at the end of last season. Vaughn said he has been studying a lot of former Cowboys slot receiver Cole Beasley.

“It’s just that value aspect, being able to do a multitude of things,” Vaughn said. “Bettering my game and finding a way to be on the field and contribute, that’s the biggest thing for myself.”

A lot of eyes have been on rookie offensive linemen Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe. They have been working with the second team, which isn’t a surprise. The coaching staff is going to make them earn starting spots. Guyton will likely be Dallas’ starting left tackle and Beebe has a good opportunity to win the starting center job. The first-team offensive line during OTAs was usually Chuma Edoga at left tackle, Tyler Smith at left guard, Brock Hoffman at center, T.J. Bass at right guard and Terence Steele at right tackle. All-Pro right guard Zack Martin was in attendance but was not taking part in drills on the days with media availability.

“I’m just telling him to be confident,” Smith said of his advice for Guyton. “His tools are outrageous. The dude is long. The dude is athletic. He has so many gifts. Right now, I’m just trying to give him the cheat codes.”

Who is going to emerge as the No. 4 pass catcher?

It’ll be difficult to know that after only watching OTAs and minicamp, but it is debatable at this point. Lamb, WR Brandin Cooks and TE Jake Ferguson will likely be the team’s top three pass catchers. They finished as the top three last season in targets and receiving yards. Numbers 4 and 5 on the list were WR Michael Gallup and RB Tony Pollard. Both are gone. A running back-by-committee approach with three or more backs makes it unlikely that one of them will finish in that group this season.

Third-year wide receiver Jalen Tolbert has to be one of the favorites. KaVontae Turpin will also be in that conversation.

“This is my second year in the offense, so I feel like I’m a veteran in the offense now,” Turpin said. “I’m just going out there and playing fast now. I don’t have to think too much. Basically just read the defense and go play football.”

There are a lot of questions with the rest of the wide receivers and tight ends. Next up at WR is probably Jalen Brooks, a seventh-round pick in 2023, and then Ryan Flournoy, a sixth-round pick this year. Next up at tight end should be Luke Schoonmaker, a second-round pick in 2023, but he has struggled to stay healthy.

(Top photo: Michael Owens / Getty Images)

Jon Machota is a staff writer covering the Dallas Cowboys for The Athletic. He previously covered the Cowboys for The Dallas Morning News. He's a Detroit native and graduate of Wayne State University. Follow Jon on Twitter @jonmachota