Cowboys Decline 3 Trade Offers to Draft 'Alpha' WR CeeDee Lamb
FRISCO - In all of their in-house mock drafts, CeeDee Lamb never fell to the Dallas Cowboys at Pick No. 17, and in all their wildest dreams, the sixth-rated player on their board was never going to fall that late, either.
But when it happened in Thursday's NFL Draft, the Cowboys were prepared to say both "yes'' and "no.''
"Yes'' to choosing the higher-rated wide receiver Lamb over the coveted pass-rusher K'Lavon Chaisson, and "no'' to the trade offers that came pouring in while Dallas was on the clock, teams drafting later who wished to jump up to 17.
"Lamb prevailed," said yachting owner Jerry Jones, revealing that the Cowboys declined a trio of trade-down offers. "We just didn't want to miss him. Those trades ultimately are supposed to add another player to be valuable, but we couldn't trump him.''
The 6-1, 195-pound Lamb was thought to be one of the handful of elite receivers available, along with Henry Ruggs III (Las Vegas Raiders, No. 12) and Jerry Jeudy (Denver Broncos, No. 15). But other positions occupied the thoughts of other teams ahead of Dallas, leaving the Cowboys to decide for themselves the classic "Need vs. Talent'' debate.
“The right thing to do,'' COO Stephen Jones, "is always pick the best football player.''
Sure, except ... they don't.
The Cowboys entered the first round thinking defense ... but now they will enter Friday's second round doing so.
The Cowboys would've celebrated the promise of Chaisson ... but now they celebrate the relatively proven nature of Lamb, who brings to Dallas comparisons in the range of "he's like Chad Johnson'' to he's like "DeAndre Hopkins.''
Dallas/ lack of full preparedness on Lamb, if you will, was clear when he noted that he'd only engaged in one conversation with the Cowboys during the pre-draft process, way back at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
"I didn't know they'd take me, (and) when I saw my phone, it honestly surprised me," said Lamb, whose given name is Cedarian. "It was everything I dreamed of on that phone call."
While the Cowboys on one level figure out a jersey assignment (Lamb mentioned No. 10 but Jerry mentioned the vaunted No. 88), they on another level get to figure out how to assemble all of this offensive talent in a way that figures to help them win the inevitable high-scoring games. Huge capital is invested in the offensive line, in the running back, now in the receiving corps and soon with QB Dak Prescott.
"You can't have enough playmakers," said new coach Mike McCarthy after his first-ever Cowboys draft experience. "Any time you can add a playmaker to your offense, it creates more opportunities for everybody else. ... "He's a dynamic football player. He carries that alpha status.''
