‘Get your popcorn ready.’ Dallas Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb sets expectations for Year 2
In anticipation of his enormous talent and potential, the Dallas Cowboys gave former Oklahoma star receiver CeeDee Lamb the legacy No. 88 jersey, made famous by the team’s Hall of Famers Drew Pearson and Michael Irvin, upon his arrival as a rookie last season.
But as Lamb prepares for second year, he is parroting a message made famous by another Hall of Fame receiver who donned a Cowboys uniform.
“Get your popcorn ready” adorned a bracelet worn by Lamb as he spoke to the media after OTA practice on Thursday.
Lamb said it was inspired by Terrell Owens, who used it as his catch phrase.
It also may as well be the theme of the jump he and the Cowboys expect him to make in Year 2.
“You saw it today,” Lamb said with that million dollar smile of his.
What everyone saw on Friday was Lamb making a number of plays in practice but none better than a leap over cornerback Anthony Brown to catch a deep ball from quarterback Dak Prescott.
“I mean, as a typical receiver I feel like if the ball is in the air 50/50, the receiver is feeling like it’s 100/0 always,” Lamb said. “I’m looking to be more aggressive. Any time I see the ball in the air, I believe it is mine.”
The NFL may be Lamb’s to own if he takes the jump he hopes to make in 2021.
He was more than solid as a rookie in 2020, catching 74 passes for 935 yards and five touchdowns. The receptions broke a 55-year-old rookie record held by Hall of Famer Bob Hayes. The yards were the second most by a Cowboys rookie.
There is no question that the talent and potential for Hall of Fame greatness is there, which is why the Cowboys fell all over themselves when they got the opportunity to select him with the 17th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
But because he did not have the benefit of playing with Prescott for most of the season or the proper offseason program, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the excitement for what his ceiling could be is high.
“I feel like the jump is definitely there,” Lamb said. “It’s all in the future to gauge it. I am excited about the future. I can’t wait for the season.”
Lamb said he actually feels like a rookie going through OTA’s for the first time and he says it has been helpful in gaining a better understanding of the plays, routes, coverages and the offense.
He studies more as well.
And then there is the matter of being in the program for a full season and working with strength coach Harold Nash.
“It has definitely been helpful for me because I feel stronger, faster and a bit more explosive,” Lamb said. “The results are going to show itself come the season.”
According to coach Mike McCarthy and evidenced by the big catch over Brown in practice Thursday, the results are already showing with Lamb. The team is expanding his package, having him learn all four receiver positions after playing primarily in the slot as a rookie.
“I think CeeDee is an excellent example of what you are looking for in your second-year player,” McCarthy said. “The second-year player benefits the most in the full offseason program. They make the second-year jump. He is very comfortable, very natural. CeeDee is definitely making that move you like to see in your second-year players.”
And then there is the matter of playing with Prescott again and joining Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup in a receiver corps that can “take the top off” of any defense in the league, he says.
Lamb truly can’t wait for the season to begin and, like Owens before him, he wants you to get your popcorn ready.
But he hasn’t forgotten his 88 legacy roots. That will forever be his main inspiration.
“The guys that have worn it before me have been excellent at what they’ve done, at their craft from their rookie year to their time leaving,” Lamb said. “And that’s kind of the foundation I’m trying to continue to lay down here. So for as long as I’m here, I’m definitely looking to give it my all.
“Wearing that 88 jersey is definitely a reminder every day. Every time I look down, I see that jersey number and just think about the legacy.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2021 at 5:30 PM.
