Dallas Cowboys’ highest-paid players are playing like they’re overpaid and overrated | Opinion
The Dallas Cowboys are committed to paying the “Triplets” of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Trevon Diggs a combined sum of around $364 million.
That’s not Canadian dollars, pesos or Bitcoin.
Seven games into this NFL season, the Cowboys are not average and the play of their highest-paid, and “best” players, is beyond a concern.
Owner Jerry Jones verbally flexing at the local radio hosts apparently didn’t do the trick.
On Sunday night in Santa Clara, the Cowboys came off their bye week and instead of looking “refreshed” they looked not that much different than their previous six games. Bad. Over-matched. Done.
After a decent first half, the Cowboys were blown out in the third quarter and lost 30-24 against a badly hurt 49ers team. The 49ers scored 21 points in the third quarter while the Cowboys offense racked up 16 yards in the same frame. The Cowboys offense went more than 22 minutes without a first down.
The Cowboys did as they have done in the past in these types of games; they scored a couple of fourth-quarter touchdowns to give themselves a chance, and then didn’t do enough to win. They will sell how well they moved the ball in the fourth quarter, but dismiss the fact that the production came when the score was out of hand.
It’s much easier to move the ball when the defense is doing everything it can to keep the clock ticking toward 00:00.
The Cowboys are 3-4, and envisioning a scenario where they reach .500 and then climb up the standings toward the playoffs is as realistic as Jerry selling the team by Wednesday.
The Cowboys have some key injuries, but this is a meh team that’s not improving.
This isn’t all about the money. In this case, however, it has to at least be a little about the money.
Since the Cowboys forked over the massive respective contracts for cornerback Trevon Diggs, quarterback Dak Prescott and receiver CeeDee Lamb, their ROI has been the guy who buys the Cybertruck that blows up after driving to pick up groceries.
The Cowboys had no choice; they had to pay all three. And all three would have cleaned up as free agents.
Nonetheless, the five-year, $97 million deal they gave Diggs, which includes $33 million guaranteed, looks terrible.
The four-year, $136 million contract they gave Lamb, which includes an $80 million signing bonus, looks a little better than terrible.
And the $240 million extension they gave Dak, which features $231 million in guarantees, is franchise-altering in the wrong direction.
Diggs has become a focal point of opposing offenses as they all collectively relentlessly attack his unwillingness to tackle. He makes Deion Sanders look like Ronnie Lott.
Even before Diggs suffered a season-ending ACL injury on Sept. 22 of 2023, he was never a physical player. Since he’s returned from that injury, he looks like he would rather play 7-on-7 football. At this point, he’s stealing money.
Lamb scored two touchdowns on Sunday night, but they came after the team fell behind 27-10 in the middle of the fourth quarter. This is the home run hitter who hits the ninth inning home run to cut his team’s deficit to 11-2.
Lamb had more than 120 yards receiving on Sunday night, but take a closer look when most of that production came. The majority of these yards, and touchdowns, came too late to make the necessary difference.
Former Cowboys-turned-broadcasters, Troy Aikman and Jason Garrett, took turns this week blistering Lamb’s start to this season. Aikman and Garrett are good friends; you can bet that their criticism and observations of Lamb over coffee, and texts, had more teeth than the versions they made public.
Those guys, especially Garrett, are not going to say this if they didn’t mean it, and had video evidence to back it up.
Which brings us to the quarterback.
Since he agreed to the contract that made him the NFL’s highest paid player shortly before the season opener at Cleveland in Week 1, Dak has not looked like the man who was a finalist for the NFL’s MVP award last season.
On Sunday night, Dak threw two interceptions. That is the fourth time in seven games this season he’s thrown two picks.
Early in the third quarter, Dak’s pass intended for Lamb near the sidelines is one of those that analytic experts gauged had “An approximately 00.0000000000001 percent chance of being completed.” Dak can’t throw that ball.
With the team down six in the final minutes, Dak threw a perfect pass down the left sideline that would have been a 50-plus yard reception to KaVontae Turpin. Had Turpin caught the ball.
It’s been that type of season for Prescott, who has not looked like himself here in 2024. It does not help he has no running game, and his offensive line has been average. Something is wrong with him, and he’s not apt to say what it is.
The Cowboys are 3-4, and their highest-paid players are not their best players. It’s not about the money, but it’s a little bit about the money.
This story was originally published October 27, 2024 at 10:55 PM.
