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In a salary cap sport, the money can't go to everyone on an NFL team.
But the Dallas Cowboys have two stars who it would be almost indefensible for the team to let go (one of those may be controversial).
The Cowboys went 12-5 for a third season in a row but were upset in the wild-card round of the playoffs to the up-and-coming Green Bay Packers.
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CeeDee Lamb, right, celebrates with Dallas Cowboys teammate Dak Prescott after Lamb scored a 92-yard touchdown during the first quarter against the Detroit Lions in Arlington, Texas, on Dec. 30, 2023. (Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
However, throughout the season, Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb were perhaps the best quarterback-receiver tandem in the NFL.
Prescott was in the MVP running throughout the season (he finished second) while leading the NFL with 36 touchdowns. His counterpart led the NFL with 135 receptions, and his 1,749 yards (second-most) and 12 touchdowns (third-most) were career-highs en route to a third-place finish in the Offensive Player of the Year vote.
Oh, and the two connected for a 92-yard touchdown during the season, the longest pass of the season.
Lamb is able to be franchise-tagged after this season, but Prescott is set to hit the free agent market. Opinions seem rather split on Prescott as he enters his ninth NFL season with just a 2-5 record in the playoffs.
Lamb, however, is entering his fifth year and is clearly on the rise after his best season.
Their teammate in Brandin Cooks said this month that Lamb deserves to be the highest-paid receiver in the NFL, and he explained why in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.
Wide receiver Brandin Cooks of the Dallas Cowboys celebrates with fans after the game against the Detroit Lions in Arlington, Texas, on Dec. 30, 2023. (Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
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"The kid’s a freak. What can’t he do? He can play all around the field, inside, outside, his playmaking ability. What’s great is he’s a receiver, but when he gets the ball in his hand, he’s like a running back," Cooks said.
Amon-Ra St. Brown of the Detroit Lions and A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles each received extensions in which they will make north of $30 million in annual average value, which Cooks said is great news for his teammate.
"They’re all great players, and they all deserve what they got. But I think when you sit back and you root for someone in the way I root for CeeDee to be able to get what he’s deserved, I’m just smiling because I’m like, ‘This guy’s going to break the bank,’" he said. "He deserves it, and I tell you, when it happens, it won’t be one of those situations, like, he relaxes. That’s the difference. He loves this game so much, all he’s going to do is continue to get better and produce and bring value to the Cowboys, for sure."
Of course, that affects Prescott. And again, his time may be running out, considering Dallas' lack of postseason success (which began long before him, anyway).
But Cooks says the front office needs to find a way to make it work to keep them for the long haul.
Brandin Cooks celebrates a touchdown with Dallas Cowboys teammate Dak Prescott during the second quarter against the Washington Commanders in Arlington, Texas, on Nov. 23, 2023. (Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
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"He deserves it as well. It’s one of those things you look back as a player, that quarterback-receiver relationship is so important, the way that he leads the men in the locker room, the way that he continues to get better …" Cooks said of his quarterback. "All another offseason is going to do is make him that [much] better because he’s more comfortable. That’s another guy that’s simply going to continue to get better. He’s one of the best in the league for a reason, and that’s going to stay that way for a long time."
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