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Last week we looked at who our writers believe to be the RB1 in dynasty rookie drafts. This week, our writers provided a unanimous take on the current WR1 in dynasty rookie drafts: Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.
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If I’m in a dynasty rookie draft today, the first wide receiver I’m hoping to grab is CeeDee Lamb out of Oklahoma. At 6’2″ and 198 pounds, Lamb fits the mold of your prototypical WR1 in the NFL. He is a big, physical wide receiver with elite hands and strength. He tracks the ball very well and has excellent body control. If you’re looking for the next big pass-catcher who has a chance to be an NFL team’s true X wide receiver in the future, Lamb is your guy. He’s not nearly as fast as some of the other wide receivers in this class, but he is tough to bring down in the open field and just plays extremely physically all around. He isn’t afraid to take on contact and will be a weapon on the outside and in the red zone. Landing in Dallas, dynasty owners should temper their expectations a bit in year one, as Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup both saw over 100 targets and were top-24 wide receivers in PPR scoring last year. That said, the Cowboys will throw the ball enough that Lamb could end up out-producing Gallup. From a long-term perspective, Lamb is easily the wide receiver I’d want to own out of this 2020 rookie class.
– Aaron Schill (@aaron_schill)
CeeDee Lamb is the total package as far as wide receiver prospects go, and the clear alpha in this rookie class. The landing spot is not optimal in some ways, but Dallas should provide Lamb a path to relevance as a rookie and plenty of upside in the long term. Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup received 119 and 113 targets, respectively, in 2019, which is plenty to be a strong fantasy asset. While the Cowboys retained Blake Jarwin, Randall Cobb and Jason Witten each vacate 83 targets, leaving plenty for Lamb to command if the team runs more three-wide sets. The Cowboys seem like they are finally making it a priority to sign Dak Prescott to a long-term deal, which would be excellent news for Lamb. In college, he churned out 807 yards as a freshman, 1,158 yards as a sophomore, and 1,327 yards in his junior year before declaring early for the NFL Draft. While those numbers are juiced up thanks to supremely efficient quarterback play from Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, and Jalen Hurts, Lamb still posted a 38% Dominator Rating and a 25% target share in his junior season. His 21.4 yards per catch in 2019 are eye-popping, as he’s both a deep-ball threat and a YAC monster. Lamb posted adequate (above-average) athleticism to complete his sublime prospect profile, and he is going to feast in the NFL, hopefully sooner rather than later.
– Mark Leipold (@LeipoldNFL)
Lamb has elite talent and great stability, which makes him the easy choice for me when it comes to picking the best wide receiver in this class. The Cowboys just hired Mike McCarthy this offseason, so he should be there for the entirety of Lamb’s rookie contract. The Cowboys have signed both Amari Cooper and Ezekiel Elliott to long-term deals, and they have franchise tagged Dak Prescott. When you add in the impressive offensive line the Cowboys have assembled, this figures to be a great offense for years to come. Lamb has a chance to see the field immediately in all three-WR formations, and the Cowboys can move him all over the formation to exploit mismatches. He does not need to see a ton of targets to make an immediate fantasy impact. Lamb averaged 19.0 yards per catch for his career at Oklahoma, and he scored 25 touchdowns in his last two years. This is a great talent who landed in a great situation that should remain great for years to come, which is all a fantasy owner can ask for when using a high pick on a player. The first rookie receiver I would take in my dynasty drafts is CeeDee Lamb.
– Derek Lofland (@DerekLofland)
CeeDee Lamb should be the unanimous pick with the Dallas Cowboys looking to replace Jason Witten and Randall Cobb’s production from a season ago. Amari Cooper (seventh) and Michael Gallup (20th) finished in the top 20 for fantasy points in standard leagues last season while quarterback Dak Prescott placed second. With Prescott attempting a career-high 596 pass attempts in 2019 and now getting an improved receiving corps, Lamb fell into the perfect situation for a rookie WR to be a viable No. 2 or No. 3. Lamb has hands like glue, posting a 82.3% catch rate as a 19-year-old sophomore with Kyler Murray at Oklahoma. He combined for 32 touchdowns in three seasons, catching seven as a freshman with Baker Mayfield, 11 as a sophomore with Murray, and 14 as a junior with Jalen Hurts. He’s had fantastic quarterbacks throughout his entire collegiate career, and continuing that trend as a rookie will only help Lamb reach his full potential. He’s a home-run hitter and, just like Cooper, is able to take it to the house at any time. Jerry Jeudy and Michael Pittman should have stellar rookie campaigns, but Lamb should separate himself from the pack with Prescott under center.
– Vaughn Dalzell (@vaughndalzell)
CeeDee Lamb joins Dak Prescott and a Dallas Cowboys team that produced not one, but two 1,000-yard receivers in 2019. In dynasty, it’s always important to look beyond the first year or two to see what the player’s future situation could be like. Amari Cooper just signed a five-year deal with the Cowboys, but Dallas has a potential out on his contract after just two seasons. Michael Gallup’s four-year rookie deal is set to expire after the 2021 season, at which point he will become an unrestricted free agent. Randall Cobb, who caught 55 balls for 828 yards as the slot receiver, is now with the Houston Texans. Even with other positions of need, the Cowboys decided to invest more capital at the receiver position, selecting the former Oklahoma WR with the 17th overall pick. Lamb has drawn comparisons to Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins for his ability to create separation at the top of his routes. While he comes equipped with incredible ball skills, his run-after-the-catch ability makes him a special talent. In 2019, Lamb averaged 11 yards after the catch, per Pro Football Focus, which was fifth-most among all FBS wide receivers. With Cooper and Gallup on the outside, Lamb figures to immediately enter Dallas’s slot role, a position where he excelled at Oklahoma. Last season, Lamb led the nation with 6.1 yards per route run and scored seven of his 14 TDs when lined up as the slot receiver. He will likely face less press coverage lined up inside, which will give him more space to operate and maximize his yards after the catch, which he was great at doing in college. Pair his ability with the rise of his new quarterback Dak Prescott, who went from QB10 in 2018 to QB2 in 2019, and the future sets up nicely for Lamb to be a stud WR for many years to come.
– Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler)
Ceedee Lamb has the skill set to become a WR1 in the NFL. He has top-notch run-after-the-catch skills and elite playmaking ability. The situation Lamb lands in isn’t the greatest from a fantasy perspective, as he will compete with Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup for targets. With the loss of Randall Cobb and Jason Witten, there are 166 vacated targets to go around. If Dallas is as pass-happy as it was last year, Lamb has the upside to become the focal point of the offense. The Cowboys will look to lock up Dak Prescott long term, which only bodes well for Lamb’s future success. Despite having to share targets with Cooper and Gallup, there should be enough opportunity in this offense to produce. Both Cooper and Gallup finished in the top 20 in points among all wide receivers in standard leagues in 2019. The 21-year-old hauled in 62 catches for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns across 13 games in his junior year for Oklahoma. Lamb has a bright future and should be the number one wideout off the boards in dynasty drafts.
– Brad Camara (@beerad30)
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