CeeDee Lamb was viewed as a top-three wide receiver prospect coming into the 2020 NFL Draft. He along with Henry Ruggs III and Jerry Jeudy made up the premier receivers in a year crowded with wideout talent. As fate would have it, Lamb was the third receiver selected. The Dallas Cowboys chose him with the 17th overall pick in the draft. The pick came as somewhat of a surprise, but Cowboys fans were happy to land a top offensive prospect. The young rookie is in a crowded receiver group this year, but he’s got a lot of upside for fantasy football fans to consider.
CeeDee Lamb Fantasy Football Outlook for 2020
College Career
CeeDee Lamb spent his collegiate football years at Oklahoma. In Lamb’s three seasons, he caught passes from Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, and Jalen Hurts. Both Mayfield and Murray were Heisman Trophy winners, and Hurts is joining the other two signal-callers in the league this year after being selected by the Philadelphia Eagles.
As a member of the Sooners, Lamb fit right into the prolific offense from the start. He caught 46 passes for 807 yards and seven touchdowns in his freshman season. In Lamb’s sophomore campaign, he totaled 65 receptions for 1,158 yards and 11 touchdowns. Lamb’s junior season saw him record 62 receptions for 1,327 and 14 touchdowns. In addition to his duties as a receiver, Lamb also handled punt returns in all three of his collegiate years. He returned 54 punts in three seasons and averaged 8.8 yards.
Lamb’s stellar play garnered accolades for his sophomore and junior seasons. In 2018, Lamb was on the Second-team All-Big 12. In the 2019 season, he was selected to the First-team All-Big 12, and he was a Consensus All American.
2020 Preview
The 6’2″, 198-pound rookie enters a Cowboys offense that is already loaded with talent. He’ll start out as the number three receiver on the team. Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup are the veteran wideouts on the team and for good reason. Both players accounted for over 1,000 receiving yards in the 2019 season. Cooper and Gallup will be “X” and “Z” receivers on the outside. Lamb will start his career in the slot. However, he shouldn’t be overlooked just because he is the third man on the depth chart.
Lamb has reportedly already started to gain rapport with Dak Prescott. Second-year running back Tony Pollard mentioned that Lamb was “worth the hype” when asked about the youngster. Lamb has the potential to be a number one receiver, and though he’ll start out in the slot, don’t be surprised to see him move around in the lineup as the season progresses. It’ll be interesting to see just how close the team can get to having three receivers eclipse 1,000 yards. If Prescott and Lamb continue to build chemistry, the rookie should have no problem gaining over 700 receiving yards, if not pushing for more.
CeeDee Lamb Average Draft Position
As of this posting, Fantasy Pros has Lamb going off the board with the 92nd overall selection in standard formats. This makes him the WR37 and places him in the same range as wideouts such as Brandin Cooks, Deebo Samuel, and Marvin Jones. At this point in your fantasy draft, it’s the beginning of round nine, and depending on your strategy, this could be anywhere from your third to your fifth wide receiver. Lamb would be a great pick here if you’re looking for upside. Cooks is talented, but may not provide security due to his injury history. Jones would be a safe pick here. He had 779 receiving yards last season and nine touchdowns in 13 games. Samuel had a promising rookie campaign with over 802 receiving yards in 2019.
As mentioned above, Lamb is a solid pick at his current ADP due to his upside. He’ll likely be a player to have on your bench in Week 1, but he could certainly work his way into the flex spot as the season progresses.
