PHILADELPHIA — No Dallas Cowboys player had a better training camp than CeeDee Lamb. He probably didn’t drop three passes the entire four weeks the team was in Oxnard, Calif.
That’s why it was so stunning to see him come up short multiple times in key moments Thursday night at Lincoln Financial Field.
Lamb officially had three drops and arguably had a fourth on a diving attempt that he normally would haul in seven out of 10 times. He had only six drops all of last season.
“That’s terrible,” Lamb said following Dallas’ 24-20 season-opening loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. “Honestly, I can’t point no fingers at nobody else. I take full accountability and everything else that comes with it. For me as a player, I pray for moments like that for the ball to come my way. Obviously for me to not come up with it, that stings a little bit. But I will tell you, if you think I’m not coming back (10) times harder than this, you got another thing coming.”
Lamb, like most Cowboys starters, didn’t play in the preseason, so Thursday was his first live game action since the final game of the 2024 season on Jan. 5.
“That ain’t got nothing to do with what’s going on right now,” he said while standing in the middle of the visiting locker room. “I need to catch the damn ball.”
Dak Prescott: “A lot of accountability was taken in the locker room, but we’re definitely process oriented and as (Brian Schottenheimer) said, we continue to compete and play physical like that, we’re going to be proud of the team that we can put together, each and every week.… pic.twitter.com/IJ8I4Ha0ES
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 5, 2025
Lamb was targeted a game-high 13 times, finishing with seven catches for 110 yards. No other Cowboys wide receiver was targeted more than four times.
“Don’t worry about CeeDee Lamb,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “CeeDee’s going to be fine. What a great player. This was a team defeat and we own that.”
The most critical drops came on Dallas’ final possession. With 2:47 to play and the Cowboys at their own 38, Prescott looked deep for his No. 1 wide receiver. The ball was well-placed, hitting Lamb in stride at the Philadelphia 25. But he bobbled it at the 20 and it was nearly intercepted.
On the next play, it was evident from Lamb’s body language that the drop was still bothering him.
Coming out of the two-minute warning, facing fourth-and-3, Prescott again looked to Lamb. This time up the left sideline. The ball was further out in front than the previous target. The four-time Pro Bowler dove forward near Philadelphia’s 25. The ball hit him in both hands but he failed to pull it into his body before hitting the ground.
Lamb sat with his head in his hands for several seconds, long enough that he was required to go to the medical tent to be checked out. He said after the game that he was fine.
“It wasn’t just those plays,” Prescott said. “There’s throws out there that I want back, but it’s Game 1 and he’s a guy that makes those plays. He’s going to make those plays. We’re not going to get down on him. I’m not going to lose confidence by any means and he will make those plays.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones had similar confidence when he was asked about Lamb’s performance.
“If we get the ball in that direction and playing with that kind of effort,” Jones said, “we’re going to win a lot of games.”
Cowboys with a turnover on downs
DALvsPHI on NBC
Stream on @NFLPlus + Peacock pic.twitter.com/1Qjf2y9F1h— NFL (@NFL) September 5, 2025
Lamb said each drop stung, but noted that the ones down the stretch hurt him most.
“God has a mysterious way of humbling folks,” he said. “And I did come in with a little bit of a chip on my shoulder, but it’s a lesson we all learned. I deserve everything that comes with it.”
It was an odd game in that the Cowboys’ offense came out on fire, scoring touchdowns on its first two drives and all 20 points on its first four. The Eagles got off to a similar start, scoring touchdowns on their first three drives but not another point on their final four.
“We had a couple stretches where we were looking like the team that we’re supposed to,” Lamb said. “And then we ended up turning the ball over, having drops. For example, mine, all of them. I just feel like we have so much more room for improvement and we can definitely be the team that we want to be, just put our heads down and continue to work.”
Early in training camp, Lamb said his goal over the month that followed was simple: “Catch everything.” And he pretty much did just that. It was clear that he and Prescott picked right up where they left off during the 2024 season. Lamb was playing with a lot of confidence. At one point he was asked which Cowboys defensive backs had given him hell in camp.
“Honestly, none of them,” he responded. “They haven’t given me hell. But I will say, it is great competing with these guys.”
It might have come off sounding cocky, but he was correct. None of the defensive backs were giving him trouble. Pretty similar to Thursday night. The difference was that he didn’t finish all of those catches the way he did in southern California.
There’s a lot of respect for Lamb in the locker room. He was recently voted a team captain by his peers. There’s no doubting his work ethic and the way he will respond to such an uncharacteristic performance. To open the season with a stunning road victory over the defending Super Bowl champions would have been a hell of a statement. The chances of that happening looked pretty good when considering who was being given the opportunities to be the hero. It’ll likely eat at Lamb for a few days. The frustration was easy to see as he was one of the first players off the field and into the locker room. Walking alone, not a word was said.
“I’m definitely gonna look at this film,” Lamb said. “And dread every drop, that’s for sure.”
(Photo: Bill Streicher / Imagn Images)
