CeeDee Lamb has a chance to do something pretty rare for a rookie wide receiver. He has a pretty good shot at joining the 1,000 receiving yard club in his first year in the NFL, something only a handful of rookie WRs have been able to accomplish.
Here the WRs who have hit the 1,000 yard mark since 2010:
- 2011 – A.J. Green (1,057)
- 2014 – Mike Evans (1,051)
- 2014 – Odell Beckham Jr. (1,305)
- 2014 – Kelvin Benjamin (1,008)
- 2015 – Amari Cooper (1,070)
As you can see, it’s a rare thing for a rookie receiver to accumulate 1,000 yards receiving in their first year in the league. You may have noticed something else as well. All five of the WRs above were the No. 1, main target for their respective teams as rookies. And other than Kelvin Benjamin, all of them have multiple Pro Bowl appearances under their belt.
To put CeeDee Lamb in that group right now might seem like quite a stretch, especially considering the Dallas Cowboys already have a talented duo in Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup ahead of him on the depth chart. However, I think it’s absolutely doable for a player with Lamb’s kind of talent.
On any other team, CeeDee Lamb would probably be the No. 1 WR on the roster. With the Cowboys though he’s probably WR3 behind the before mentioned Cooper and Gallup. You would think that would limit the amount of targets he receives in the passing game, but I’m not so sure it will.
Cooper (116) and Gallup (112) were both heavily targeted in the passing game last season. As the Cowboys WR3, Randall Cobb was targeted a total of 83 times and turned that into 55 receptions for 828 receiving yards. If you’re doing the math, that’s just 172 shy of the 1,000 yard mark, which in itself is pretty impressive.
I don’t know about you, but for a player who is known as an after the catch monster like CeeDee Lamb, I think he’s more than capable of picking up those 172 yards Randall Cobb left on the field last year. You don’t have to take my word for it though. I actually have a few stats to back up that stance.
According to Pro Football Focus, nearly half of CeeDee Lamb’s career receiving yards – 1,520 of 3,292 – at Oklahoma came after the catch. As a junior in 2019, Lamb also broke an impressive 26 tackles in 62 catches. His after the catch ability should allow him to surpass the numbers Cobb put up last season relatively easy, especially considering his ability to play on the outside or the slot.
CeeDee Lamb certainly has his work cut out for him, but I absolutely believe he’s capable of eclipsing 1,000 receiving yards as a rookie. The only question I really have is how many touchdowns will he score? But, that’s a discussion better saved for another time.
