The Cowboys may have lost ground in the NFC race against the Lions, but they at least came away with encouraging news on their top receiver. CeeDee Lamb left Thursday night’s 44-30 loss after a scary fall resulted in a concussion, sending him straight to the medical tent and out for the rest of the game.
With Dallas sitting at 6-6-1 and needing a near-perfect finish, any extended absence from Lamb would be disastrous, not just for the Cowboys’ offense but for Fantasy Football lineups hanging on his production.
On Friday, head coach Brian Schottenheimer offered the first real sign of optimism on Lamb’s status. He said the star wideout “had a good day,” while stressing that Lamb still has to clear every step of the concussion protocol.
Then, via Jon Machota on X, Schottenheimer distilled the update into four words fantasy managers wanted to hear: CeeDee is “doing good, progressing nicely.” The extra recovery time from a Thursday game gives Dallas a small scheduling cushion before its next matchup against the Vikings on December 14.
Owner Jerry Jones admitted Lamb’s fall “scared” him when he spoke on local radio, which matches how it looked in real time. Lamb has been the engine of this passing game, with 57 receptions for 865 yards and three scores in 10 games, and his absence forced Dak Prescott to lean even harder on new addition George Pickens against Detroit.
That is where the second half of the story comes in. Pickens finished with just 37 yards on five catches and drew criticism for inconsistent effort, with cameras catching him jogging some routes, including on a ball that turned into an interception.
He told reporters he would “be very careful going there,” said he did not believe it was an effort issue, and insisted he is “not at all concerned going forward,” even while admitting he did not have a great explanation for why Pickens was so quiet.
If Lamb misses any time, Dallas will need Pickens to respond the way Jones expects and play like the breakout weapon he has been for most of the year. But Schottenheimer’s “doing good, progressing nicely” update at least keeps the door open for Lamb to return sooner rather than later, preserving hope for both the Cowboys’ playoff push and fantasy teams counting on his WR1 upside down the stretch.
