Getty Potential Cowboys trade target Jameson Williams
We’re at the stage of negotiations between the Cowboys and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb at which it appears fatigue is setting in. Team ownership and the front office are tired of answering questions about it, but with Lamb under contract on his fifth-year option, they’ve got leverage.
Lamb is getting tired of missing training camp, obviously. He likes football, wants to play football, and with the Cowboys preseason opener set for this weekend, he will begin missing out on playing actual games, even if they’re games that don’t count. For Lamb, his contract holdout is clearly wearing on him, and he took the lashing-out step of deleting references to the Cowboys from his social media on Friday.
Consider that a mostly symbolic gesture—we’re guessing Jerry Jones does not spend a whole lot of his business day scrolling Instagram.
Certainly, Lamb’s teammates are missing him. They’re also tired of answering questions about Lamb’s absence, and surely quarterback Trey Lance would appreciate the way that Lamb’s presence could make him look a good deal better than he has without Lamb.
We in the media are probably as tired of it as you the fans. Still, the Lamb holdout does allow for engagement on one of the better NFL preseason pastimes: the proposed trade rumor. And at Bleacher Report, they’re forecasting sending Lamb off to various places, including to the NFC contender Detroit Lions.
Cowboys Trade Could Add Jameson Williams
In an article titled, “5 NFL Teams That Should Revisit CeeDee Lamb Trade amid Cowboys WR’s Holdout,” analyst Maurice Mouton plucks the Lions as one of the top teams with which the Cowboys could make a deal.
The primary return piece is an intriguing one—Jameson Williams, the Lions No. 2 receiver and college star who encountered some controversy last season when he was suspended for six games (later reduced to two games) for gambling, on non-NFL sporting events.
As Mouton laid out the Cowboys trade:
“Cowboys receive: 2025 first-round pick, 2025 third-round pick, Jameson Williams
“Lions receive: CeeDee Lamb”
The deal would give the Lions a monster wide receiver combo of Lamb and Amon-Ra St. Brown. But as Mouton points out, the team could afford to make it happen.
“The Detroit Lions have $42.8 million in cap space with a projected $25.1 million for 2025. They can afford to take a big swing right now. This offseason, the Detroit Lions allowed wideout Josh Reynolds to walk in free agency, which will create more opportunities for 2022 first-rounder Jameson Williams on the perimeter. …
“Williams may need a change of scenery, where he could be one of the primary pass-catching options, to reach his full potential.
“(Jalen) Tolbert is an unproven starter, and Brandin Cooks is going into his age-31 term. In Dallas, Williams could emerge as the lead receiver if he can stay on the field.”
CeeDee Lamb Not Likely on the Market
Williams was a first-round pick (12th overall) in 2022, even as he was coming off a torn ACL suffered in the national championship game while he was at Alabama. That injury limited him to six starts as a rookie. With injuries and the suspension in 2023, Williams played only 12 games.
He has been less-than-great when he is on the field, with 25 catches for 395 yards and three touchdowns. His career high in catches has been four, and his best yardage total in one game has been 69, which came in Week 17 against the Cowboys last year.
A Cowboys trade for Williams has some appeal, given his potential. But the two picks the Lions could give, in the first and third rounds, would both be near the back end of those rounds, because the Lions are expected to be one of the top teams in the NFL.
It’s a worthy thought experiment, a Cowboys trade like this one. But the team has made it clear they won’t be trading Lamb, no matter how tired we all are of his holdout.
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Cowboys Trade Pitch Swaps CeeDee Lamb for Recently Suspended Star & Picks