FRISCO, TX — It appears CeeDee Lamb is indeed “ready for battle”, as he declared shortly after signing his shiny new megadeal with the Dallas Cowboys in late August. His ramp-up period following his holdout is presumably over, effective Thursday, as the All-Pro receiver was a full participant in the team's first fully padded contact practice of Week 1.
When asked if he's a full go, his answer was unequivocal.
"Yeah, I'm ready," said the reigning NFL receptions leader. "Today was definitely one of those days and again, shout out to the guys, the coaches, for really guiding me throughout this whole week. Obviously, I knew that mentally I was ready and physically it's a little different of a story, but today got me ready.
"Yeah, I'm on."
What was it, specifically, about Thursday's practice that gives confidence he will not be placed on a pitch count in Cleveland?
"It was a full contact, full padded practice and we're game planning and installing different things, so I got to compete against the ones," Lamb said. "That was fun."
He's hoping to have that much more fun when the Cowboys visit the Browns in Cleveland in three days from those comments being made, and though he knows it won't be an easy go against one of the top defenses in the entire NFL, Lamb is also looking forward to it.
And it's safe to say he's prepared well, considering the defense he faces daily in practice.
"[The Browns are] nice, man," the three-time Pro Bowler said. "They're nice all around the board — edge rushers, linebackers, they've got fast DBs. I'm very familiar with a couple of them. I know I'm on a personal level, so it's going to be fun out there.
"I'm ready to compete."
Lamb will go as Dak Prescott does, the two having ascended to the ranks of being arguably the best QB-WR duo in the league, as the former set records in 2023 while the latter finished as an All-Pro and runner-up in the MVP race behind only Lamar Jackson.
As it stands, however, Lamb has his new contract in hand, Prescott is waiting on his to land. But if anyone knows how taxing the process can be it's Lamb, fresh off of a holdout, but also Prescott, who went through a lengthy (two years worth) round of negotiations the first time around.
And both know how quickly a yellow light can turn green.
"I feel like 24 hours can really change your life," said Lamb. "Obviously, it's done that for me and throughout the process that I went through, and this is Dak's second time at the table, so I know he's very familiar with this and how Jerry's working. I have no doubt that they're going to get the job done but, again, he can't win a game by himself."
As for himself, Lamb wants to retire a Cowboy.
"I don't think anybody in the NFL really wants to just be hopping around [from team to team] and no offense to the ones that [have], but yeah, I don't see that," he said of his future in Dallas. "I never saw that for my future and I always wanted to be in one area, and Dallas is that area for me. I would love to be here for another contract, and another one. You know what I'm saying?
"So continue to build on this legacy that's already been placed ahead of me and help hold this torch."
It's time to light it again, and with no shortage of expectations to use as the fuel to keep it burning.
