Dak Prescott threw an interception with 52 seconds remaining in the first half on Sunday. The Cowboys quarterback and his favorite receiver, CeeDee Lamb, weren’t on the same page, which has happened more often than either would like this season.
On the sidelines after the play, NBC cameras showed slow-motion video of Lamb saying something to Prescott. Prescott never looked up from his tablet.
Everyone in Dallas-Fort Worth turned lip reader this week, debating on social media and sports talk radio about what Lamb said to Prescott.
On Friday, Lamb revealed what he told Prescott.
“Jump balls, Four,” Lamb said, calling Prescott by his jersey number. “Jumping balls.” I got you.”
Lamb was looking for a jump ball in the back of the end zone. Prescott threw Lamb a back shoulder pass that Steelers cornerback Donte Jackson picked off.
“You guys I can’t read lips to save your lives,” Prescott said, via Jon Machota of TheAthletic.com. “It was frankly comical. To see social media after the game or whatever and say CeeDee had words for me, I’m like, “When?” I think CeeDee said it best: this guy is my brother. We hold each other to a very high standard.
“I just made a stupid split-second decision. It’s a shame that when you have the ball in your hands every play, you can’t be successful. Just another example of you trying to turn nothing into something.
Lamb has just one reception in the fourth quarter this season – a 9-yarder in the game-winner against the Steelers last week – and is on pace for 1,285 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. He earned All-Pro honors last season with 1,749 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Lamb, however, did not participate in the offseason program and sat out training camp and the preseason as he sought a contract extension. The Cowboys made him the second-highest paid non-quarterback before the season started.
The time he spent away from the team between the end of last season and the start of this season could play a role in Lamb’s numbers. Teams are also paying more attention to him, especially in the second half.
The Lions arrive on Sunday, giving Lamb a chance to recover. He caught 13 of Prescott’s 17 targets for 227 yards and a touchdown in last season’s game at Arlington, with Dallas winning 20-19.
“It felt good,” Prescott said. “It’s been a long time. I would like to find a rhythm like that with him. What a great opportunity we have to try to reestablish that connection. It’s a defense we know. … They’re definitely going to try to take him, especially when you think back to this game. You see the numbers he was able to produce.
“We have different ways of getting him the ball and being confident in what he will be able to do. But it would be great to get back to a rhythm like that. And when you’re in a rhythm like that, with an elite receiver, it’s a rare feeling.
