Predicting CeeDee Lamb's next Cowboys contract after Justin Jefferson breaks the bank

What are the Dallas Cowboys even doing at this point? Not going to lie, I have pretty much hated every move, or better yet, every move they didn't make this offseason. The time is now to go win a championship because the bill will be due next spring, and the Cowboys will have insufficient funds. Not only do they still have to pay quarterback Dak Prescott, but wide receiver CeeDee Lamb as well.

With Justin Jefferson resetting the wide receiver market with his record-setting four-year deal worth $140 million to stay with the Minnesota Vikings, the Joneses could not keep up with the Joneses and will pay the price dearly in still trying to keep up with the Joneses, mostly because they're the Joneses. Lamb is a fine receiver, but Jefferson is better, and everyone outside of Dallas knows this.

So what I am going to do today is to take a look at what type of contract the Cowboys' No. 1 wide receiver could command in an extension, as well as on the open market. Lamb is currently playing out his fifth-year option season with the Cowboys after being a first-round pick out of Oklahoma. I don't think the Cowboys have it in them to tag him, but I am not sure how they keep both him and Prescott.

For my money, the time was yesterday to get both Cowboys stars extended, but let's start with Lamb.

What CeeDee Lamb's next contract with the Dallas Cowboys will look like

There are three ways to satisfy Lamb's financial needs: Contract length, contract compensation or some combination of the two. Obviously, the latter would be preferable, which is why I think the Cowboys have for whatever reason taken their sweet time in doing so. In my opinion, they have to match Jefferson's four-year, $140 million contract at least. How much should they be willing to pay?

Look. I don't think Lamb is worth $36 million annually, but that is the starting number for what it will take to keep Lamb around in Big D. For four years at that mark, we are looking at $144 million. Should we kick it out to a five-year deal, Lamb would net $180 million. Because the Cowboys fell asleep at the wheel again, they are going to have to pay between $4 and $40 million extra for a lesser talent.

Overall, I am sure the Joneses will do their best to reset the market on Lamb's deal. It is probably more about satisfying their own ego than it is about doing right by Lamb. In a perfect world, Lamb would have gotten a four-year deal worth $31 million annually, meaning it would come out to $124 million. That number would have reset the market after Stefon Diggs' deal. Man, are the Cowboys such idiots.

Look for the Cowboys to pay anywhere between $20 and $56 million in excess just to re-sign Lamb.