2020 Rookie Class: An Early Look at CeeDee Lamb, WR Oklahoma

Dwight Peebles

CeeDee Lamb was one of the most dominant receivers in college football over the past two seasons and consistently made highlight catches and big plays. He is incredibly dangerous after the catch and took many shallow crossing routes, turning them into big plays. Lamb is a tall, dominant receiver who will be taken in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft – how does he project to the next level?

AS A RECRUIT

Lamb was a four-star recruit in the class of 2017, hailing from Richmond, Texas, and had a composite ranking of 0.9358 per 247 Sports. He was the 24th-ranked wide receiver and ranked 148th overall.

The 6’2”, 190-pound Lamb received offers from 20 schools – among them was Texas, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Alabama, Texas A&M, and Auburn. The wideout only visited Oklahoma and Texas A&M before ultimately committing to the Sooners.

COLLEGIATE CAREER

Lamb burst onto the season as a freshman and followed with two highly productive years, yet still was one of the quieter superstars in college football.

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Stats courtesy of sports-reference.com.

Playing with Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, and Jalen Hurts and one of the most explosive offenses in the NCAA, Lamb dominated and yet was overshadowed by his quarterbacks. Several other receivers such as Jerry Jeudy and Ja’Marr Chase put up huge numbers in the SEC and also gathered most of the media attention. Lamb produced, dominating Big-12 corners, and coming up huge when it mattered most.

The stat lines Lamb posted in big games were staggering, I had to double-check – his statistical dominance on the big stages was impressive. In the conference title game versus Texas in 2018, he had six grabs for 167 yards and a score. Against Texas this season, he caught ten balls for 171 yards and three touchdowns. In the conference title game this season, he torched Baylor for 173 yards on eight catches. In the big games, Lamb balled out and gave it all for his team with huge gains and touchdowns.

ATHLETIC PROFILE

Lamb’s athletic profile is likely not going to wow anyone, he isn’t going to destroy the combine testing although he could put on a display in route running and catching passes in drills. He is 6’2” and 190 pounds but plays much taller and bigger.

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Lamb has tremendous body control and his catch radius is phenomenal. He catches everything even remotely in his vicinity and uses strong hands and body control to wrestle the ball from defenders. Lamb uses subtle body movements to sell routes and his adjustments create separation – a highly valuable trait at the next level. He improved every season and his Dominator Rating increased as well, the thread below highlights his ascension against his peers in college football.

Lamb doesn’t have elite speed or acceleration and will likely run in the 4.5-4.6 range in the 40-yard dash but should show good agility – he moves well in and out of cuts, has good acceleration coming out of moves, and his footwork is sharp and clean. His shuttle times will likely be average as well, Lamb accelerates well enough to be a good NFL receiver but it’s not one of his strong suits.

Lamb plays strong and physical – he is not afraid to go over the middle and definitely not afraid to block downfield. He engages defenders with his hands and simply outmuscles them. Lamb tracks the ball downfield with the best in this class and positions well against the sidelines as well. He sets up defenders well and is rarely beaten in situations where he has to exert his physicality.

STRENGTHS

  • DANGEROUS after the catch, tough to bring down and moves well, great balance through contact
  • Physical and strong despite slender frame, not afraid to block
  • Deep ball tracking and sideline awareness is elite
  • Any ball thrown his way is HIS ball – has an alpha-dog mentality
  • Methodical route runner – sets up defenders with subtle moves and hard cuts
  • Reliable hands – doesn’t drop passes

WEAKNESSES

  • At times, his release off the line isn’t clean and precise, specifically if not pressed
  • Speed isn’t elite and he can get caught downfield from behind
  • Inconsistent occasionally with blocking and finishing plays

DRAFT PROJECTION

Lamb will go in the first round of the NFL Draft and popular landing spots seem to be Arizona and Las Vegas. I have seen multiple industry mocks with those two teams taking the Sooner wideout in the first round. Jacksonville at number ten or number twenty could also really use an elite number one receiver option.

At the latest, based on what we know now, Lamb should not fall past the Philadelphia Eagles at pick 21. There are about a half-dozen wide-receiver needy teams picking before pick 21 – Jeudy is projected to be the first wideout drafted and Lamb should be the second.

Lamb has the tools to be the number one receiver for any of the above teams, and those teams have an established quarterback with receiver being one of the more pressing needs. Arizona is tantalizing – if Lamb could learn the craft alongside legend Larry Fitzgerald, it would accelerate his development even more.

DYNASTY VALUE

Lamb is being taken amongst the top five-six picks thus far in early rookie mock drafts. The running back quartet of D’Andre Swift, Jonathan Taylor, J.K. Dobbins, and Travis Etienne and then the duo of Lamb and Jeudy have been the top six of every mock draft I have seen thus far – but Etienne has recently revealed he will be returning to school. If it’s Superflex, Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa will shift Lamb down to the seventh or eighth pick range at the latest.

The long-term value of Lamb is high. He has huge potential and the outlook for teams he could land on is rosy. He is a player you want to anchor your dynasty fantasy roster. Lamb will be an impact player, playing right away, and his physicality along with football IQ will help his transition to the NFL.

Lamb was in the 10-12 overall range of devy prospects exiting the season, our ranks have now rolled over. In the DLF Cornerstone Rankings, our staff has him as the eighth-ranked player. He should be a WR1 for close to a decade. Lamb is a player to invest in and his price now is the lowest I project it to be for a long time.

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