Cowboys, CeeDee Lamb agree to massive extension; College Football Playoff predictions

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💰 Good morning to everyone, but especially to …

CEEDEE LAMB AND THE DALLAS COWBOYS, AT LONG LAST

It’s about time. The Cowboys signed CeeDee Lamb to a four-year, $136 million extension, finally ending the star wide receiver’s months-long hold out just under two weeks before the regular season begins.

• Lamb, 25, gets $34 million per year, second-most among wide receivers and only behind Justin Jefferson ($35 million per year). Lamb is the fifth wide receiver to eclipse $30 million annually; all five signed those contracts this offseason.
• Lamb’s deal includes $100 million guaranteed and a $38 million signing bonus, the largest ever for a wide receiver.
• Lamb absolutely deserves it, coming off an NFL-high and Cowboys-record 135 catches for 1,749 yards (also a franchise record) and 12 touchdowns. He was a first-team All Pro and finished third in Offensive Player of the Year voting.
• Micah Parsons, who is also due for an extension, congratulated Lamb.

It was an angsty offseason from both Lamb and Jerry Jones (who made more headlines Monday), but the important thing is that ahead of a crucial year, Dak Prescott‘s superstar top target is locked in. Now, Garrett Podell writes, Jones can focus on Prescott.

• Podell: “Prescott has both a no-trade clause and a no-franchise-tag clause, meaning he has the power to walk into unrestricted free agency in March 2025 unencumbered. However, the only way this deal gets done is if the Jones boys alter their perspective on the quarterback contract market.”

With football season here, we know you’ve got plenty on the line this season. So we’re here to help: CBSSports.com has full breakdowns, grades and rankings of every sports book and a look at all the best offers for new signups.

👍 Honorable mentions

🏈 And not such a good morning for …

HUNDREDS OF NFL PLAYERS

Cut day is the worst day on the NFL calendar, and hundreds of players are about to experience it first-hand. NFL teams must get their roster down to 53 by 4 p.m. ET, and while many teams have gotten started, there’s a long, long way to go, and a long, long wait for players on roster bubbles.

For many of the players who don’t make rosters, this will be the closest they’ll ever get. Many dreams will end today. It’s a harsh reminder that as fun as the NFL is, it’s also a business, and business can be cruel.

Many of the names on the chopping block today are unfamiliar ones. But there will be more notable departures, too, and that could include a former Super Bowl hero, Cody Benjamin writes.

• Benjamin: “Kadarius Toney — Hampered by injuries in between a splashy secondary role as a receiver and returner, Toney has ‘battled to make the team’ according to coach Andy Reid, suggesting he’s well behind fellow wideouts like Rashee Rice, Marquise Brown and Xavier Worthy on the pecking order. The Chiefs have never been hesitant to nurse a reclamation project, but the former Giants prospect has struggled to stay on the field.”

We’re tracking every single cut here.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

🏈 2024 College Football Playoff predictions, Heisman picks, more

FOUR. MORE. DAYS. We’re almost to Week 1, college football fans, and our experts are here with College Football Playoff predictions and individual award picks.

Let’s start with the favorite: Georgia received four of the eight votes to earn the No. 1 seed in the new 12-team playoff, and the Bulldogs also earned five votes to win it all. Both were most of any team. Chip Patterson explained his pick.

• Patterson: “While Georgia does not have all of the same kind of pieces that it had during its back-to-back title run, the Bulldogs have elevated at quarterback with Carson Beck. That, plus the chip on the shoulder that has become evident from missing out on the playoff last year, has me giving the Dawgs the nod to get back to the top of the mountain.”

While Beck is good, one of our experts’ most popular Heisman Trophy picks is another SEC quarterback. Shehan explains …

• Jeyarajah: “Jalen Milroe, QB, Alabama — Looking back at the list of Heisman Trophy winners in the College Football Playoff era, two trends emerge. The winner tends to be a statistical freak and typically on a team contending for the College Football Playoff. Simply put, there is no player on a team in the preseason top 10 positioned to be freakier statistically than Milroe. The junior was slightly inconsistent in his first season as a starter but still cleared 3,000 total yards and 35 touchdowns. Kalen DeBoer is a quarterback wizard and should truly unlock Milroe’s vast potential … “

You can see all of the picks — including projected playoff fields, overrated and underrated squads and more — right here.

🏈 What we learned from the NFL preseason

Week 3 of the preseason usually doesn’t feature a ton of starters, but the Panthers reversed that trend by putting Bryce Young in game action for the first time. It turned out to be best-case scenario. The second-year quarterback led a touchdown drive and was one of Jeff Kerr’s preseason Week 3 winners and “the good” for Carolina in Garrett’s “Good, bad and ugly for every team.”

• Podell: “Young showed the poise in the pocket to hang in there and make throws. New Carolina head coach Dave Canales has revived both Geno Smith‘s career with the Seahawks, and Baker Mayfield‘s career with the Buccaneers. Let’s see if he can pull the rabbit out of the hat one more time in 2024.”

Cody has 10 things we learned from the preseason.

The preseason as a whole also gave us a sneak peak at a really exciting draft class, headlined by six quarterbacks picked in the top 12. Caleb Williams leads Josh Edwards’ preseason All-Rookie Team, and all five first-round quarterbacks who are healthy — sorry, J.J. McCarthy — earned strong grades in Chris Trapasso’s first-round rookie preseason grades.

🏀 When will there be a woman head coach in D-I men’s college basketball?

Matt Norlander and Gary Parrish’s excellent Candid Coaches series continued Monday with a thought-provoking question: “Will a woman be the head coach of a Division I men’s basketball team by 2030?”

I won’t share the results, but here’s a quote that stood out:

• Coach who said “no”: “While I don’t believe there will be a woman head men’s basketball coach by 2030, I do think the possibility is greater than ever. With the increased visibility of women’s basketball, I believe an elite women’s coach such as a Dawn Staley could get a men’s head coaching job if she actively pursued it. However, with the compensation for women’s jobs steadily increasing, particularly at the highest levels, I don’t know if the incentive is great enough for someone of Dawn Staley’s stature to take such a risk.”

📺 What we’re watching Tuesday

🎾 We’re watching the US Open. Here’s how.
⚾ Astros at Phillies, 6:40 p.m. on TBS
🏀 Aces at Wings, 8 p.m. on NBA TV