CeeDee Lamb’s value in fantasy football solidifies after contract extension as No. 1 pick

With the announcement that CeeDee Lamb signed a four-year, $136 million contract on Monday, it’s officially time to consider Lamb as the number one overall pick in fantasy drafts.

Any doubts about Lamb playing in Week 1 should be put to rest. Hopefully those who drafted early were able to take advantage of the value when he dropped, which was recommended by our own Michael Fabiano last week.

CeeDee Lamb led the league in targets in 2023, collecting a whopping 181 while playing in 17 games. He finished as the WR1 in PPR leagues and has a chance to repeat that in 2024, as there is no real competition for targets in Dallas.

Dak Prescott scored a league-leading 36 touchdowns last season, and we can expect this passing offense to remain explosive even with a limited running game in Dallas.

Lamb’s 336 PPR points were second only to Christian McCaffrey (391). Although McCaffrey outscored Lamb by nearly 60 points, there are reasons to believe we have already reached McCaffrey’s peak.

McCaffrey is dealing with a calf strain and did not play in the preseason. Calf strains are notoriously slow to heal and easily lead to re-injury. You only have to look at Joe Burrow from last season to see how that can affect a player. McCaffrey dealt with calf strains in January 2023 and December 2024. While he is expected to continue to be the focal point of this offense, the 49ers are distributing some of his touches to Jordan Mason and Elijah Mitchell, who were also effective in this offense earlier in the season. McCaffrey is in his 28th season and it would be smart for the Niners to consider his longevity as he has struggled with injuries throughout his career.

Lamb, on the other hand, has only missed one NFL game in four NFL seasons.

Lamb is not only the NFL leader in catches and targets, but also ranks third among wideouts with 14 carries. These carries resulted in 114 yards and two touchdowns. Lamb finished the season with 14 total touchdowns.

Dak Prescott will be playing for a contract of his own if he doesn’t sign before Week 1, and Mike McCarthy will fight to keep his job. Everyone in Dallas is highly motivated to perform in 2024.

Don’t be put off by the idea of ​​Lamb being double-covered unless you’ve also blocked out Davante Adams with Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes with Tyreek Hill. Lamb is in that elite company. In 2023, Lamb was targeted on a career-best 28.3 percent of his routes and caught nearly 75% of those targets even though defenses knew what was coming.

Need to prepare even further before your draft? Don’t forget to check out the Sports Illustrated 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Kit, which contains everything you need to know!