Why has CeeDee Lamb’s production dropped in the second halves of Cowboys games?

While the Cowboys are riding the high of back-to-back road wins into an NFC showdown with the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon, the offensive production has left a little to be desired through five weeks.

The Cowboys currently rank 15th in the NFL with 23.4 points per game after leading the league in 2023 with 30.1 points per game. While some of the lack of production can be attributed to a different offensive line and the lack of an efficient running game, the production of star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb has seen a stark drop-off in the second halves of games.

In the first halves of games, Lamb has hauled in a total of 21 receptions for 353 yards, a pace that would be leading the NFL in both categories by a moonshot … if it was matched in the second half.

Unfortunately for the Cowboys, that hasn’t been the case, as Lamb has seen his production fall off a cliff after the halftime break, combining for just four receptions for 25 yards in second halves of games this season.

“What happens is we pop off early on and no one wants to see that in the second half of the game,” Lamb said on Thursday. “[Opponents] do a great job of making halftime adjustments. Nine times out of 10, I’m getting clouded. Kudos to them, they’re doing a great job of stopping the bleeding.”

Part of the issue could be attributed to the lack of experience around Lamb. With veteran receiver Brandin Cooks on the injured reserve list with a knee issue, the Cowboys have turned to Jalen Tolbert, KaVontae Turpin and Jalen Brooks in the receiving corps to take on the extra work. While Tolbert stepped up to the occasion against the Steelers – hauling in a team-high seven receptions for 87 yards including the game-winning touchdown – the pressure is still placed on that group to take some attention off Lamb.

“Take the eyes off me and show your worth,” Lamb said in his message to the other receivers. “I have unbelievable faith in those guys and I know they can create separation as well.”

The extra attention has come in the form of cloud coverage from opposing defenses where a safety will back up the cornerback to keep Lamb limited from taking off downfield.

“Obviously, CeeDee is a featured player,” head coach Mike McCarthy said. “They’re setting the coverage to him wherever he goes, especially when he’s the one-receiver. He’s seeing a lot of cloud coverage and obviously [Pittsburgh] had a form of cheat coverage early in the game that was a little different. We’ve got to just keep working like we always do.”

Fortunately for the offense, Lamb is gearing up to take on a Lions secondary that he obliterated in a Dec. 2023 matchup that saw him haul in 13 receptions for a career-high 227 yards, including a 92-yard touchdown reception from Dak Prescott.

“It’s a defense we’re familiar with that we’ve played the last few seasons,” Prescott said. “We have different ways to get him the ball, still. Just confident in what he will be able to do. It would be great to get in a rhythm like that again.”

While everyone in the building is searching for the keys to that type of production in 2024, specifically in the second half, Lamb felt confident when asked about when that could come.

“When my time comes, trust me, it will be big.”