Could CeeDee Lamb become the newest Dallas Cowboys player to hold out from training camp in hopes of a new deal?
Lamb’s contract extension negotiations began last summer, and have yet to progress to a point where the star receiver has agreed to terms with the team. Lamb had his best season as a Cowboy last season, breaking Michael Irvin’s franchise records when totaling 135 catches and 1,749 yards. He added 12 touchdown receptions. He also became the first player in franchise history to lead the league in receptions His receiving yards total this past year was second only to Miami’s Tyreek Hill.
Training camp holdouts are far from new for the Cowboys. Last year All-Pro guard Zack Martin held out of training camp in search of a new deal. In 2019, running back Ezekiel Elliott had a 40-day holdout.
Here is a look back at how the recent training camp holdouts have fared and what could be in store should Lamb skip camp:
Ezekiel Elliott, 2019
Entering the 2019 offseason, Cowboys star RB Ezekiel Elliott was coming off one of his best seasons in his young three-year NFL career. In the previous season, Elliott had 304 carries for 1,434 yards and six rushing touchdowns. The fourth pick overall in the 2016 NFL Draft was looking to sign a new contract after his four-year rookie deal was coming to an end.
In April of 2018, the Cowboys picked up Elliott’s fifth-year option on his rookie deal, but the former Ohio State star wanted a contract extension. Heading into training camp, Elliott began what would be a 40-day holdout. Just days before the Cowboys’ seasoning opening game against the New York Giants, the two sides came to terms and Elliott signed a six-year contract extension for $90 million, which made him the highest-paid running back in NFL history at the time. The San Francisco 49ers Christian McCaffrey has since eclipsed Elliott’s deal with a four-year $64 million one of his own.
Elliott went on to play four more seasons for the Cowboys after signing his contract extension before he departed for the New England Patriots. The team restructured his contract prior to the 2021 season and released him following the 2022 campaign.
Recently Elliott made his return to Dallas signing a one-year contract to return to the Cowboys on Apr. 30.
Zack Martin, 2023
It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for the Cowboys’ nine-time Pro Bowler and seven-time First-Team All-Pro guard.
Heading into last season, some of Martin’s contemporaries in the NFL like Quenton Nelson of Indianapolis and Chris Lindstrom of Atlanta both signed contracts that put them over $20 million annually. Martin had two years left on his six-year $84 million contract that he signed in 2018 after the Cowboys picked up his fifth-year option on his rookie deal in 2017. This put Martin at $14 million per year, a far cry from the likes of Nelson and Lindstrom.
In a move to pressure the Cowboys’ front office for a new deal, Martin began not taking part in practice during the organized team activities open to the media in May and June of 2023. Taking in fines for missing team activities, Martin’s holdout lasted all the way until mid-Aug. of last year, when the two sides came to an agreement that added $8.5 million to the remainder of his contract. This bumped his average slightly above $18 million in each of the final two years of his deal.
With the new contract, Martin played 15 games in 2023, appearing in 88% of the available snaps.
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