The Dallas Cowboys announced Thursday that star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb will miss the final two games of the regular season due to a lingering right shoulder injury he suffered in early November.

Lamb was hit hard on his sore shoulder after a 52-yard catch in the second quarter against the Buccaneers on Sunday and underwent further scans this week to determine the severity of the injury.

“He will undergo a treatment and rehabilitation process for his shoulder, is not currently expected to require surgery and is expected to make a full recovery,” the team said.

With Lamb’s absence, Dallas will now be without six Week 1 starters for Sunday’s road game against the Philadelphia Eagles – Lamb, Dak Prescott, Zack Martin, DeMarcus Lawrence, DeMarvion Overshown and Trevon Diggs. For the fourth straight year, Lamb’s 1,194 receiving yards will lead the team by a wide margin. Jalen Tolbert is the Cowboys’ closest pass catcher with 482 yards in 15 games.

Lamb produced independently of the QB

When Lamb wasn’t at practice today and didn’t speak to reporters afterward, as he usually does on Thursdays, it was a strong sign that he probably wouldn’t play on Sunday. And since Dallas is already eliminated from the playoffs, why continue to let him play in significant pain? I wonder if this would be the outcome if the Cowboys were competing for a playoff spot.

Although he was in noticeable pain from the sprained right AC joint, his production was still high. Over the last two weeks, Lamb became the first player in franchise history to record consecutive games with 100 yards in the first half. It’s very impressive how Lamb managed over 1,000 yards in the last seven games for the fourth straight year despite the injury and the absence of Prescott.

Micah Parsons praised Lamb as he chatted in the locker room after today’s practice.

“He might be the best receiver I’ve ever seen,” Parsons said. “He’s QB safe. I saw him reach 1,000 yards with Andy Dalton. I saw him get 1,000 points with Dak Prescott. I saw him reach 1,000 with Cooper Rush.

“They’re giving grace to all these other wide receivers and saying they’re not producing because they don’t have a quarterback. CeeDee has shown time and time again that he can do it when everyone throws the ball to him.” — Jon Machota, Cowboys staff writer

The Young Cowboys’ receivers have the chance to step up

With Lamb out, the Cowboys can get a good feel for what they have in the wide receiver room for 2025. Brandin Cooks, a 31-year veteran, is currently the only outstanding unrestricted free agent wide receiver on the Cowboys roster. KaVontae Turpin, who is primarily a special teams returner but has been getting more opportunities on offense lately, is a pending restricted free agent. Turpin is an interesting case because a lot of his value depends on how he is used on offense and how well the offensive player can get the ball to him in space. That means his value also depends on who runs the offense and calls plays, which is currently a mystery for 2025 in Dallas.

Aside from Turpin, all of the other young receivers are under contract for 2025. Tolbert, the team’s No. 3 receiver, was expected to make a big jump this year, but that never happened. Tolbert had some standout moments, most notably his contested game-winning touchdown at Pittsburgh in Week 5, but he failed to balance that with any consistency. Still, it will be good for the Cowboys to have another year of Tolbert to evaluate him and see if they can get at least a quality No. 3 receiver, if not more, from their 2022 third-round selection.

The Cowboys also have a few late-round receivers in the mix. Jalen Brooks was the team’s seventh-round pick in 2023 and had a few appearances here and there, but nothing that would guarantee him a spot on the roster going forward. He’s a favorite of Prescott, which certainly helps, but he needs to show more on the field to really carve out a role. He’s been dealing with an injury and missed last week’s game, but he needs to get healthy and play in the final two games.

Ryan Flournoy, the Cowboys’ sixth-round pick this year, has more leash. He has tangible elements that appeal to the Cowboys, but hasn’t done enough to feel like he has a surefire role in 2025. As long as he develops well, he should be able to make the roster as a special teams contributor and as a No. 5 or No. 6 receiver – but he can increase that rating with a strong performance in these final two games .

The big question mark is Jonathan Mingo, the wide receiver whom the Carolina Panthers drafted in the second round two years ago and for whom the Cowboys traded a fourth-round pick at this year’s trade deadline. In six games in Dallas, Mingo has been targeted 11 times and has two catches for 10 yards. He played 34 percent of the offensive snaps in the Thanksgiving win over the New York Giants, his highest since arriving in Dallas. That being said, he has never reached the 30 percent mark on offensive snaps and has not been targeted in the last two games, both of which the Cowboys win. Acquiring Mingo has been touted as a move for the future, as the Cowboys have control of him for the next two years as part of his rookie contract, but he needs to start showing positive signs soon. – Saad Yousuf, Cowboys staff member

Required reading

(Photo: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)