FRISCO, Texas — CeeDee Lamb spent training camp lining up across from a rookie, and he said he came out of it better for it.
Lamb met with reporters at The Star on Monday and was asked about Caleb Downs, the safety the Dallas Cowboys took 11th overall in April. Downs has worked in the slot against Lamb through camp.
“He’s a competitor, man. He’s really elite at his job,” Lamb said. “He don’t really like losing much and neither do I. So I feel like the battles there are very fun. I enjoy going against him and I’m sure he does too, but I feel like we can learn a lot. I’ve learned a lot from him.”
“He’s real strong, real physical in the game, whether it’s run game, pass game, regardless,” Lamb continued. “Just guarding me and just putting pieces together, coming up with new plans, new ideas on how to win. I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better in that realm.”
Downs won the Jim Thorpe Award and the Lott Trophy in 2025 and was a two-time unanimous All-American at Ohio State. He started as a true freshman at Alabama in 2023 and led that team in tackles. Dallas traded up one spot with the Miami Dolphins to get him, sending two 2026 fifth-round picks to Miami.
CeeDee Lamb Says A Rookie Does Not Change The Math
Lamb was asked whether it surprised him to be learning from a first-year player.
“No, not really, because I feel like everybody that you go against, there’s an opportunity to learn, right, whether I win, whether I lose,” Lamb said. “If I win, all right, I like that release. What did I feel in it? You know what I’m saying? It’s just, it’s all about feel and execution.”
“It’s like a lot of mental things when you got a guy like Caleb,” Lamb explained. “And again, he’s nice so I can’t, it’s not like I can just give him some BS and he’ll go for it because he’s not. I find pleasure in that.”
Downs is the highest pick Dallas has spent on a safety since Roy Williams went eighth overall in 2002. He signed a four-year rookie deal worth $28.95 million fully guaranteed with a $17.5 million signing bonus and a fifth-year option.
What CeeDee Lamb Took From The Dallas Cowboys Defense
Lamb said the reps against the defense as a whole were physical, particularly inside, and that the communication on that side stood out to him through camp.
“It sucks to go against, especially in a slot, because you’re being bumped, you’re being this, you’re being that,” Lamb said. “But then there’s some good in it. Again, you’ve got to play physical. You’ve got to match that type of energy.”
“I love that these guys are playing together. They’re communicating through the roof,” Lamb continued. “You could tell that’s like been a point of attack throughout the meetings and things of that nature.”
Dallas hired Christian Parker as defensive coordinator in the offseason and used five of its seven draft picks on defense.
Lamb said earlier in camp that it was not his best one. He came out of it saying he gained combative tools and things to win faster, and that he used the reps to try things and find out what worked. He said he is overly confident about what he brings into the season.
Dallas has 13 days until the opener at the New York Giants on Sept. 13. Kickoff at MetLife Stadium is 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
