After a loss to their divisional rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles, in the 2025 season opener, the 2025 regular season has been anything but stellar for the Dallas Cowboys through the first three weeks. After an untimely hamstring injury sidelined Dak Prescott for the majority of the 2024 season, he was finally able to reconnect with his WR1, CeeDee Lamb, for the beginning of this season.
Advertisement
Unfortunately, it is now Lamb who will likely be sidelined for quite some time. In the midst of the Cowboys’ upset loss to Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears in Week 3, Lamb succumbed to an ankle injury in the opening quarter after carrying a handoff for a loss of yards.
His ankle bent outwards, and as a result, a high-ankle sprain will likely be the official diagnosis, although the severity of it remains unclear. In an ideal world, his injury will be classified as nothing more than a grade one tear, which typically means that the player will only miss one to two weeks.
Ceedee Lamb left today’s game with possible “High ankle sprain” Timeline to return is dependent on severity
Grade I: 1-2 weeks
Grade II: 4-6 weeks pic.twitter.com/n3rT7gZC4e— Dr. Evan Jeffries, DPT (@GameInjuryDoc) September 21, 2025
Should it come back as a grade-two tear, however, then his absence is guaranteed to range anywhere from four to six weeks at a minimum. Of course, nothing will be official until he is able to undergo an MRI on Monday morning, but for now, things are looking pretty scary for the Cowboys.
CeeDee Lamb ankle injury – attempting return suggests low severity
Avg ~2 wks for mild cases#Cowboys tend to be on more aggressive side of injury timelines. CeeDee is young without concerning history. All predict accelerated return
But Mon MRI will clarify expectations pic.twitter.com/LfSVuQwPc4
— Deepak Chona, MD. SMA (@SportMDAnalysis) September 21, 2025
Lamb’s early exit from Sunday’s contest couldn’t have come at a worse time for neither him nor Dallas. His 222 receiving yards throughout the first two weeks of the season, which came on 16 total receptions, marked the only consistent source of production for the Cowboys’ offense.
Furthermore, Lamb had just incurred a fine of nearly $14,500 for his part in George Pickens’ touchdown celebration against the New York Giants in Week 2. Simply put, there won’t be a Week 4 game check to help offset that fine.
The fine ultimately stemmed from the NFL’s recent decision to restrict celebrations that mimic the act of shooting a gun. After the former Pittsburgh Steeler was able to score a last-minute touchdown against the Giants, both he and Lamb did a handshake prior to making ‘finger gun’ gestures and shooting at each other’s heads.
The NFL fined #Cowboys WRs CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens $14,491 each for unsportsmanlike conduct/violent gesture on this touchdown celebration last week.
Pickens was also fined another $14,491 for removing his helmet before leaving the field. No flags were thrown. pic.twitter.com/mgcgN3vhLg
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 20, 2025
The real tragedy, of course, is that America’s team will once again be forced to endure weeks of competition without having their QB1 and WR1 paired together. The duo of Prescott and Lamb have been one of the few things keeping this Dallas offense afloat in recent years, even though they have seldomly been able to play together throughout the past two seasons.
Moving forward, Prescott will have to primarily rely on the services of Pickens, Jake Feguson, and KaVontae Turpin, to keep this offense in rhythm. Should his primary pass catcher end up missing an extended period of time, then it seems as if Dallas is destined to miss out on the playoffs for the second year in a row.
