Cowboys’ CeeDee Lamb Hit With Hefty ‘Joke’ NFL Punishment

Considering the way his year has gone, starting with the hefty fines he racked up as he held out for a new contract from the Cowboys all through training camp and the preseason, CeeDee Lamb has probably had quite enough of being punished.

But the NFL had a second look at a play in which Lamb was involved going back to the Week 3 loss to Baltimore. With eight seconds to play in the first quarter and Dallas driving, Lamb took a pass from Dak Prescott on a slant to the right side and caught it at about the 18-yard line of the Ravens. He ran forward to the 10-yard line as time ran down.

At the 10, he was met by safety Kyle Hamilton. But as Lamb approached Hamilton, he committed an NFL no-no: He lowered his helmet.

Now, a week later, the NFL has doled out punishment for the play, giving Lamb a sizable fine of $22,511, though no penalty was whistled at the time. NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero reported the infraction, writing on Twitter/X: “Another one: The NFL fined #Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb $22,511 for unnecessary roughness/use of helmet on this play. No flag was thrown.”

CeeDee Lamb Fine Labeled a ‘Joke’

Reaction to the fine from Lamb drew a fairly unanimous response—what else, exactly, was the Cowboys star supposed to do?

User Chris Phineas wrote, “Joke. Player has a right to protect himself.”

Another user, Calvin Thomas, wrote, “Geez we might as well play flag football.”

And Jahmeir D. wrote, “Only in the NFL can you get fined for protecting yourself.”

The Dallas Morning News quoted the NFL rulebook in writing about the fine: “It is a foul if a player: lowers his head and makes forcible contact with his helmet against an opponent; or uses any part of his helmet or facemask to butt or make forcible contact to an opponent’s head or neck.”

The fine for Lamb’s penalty, technically called, “Impermissible Use of the Helmet/Launching,” is the result of collective bargaining with the union. He’ll need to be careful going forward—the find for a second such offense is $45,020.

Cowboys Got Apology After Ravens Loss

That caps off a wild few days for Lamb, who was clearly not happy during the loss to the Ravens. After he made the play that got the Cowboys to the 10-yard line, he fumbled a pass from Prescott that cost Dallas a scoring try that might have changed the whole complexion of the game.

Lamb pulled in just four catches for 67 yards against the Ravens, and cameras caught him several times expressing clear frustration, and directing harsh words toward Prescott. He apologized.

“Yeah, I kind of let the game get to my head a little bit,” Lamb said later. “But in the same sense, I know what I can do. I know what I bring to the table, and I know what I can do on that field. So, with that being said, going forward, there shall be a difference.”

Lamb responded with his best game of the year in the Cowboys’ 20-15 win over the Giants on Thursday, racking up seven catches for 98 yards and a touchdown.