Lamb's 153 yards and two scores bookend Cowboys' 37-20 win

ARLINGTON, Texas - CeeDee Lamb scored the first touchdown and the last one, then finished the afternoon by putting the record football in Dak Prescott's hands.

Lamb caught eight passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns Sunday as the Cowboys beat the Commanders 37-20 at AT&T Stadium. ESPN's box lists a 19.1-yard average on nine targets, with a long of 38.

The 3-yard score opened the game in the first quarter; the 24-yard catch with 3:07 left was Prescott's 249th career touchdown pass as a Cowboy, breaking Tony Romo's franchise record of 248, the Associated Press reported.

Dallas moved to 1-1. Washington dropped to 0-2. Prescott finished 26 of 31 for 279 yards and four scores without an interception, and Jake Ferguson caught the other two touchdowns.

First strike, final strike

Prescott found Lamb for the early 3-yard touchdown that made it 7-0 after Brandon Aubrey's kick. From there the middle of the game belonged to Ferguson and Aubrey's field goals, but the wideout kept working the intermediate and deep windows.

Six of Lamb's eight receptions moved the chains or found the end zone in a game where Dallas repeatedly trusted him against single coverage on the perimeter.

Washington stayed close enough to force late decisions. Jayden Daniels hit Stefon Diggs from 4 yards before leaving with a dislocated left elbow in the final seconds of the first half, the AP reported. Marcus Mariota later found Diggs from 20 yards to cut the lead to 30-20.

That was the cue for Lamb's second score - the 24-yarder that both padded the final and handed Prescott the franchise record.

The ball that mattered after the whistle

Lamb has caught 37 touchdowns from Prescott - more than any other Cowboy, according to the AP - and he made sure the milestone football did not vanish into an equipment bag. He gave Prescott the record ball in the victorious locker room.

"That made me emotional," Prescott said of the exchange, describing teammates who have been together only a handful of months celebrating as if they had shared years. The quarterback also said he had been emotional before kickoff thinking about his late mother and the possibility of a four-touchdown day.

Coach Brian Schottenheimer praised Prescott the person as much as the passer after the win. Lamb's night supplied the yardage and the punctuation: 153 yards, two scores, and a souvenir that now sits with the franchise record.

Volume that fits the offense

George Pickens added six catches for 40 yards. Javonte Williams handled the early-down work. Ferguson's two touchdowns filled the red zone.

Through all of it, Lamb remained the clearest vertical threat and the player Washington could not ignore on third down. A 153-yard afternoon against an NFC East rival is the kind of tape that sets the tone for a week of practice more than any single highlight reel catch.

Rio on the calendar

Dallas plays Baltimore next Sunday in Rio de Janeiro, per AP notes. Lamb's usage - eight catches on nine targets - gives the offense a clear blueprint for the international week: get the ball to him early, trust him late, and let the rest of the skill group fill the gaps. Sunday's 37-20 result started and ended with him in the end zone.

Sources

ESPN

ESPN

foxsports.com