To borrow Jerry Jones' own metaphor, we're skipping straight past summer and into autumn with all the leaves that are starting to hit the ground. It's only been one month since the Cowboys owner and general manager made headlines with his contract strategy. Asked why there was so little movement in the effort to re-sign his Big 3 of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons, Jones chose foliage as his metaphor.
With all of that in mind, it should not be a surprise if Jefferson winds up as the NFL's highest-paid non-quarterback, topping Nick Bosa's figures of a $170 million contract and a $34 million salary. We have the context clues to guess this about Jefferson, but what does it all mean for Lamb? That negotiation is a lot murkier, given the seeming lack of communication between Lamb and the Cowboys.