CeeDee Lamb was motivated to "step up" for his game-winning catch in the Dallas Cowboys' victory over the New York Giants having been annoyed by a second-quarter drop.
The Cowboys' star receiver made a couple of first-half errors, one of which he looked certain to claim in his stride for a touchdown from an excellent deep ball from Cooper Rush, only for it to slip through his grasp.
But Lamb more than atoned by making a sensational one-handed grab for a touchdown with 8:30 to play.
It was the icing on the cake of an 89-yard drive, in which Rush – standing in again for the injured Dak Prescott – found Lamb on four occasions.
"It [the dropped pass] was a situation I had to deal with on my own. Obviously I’m the one that dropped the ball for the guys," Lamb said after the game.
"So knowing that I had to make this up in the back end of the game, I just wanted to step up.
"I was willing to do anything to make up for a touchdown potentially that I left in the first quarter. It was tough. It was a tough one, but I'm happy we came out victorious."
Lamb finished the game with eight catches for 87 yards but conceded there were frustrations from his earlier mistakes.
"It was very frustrating. Honestly, just because I practice all week, all offseason just on focusing in on the ball, and I let that one slip away," he added.
"It was tough. Partially because, like I said, all the hard work I put in just for one play away, I let it slip."
Ezekiel Elliot's one-yard touchdown had earlier levelled the game, and Lamb – now the undisputed number one receiver in the team after Amari Cooper was traded to the Cleveland Browns – felt like his winning contribution was a breakthrough moment.
"Most definitely [it was a breakthrough moment]," Lamb said.
"I appreciate Kel [offensive coordinator Kellen Moore] for trusting in me, all the guys believing in my ability.
"You know, it was a tough third quarter. I kept thinking about it. All the guys kept preaching to me, 'Let it go. Let it go. We still got more game left.'
"And fourth quarter when I kept hearing my number being called I knew it was my opportunity again, so I had to step up.
"It's gonna have its ebbs and flows. It's all about being consistent. Staying positive. Everything's not going to go my way. And when it does, it's going to go big."
Stand-in quarterback Rush played in back-to-back NFL games for the first time in his career with Prescott still sidelined by a hand injury sustained in week one against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
For Rush, the focus is on the team and not any potential battle for a starting berth.
"I want to keep winning, as long as I'm in there let's keep winning," he said post-game.
"Trust each other both sides of the ball [and] we'll be alright."
Edge rusher Hendrickson reportedly requests trade from Bengals
A day before the NFL draft, one of the league's best edge rushers has requested a trade.
Three-time Pro Bowler Trey Hendrickson has asked to be traded from the Cincinnati Bengals on Wednesday, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
Hendrickson, who is set to make $14.8million this season and $15.8million in 2025, is reportedly seeking a long-term deal - something that hasn't been worked out with the Bengals.
His request to be traded comes at an intriguing time with the draft set for Thursday, as another team could be looking to make a deal with Cincinnati for the established pass rusher.
The 29-year-old is coming off a career year, registering a personal-high 17 1/2 sacks to tie with Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Josh Allen for the second most in the league.
Hendrickson's 16 tackles for loss were tied for 10th in 2023, and his 53 sacks since the start of the 2020 season rank third behind T.J. Watt (62) and Myles Garrett (58).
A third-round pick by the New Orleans Saints in 2017, Hendrickson signed with the Bengals in 2021, and has been named a Pro Bowler in each of his three seasons in Cincinnati.
Hendrickson's request for a trade comes a little more than a month after wide receiver Tee Higgins asked to be traded.
Higgins, who had the franchise tag placed on him by the Bengals on February 26, did say earlier this month, however, that he intends to play for Cincinnati in 2024.
Fellow Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase had the fifth-year option on his rookie contract picked up on Wednesday.
Chase, the 2021 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, has 268 receptions for 3,717 yards and 29 touchdowns in his first three seasons - the team leader in each category since 2021.
Detroit Lions WR St. Brown gets $120M extension
The Detroit Lions have locked up one of their most important players for the foreseeable future by agreeing to a reported four-year, $120 million extension with wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.
St. Brown, who was entering the final season of his rookie contract, confirmed the news Wednesday with a video message on his Instagram account.
"I can't wait. I'm here, four more years!," St. Brown announced.
One of the NFL's most productive receivers since entering the league as a fourth-round draft pick of the Lions in 2021, St. Brown will now be among the highest-paid players at his position. NFL.com reports the contract, which runs through 2028, includes $77 million in guaranteed money for the largest sum ever for a wide receiver.
The deal's $30 million average annual value is tied for the highest among wide receivers, matching the four-year, $120 million extension Tyreek Hill received from the Miami Dolphins in 2022.
St. Brown earned first team All-Pro honours with a brilliant 2023 campaign in which he finished in the NFL's top three in receptions (119) and receiving yards (1,515) and recorded a career-high 10 touchdown catches in 16 games.
The 24-year-old added 22 catches for 274 yards and a touchdown in three post-season games to help the NFC North champion Lions advance to the conference title game for the first time since 1991.
St. Brown's 315 career receptions are the third-most by any player in NFL history through his first three seasons, eclipsed only by Minnesota Vikings star Justin Jefferson's 324 from 2020-22 and Michael Thomas' 321 with the New Orleans Saints from 2016-18.
The two-time Pro Bowler is also one of just three receivers in league history with 90 or more catches through his first three seasons, joining Thomas and Odell Beckham Jr. (2014-16).
Broncos reportedly trade for Jets QB Wilson
Zach Wilson has a chance to restart his career in a new setting after the Denver Broncos reportedly traded for the former starting quarterback from the New York Jets on Monday, according to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport.
The Broncos are also acquiring a seventh-round pick in this year's NFL draft, and the Jets will receive a sixth-rounder.
New York will also pay part of Wilson's $5.5million salary next season.
Wilson arrives in Denver after never living up to expectations with the Jets after the franchise selected him second overall in the 2021 draft.
He went 3-10 as a rookie in 2021, and things didn't improve in 2022, leading to his benching.
The Jets had seen enough and decided to move on from Wilson, trading for Aaron Rodgers prior to the 2023 season. Wilson, though, got another chance to start after Rodgers tore his Achilles on his first drive with New York in the season opener.
He was unable to take advantage of that opportunity, however, throwing for eight touchdowns and seven interceptions in 12 games in 2023. His 77.2 passer rating ranked 30th out of 32 qualifying QBs last season.
In 34 career games, he has completed 57.0 per cent of his passes for 6,293 yards with 23 TDs and 25 picks.
Among the 30 quarterbacks with a minimum of 700 pass attempts since 2021, Wilson ranks last in completion percentage and QB rating (73.2), and 29th in both touchdown passes and yards per attempt (6.34).
In Denver, he'll likely get a chance to compete for the starting QB job after the Broncos released Russell Wilson in early March.
The only other quarterbacks on Denver's roster are Jarrett Stidham and Ben DiNucci, but the team could also decide to select one in Thursday's draft.
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