Cowboys' Brandin Cooks: Role could grow sans Lamb

Cooks and Jalen Tolbert (finger) are expected to serve as the Cowboys' top two receivers for the next two games with Dallas announcing Thursday that CeeDee Lamb (shoulder) has been ruled out for the season, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.

Lamb first suffered an AC joint sprain in his shoulder in the Nov. 3 loss to the Falcons and had aggravated the injury on multiple occasions since, but the star wideout had still suited up in Dallas' last seven games while averaging 9.7 targets per contest. With the Cowboys officially eliminated from playoff contention following Week 17 action, the team will shut Lamb down to avoid further wear and tear on his shoulder, with his absence creating a major void in the Dallas passing attack. While Cooks should benefit from some added looks as a result of Lamb's absence, expect quarterback Cooper Rush to disperse Lamb's vacated targets around among a number of pass catchers. In addition to Cooks and Tolbert, tight end Jake Ferguson and depth wideouts Jalen Brooks (knee), Ryan Flournoy and KaVontae Turpin could also see their involvement in the passing game increase to varying degrees.