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FRISCO, Texas -- How crucial was it for Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones to have a sense of urgency and get 2023 First-Team wide receiver CeeDee Lamb's four-year, $136 million extension done prior to training camp instead of late August?

Well, the Cowboys are finding out as 2023 Second-Team All-Pro quarterback Dak Prescott and Lamb's 2024 offensive passing connection is paying the price. Dallas trailed 14-3 in the second quarter (14:29 left before halftime) of their Week 2 home opener against the New Orleans Saints when Prescott uncorked a pass to Lamb in the end zone on a slot fade route along the numbers in the middle of the field. Lamb blew past Saints cornerback Paulson Adebo, beating him on his deep route toward the middle of the end zone. The problem is Prescott thought Lamb was running his route to the back corner of the end zone, and Lamb remained inside. Incomplete pass. 

Dallas ended up settling for a 38-yard field made field goal from All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey, and New Orleans' lead remained 14-6, in a game it went on to win 44-19. 

Lamb admitted the mistake was his, and that it was a byproduct of the time missed between himself and Prescott in training camp, something that could have been avoided if Jones had acted sooner. 

"Yeah, absolutely. Just kind of going over training camp things, training camp moves. Things that we put in a long time ago, but obviously having those conversations are always great conversations. That's going to be the first that I go to as soon we get on the sideline, completion or incompletion," Lamb said on Thursday. "What were you thinking? What were you feeling? What do you think I was doing?' It's all about getting on the same page as your quarterback being a receiver. So for me, it's just making sure that I'm available for him and whatever I got to do to be open, I'm going to do that. Whatever I got to do to get the reception, get us on the board, I'm going to do that."

The Cowboys have successfully completed only nine of Lamb's 17 targets for 151 yards and a touchdown. That rate likely needs to be closer to 70% than 50% for the Cowboys to turn things around given the state of their underperforming run game. Their ground attack averages 85 yards per game (25th in the NFL) and 3.7 yards per game (26th in the NFL) while rolling out a committee of undrafted veteran Rico Dowdle, a late-career Ezekiel Elliott and 2023 sixth-round pick Deuce Vaughn. That's why Prescott and Lamb are in constant contact when at the practice facility. They search to rekindle the connection that led to Lamb leading the NFL in receptions (135) and Prescott leading the league in passing touchdowns (36) in 2023. Everything their offense achieves is byproduct of the threat Dallas' dynamic duo poses, which is why their re-connection is crucial. 

"Just continuing to communicate each and every day that we're in here, whether it's the film, whether it's something at practice," Prescott said of rebuilding chemistry with Lamb. "Certain routes to make sure that some of those mistakes don't happen again and everybody points out the one in the red zone there. That's a simple mistake that if we're on the same page, we understand what needs to be accomplished, that's an easy touchdown."

That's why Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy made a point of spending time going over the nitty gritty details of his offense's route-running with his players on Wednesday. 

"Tendencies," McCarthy said Wednesday when asked what he discussed in terms of route-running. "Just highlight the specifics. I think our guys have done a really good job, especially away from here in the offseason, the summertime of spending that time together, whether it's at Celina High School or some of the places that they workout. Just building off that and just make sure you're reinforcing it."  

Prescott going ball deep down the sideline to Lamb was one of the most efficient routes in the NFL last season, but last week, he didn't complete any of his three vertical route attempts to Lamb. He also threw an interception to Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu, a far cry from Prescott's and Lamb's 2023 production in this particular area. They teamed up for 26 completions and 628 receiving yards on vertical routes last season, per NFL Pro Insights, which ranked as the second-most among all QB-WR duos in the NFL. 

However, Prescott feels it won't be long before the two get back on the same page in 2024 given their constant contact once Lamb re-signed with the Cowboys on Aug. 26. 

"Yeah, it's close. We're looking to take that next step," Prescott said Thursday. "There were some plays left out there once again. But at the end of the day, yeah, I'm seeing it well. Guys are doing what they're supposed to be doing. We can be a little bit better on [route] depth. I can be a little bit more accurate on some throws. We can hold some windows longer. I can anticipate a little bit better. I think once you get that going a little bit more, I think that's just where the red zone will take off. We were able to move the ball last week. Touchdowns were the problem. [Dallas did not score a touchdown on their three red zone trips in Week 2] Not getting the touchdowns were the problem and settling for field goals. I think especially in that red zone, being able to hold those windows, me being able to anticipate, then the touchdowns come. Then, we're going to be fine."

An indicator that Prescott knows what he's talking about is his touchdown pass to Lamb in double coverage on Sunday, one in which Lamb outmuscled the Saints defensive backs for the football, ducked and exploded down the sideline for a 65-yard score. The 25-year-old saw the fruits of his labor in terms of all the summer workouts he did on his own, shrugging off defenders for the touchdown. Lamb added 10 to 15 pounds of muscle in the offseason. 

"Absolutely man," Lamb said. "That's just only the beginning. Everything that I've trained for in the offseason is going to come to life. I have no doubt about it." 

So how will Lamb and Prescott get their timing back? By picking each other's brains and executing on Sundays. 

"Starts in practice, getting in each other's brain, picking each other's brain," Lamb said. "Asking questions and coming to a mutual understanding and agreement depending on how I'm being guarded or what he sees. It's a lot of things that go into it, and it's not just going to happen overnight. But us being as confident and doing this together for so long, we can make it right."

They happen to have a matchup in the 0-2 Baltimore Ravens on Sunday that could serve as a get-right game. McCarthy doesn't take stock in early season stats until at least four games are played, but it's worth noting the Ravens are allowing the most passing yards per game (257.0) in the NFL entering Week 3. 

The Ravens are specifically vulnerable in the slot, an area that has been Lamb's bread and butter over the years: he led the NFL in slot receiving yards in both 2022 (867) and 2023 (907). That made him the first player since the NFL's Next Gen Stats began tracking yards from the slot in 2016 to lead the league in that category in back to back seasons. In 2023, he averaged 2.7 yards per route run from the slot, the most by any wide receiver who ran at least 150 such routes, per NFL Pro Insights. This year, his 1.2 yards per route are a far cry, but Baltimore's defense is allowing a 68.4% success rate on opponent targets to the slot, the second highest in the league so far. There couldn't be a better moment for Prescott and Lamb to get back on track than at home in Week 3 against the Ravens. 

"Last year is last [year] for sure, but I will say throughout the year, we do have a tendency of getting better," Lamb said. "We set the bar for ourselves, obviously to see how we compete versus other people. And then, we make adjustments. I will say we can definitely look forward to making more adjustments this year."