Longtime Dallas Stars defenseman Jordie Benn is hanging up his skates after 12 NHL seasons, he told Chek News Monday. The 37-year-old’s last NHL act came with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2022-23.

“It’s a weird feeling that training camp is not around the corner, but it’s been a really fun ride,” Benn said.

Benn, older brother of Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn, took a very unconventional path to the NHL. He played junior hockey in the British Columbia Hockey League, but after going undrafted, he started his professional career with the Victoria Salmon Kings, the Vancouver Canucks’ former ECHL affiliate, in 2008-09. Then as his brother was establishing himself with the Stars, he worked his way up through the organization and eventually made his NHL debut in early 2012.

Jordie would go on to play six of his 12 NHL seasons alongside his brother in Dallas, getting to live out his childhood dream in the best league in the world.

“My brother and I just loved playing hockey,” Jordie said. “When we weren’t on the ice we were in the garage shooting pucks, we just loved the game.”

Later in his career, Jordie would play for the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild and finally the Maple Leafs. In 607 NHL games, he scored 26 goals and 137 points. Like his brother, though, Jordie was a physical presence with , 244 penalty minutes, 751 hits and 944 blocked shots throughout his career.

Last year, Jordie played for Brynas IF in Sweden, recording three goals and 22 points in 39 games.

Jordie’s NHL career is perhaps best defined by one word: persistence. He didn’t let his unconvential career path define him, and managed to enjoy a long and fruitful NHL career as a result. In fact, he even has a tattoo on his arm that says “Never Quit.”

“A lot of people thought I never should have made it, and maybe I shouldn’t have, but I just worked as hard as I could every night and tried to be the best teammate possible,” Jordie said.

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CeeDee Lamb is a happy man these days.

The Dallas Cowboys star wide receiver is only weeks removed from signing a four-year, $136 million contract which includes a $38 million signing bonus — a record for a wide receiver — and $100 million guaranteed. The contract was agreed upon shortly before the start of the season after Lamb had held out during the entirety of training camp.

The 25-year-old receiver explains that he was actually in Florida — he stayed in shape during his holdout in Fort Lauderdale — when he found out the news and that he was “ecstatic.”

“I was actually in Florida when I first found out and how did I feel? I was ecstatic,” says Lamb with a big smile on his face during a one-on-one interview. “It didn’t feel real. I think we posted a video on it with my reaction when I was on the phone with my agent. I couldn’t believe it. Once he told me, it was like finally, the deal is done. Now I can go play ball.”

Lamb is now the second-highest paid wide receiver in the NFL after he was originally due to earn just a shade under $18 million this season. Not only will he earn $34 million on an annual basis, he’s locked in with the Cowboys through the 2028 season.

The fifth-year receiver is all smiles after earning his big contract with huge production last season. Lamb posted an NFL-leading 135 catches with 1,749 receiving yards — both franchise records. The young receiver explains how it’s still a “surreal” feeling two weeks after he signed the contract.

“I’m just like, ‘Wait a minute, let’s enjoy this. Take a step back,’” says Lamb. “I just think about all the things that I’ve been through in my life and my family’s life and just continuing to grow as a man and be that pedestal for my brothers and my cousins and all my little ones that’s under me and obviously just being a leader to the community. It’s an amazing feeling. It’s so surreal.”

Although Lamb missed practicing with his teammates during training camp, he didn’t seem to miss a beat during the Cowboys’ season-opening win over the Cleveland Browns. Lamb posted a team-leading five receptions for 61 receiving yards in the 33-17 victory.

He explains that while his cardio isn’t up to his liking, he felt “amazing” during Week 1 and that his endurance will only go up the more reps and games he plays moving forward.

“I felt amazing,” says Lamb during his 2024 NFL season debut against the Browns. “Felt a bit of fatigue in the back end (of the game), but that’s where the difference is from training and playing football. I felt a slight step back, but as we go throughout these things and I get more practices, I’ll be back.”

Lamb reveals that he actually stayed in shape during his training camp absence while working out for three hours a day for three-to-five days a week. He says that he definitely missed the “camaraderie” with his teammates during training camp. The star receiver also says that he has yet to make any big purchases since signing his deal.

“I wish I went to training camp, I will say that, just to build that camaraderie with my guys — be that leader that I’m supposed to be,” says Lamb. “I can lead from a distance, but it’s nothing like the presence. I wish I was there for my guys, but I had to handle some business.”

The three-time Pro Bowl receiver is speaking on behalf of his partnership with BodyArmor, whom he has had a working relationship with for several years now. Lamb mentions how the popular sports drink actually helped him stay “hydrated” during his “difficult” workouts while holding out in training camp.

“Doing three-hour workouts for three-to-five days a week, I feel that’s pretty self-explanatory,” says Lamb. “The hydration process, it was very important, very imperative for me. I just knew that it was something that I needed to get done and stay on top of to come back and be in the right state of mind and physically in shape. BodyArmor helped get that done. The workouts were very difficult — and it was worth every bit of it.”

While the strawberry banana flavor is Lamb’s favorite BodyArmor drink, there’s a new limited edition drink featuring the Cowboys receiver on the bottle. Outside of it being available in only limited quantity, it’s notable because it features a “consumer AR
Arweave
experience.” What that means is that fans can scan the QR code on the bottle and it brings them to a bunch of interactive games in a digital combine, including how efficiently they can run routes.

“Grab your phone, put the picture on it and it’ll take you right to the link,” says Lamb. “At that point, you have fun. Show me your football skills, it’s fun on the power, that’s the whole objective here. I’m very excited to launch it. Can’t wait for the people to have it, can’t wait for the kids to have it.”

While Lamb is financially set for life, he details what he learned during the long negotiation period when it came to his contract.

“Trust in what you believe in, you’re not wrong — know your worth,” says Lamb. “What’s for you will be for you. I felt like I really stood on my gut and continued to be myself and understood my value to the team. I understand my value to the game and how much I put into it. Again, it’s surreal, I can’t really put into words because it happened so fast. But obviously, it took so long for it to happen. But throughout that journey, I’ve learned so much as far as maturing and composing myself mentally, developing different things, different traits and can’t wait to use it.”

With their defense carrying the load, the Dallas Cowboys picked up a big win in their season opener against the Cleveland Browns. We went into the game with certain notions about the strengths and weaknesses of the roster, so how did Week 1 change those perceptions?

Remember, this isn’t a ranking of how the different positions performed in just the previous contest. This is a living list that will change as we move through the year. The first edition was based on past performance and offseason moves, so now we finally have some more concrete evidence of where various Cowboys stand.

1. Guard (Last Week: 1st) – It wasn’t a standout night for the interior line. One of the ugliest plays was actually on Zack Martin, who got beaten badly by Dalvin Tomlinson for an early sack. That was the only glaring breakdown, but we didn’t see much push up front to help the run game either. The guards need a much stronger showing against New Orleans to avoid losing the top spot.
2. Defensive End (LW: 3rd) – It’s not often that DeMarcus Lawrence gets to shine as brightly as Micah Parsons, but both were outstanding in Cleveland. They combined for three sacks and harassed Deshaun Watson all day, including Parsons tipping a pass that led to Eric Kendricks’ interception. Marshawn Kneeland also had a strong debut with a pass deflection and two QB hits.
3. Quarterback (LW: 2nd) – Dak Prescott didn’t have big numbers but he played a clean game despite plenty of pressure. There were a few near misses, but he finished with no turnovers and some pretty throws to CeeDee Lamb and Brandin Cooks. Returning home will help, but the Saints’ defense is stingy against the pass.
4. Linebacker (LW: 8th) – A great debut for Eric Kendricks and DeMarvion Overshown leads to a big jump in the rankings. We said last week that this group was held back by the unknown and, for at least one week, they gave evidence of having gone from a liability to a strength for the defense.
5. Safety (LW: 4th) – It was a quiet night for the safeties but that’s because the front seven was doing most of the damage. They didn’t really get chances to make plays.
6. Cornerback (LW: 7th) – Diggs had a pick, Caelen Carson held up well against Amari Cooper and other Browns receivers, and Jourdan Lewis had a strong game overall. They’ll miss DaRon Bland at some point but the Browns weren’t in a position to make them feel it.
7. Wide Receiver (LW: 5th) – There wasn’t much volume for the receivers but the starters made plays when given chances. Only one catch for Jalen Tolbert was disappointing but he should get more looks in the weeks ahead.
8. Tight End (LW: 6th) – Jake Ferguson’s knee injury was the scariest moment of the game but he appears relatively unscathed. No other TE even got a target.
9. Offensive Tackle (LW: 10th) – Tyler Guyton passed the Myles Garrett test, grading as one of the top rookie OTs in Week 1. We still need to see more in the run blocking from both the rookie and Terence Steele, but they won’t see too many defenses this year as good as Cleveland’s.
10. Center (LW: 11th) – When Tomlinson burst through the line and swallowed Prescott, we all assumed that was on Cooper Beebe. But the rookie center actually gave up no pressures in his debut. He won’t get noticed the same way Guyton does out on the edge, but Beebe’s first outing showed he’s in the right job.
11. Defensive Tackle (LW: 9th) – There were no big plays from the DTs but no major breakdowns either. They tread water this week, holding the Browns’ running game in check but failing to make any singularly noteworthy plays.
12. Running Back (LW: 12th) – If not for a few sweeps by Lamb to boost the average, the rushing offense would’ve averaged just 3.5 yards per carry. Zeke had a few nice plays, leaping a defender and scoring a TD, but it was crickets for the most part in the ground game.

Did we give anyone too much praise, or perhaps not enough? What would your list look like? Share it with us in the comments!