The Science behind the Trade

George Pickens, an exciting player with tons of upside. A player that can box out dbs and win one on one jump balls, something the cowboys have kind of been missing since the days of pre-injury Gallup. Don't get me wrong, Ceedee lamb is a fantastic player and is better than pickens, but jump ball ability isn't really one of his strengths, as he has a 50% contested catch rate and a 47th in the league on being targeted for deep passes. All not terrible stats for someone who is 6'1, but adding pickens, who is better than ceedee in these stats could help open up the offense for Dak. Speaking of Qb1, Dak has thrived with targets like Pickens. We know about his fatuation with Gallup and his deep balls, but many don't remember his time with recievers like Brice Butler and Dez Bryant. While him and Bryant never really established that firm connection like Romo, it was still servicable. All of this makes you think, why did the steelers give him away for a 3rd round pick in '26 and a 5th rounder in '27. Well..... you'd not really be suprised.

George Pickens #14 spectactular catch over Martin Emmerson Jr.#20 in Steelers vs Browns September 27,2022.

Pittsburgh is known for developing recievers over time that have, well, lost their minds. Players like Antonio Brown, Martavious Bryant, Mike Wallace, Juju, Diontae Johnson all had some sort of character issues. George Pickens is not the exception here, although, he had these problems when he was at Georgia. My problem with Pickens though, he has the temper of AB, but with only half the skill. I talked about length about his jump-ball and contested catch ability. But what I didn't mention is that he's not that good of a route runner, nor does he have the sure hands you hope for in a guy like him.

https://heavy.com/sports/nfl/pittsburgh-steelers/george-pickens-drops-bengals-russell-wilson/. This article above done by Heavy.com is a story about the week 18 game between the steelers and the bengals. Steelers lost this game 19-17, but the reason why will probably suprise you. Wilson didn't have his best game, only going for 17-31 148 yards 1 td and 1 int. However, Pickens had 1 catch for 17 yards and 4 drops! Now, off games happen. But its how pickens acted not only during, but after the game that highlights the issue. He was pouting on the sideline, getting into arguments with the other team, and looked geniunely uninterested in improving his game. This isn't a one off issue, in the stretch of games that the steelers struggled with late in the season, pickens productivity dropped off tremendously. While that was going on, he had the same behavior issues everyone says about him.

The cowboys got their reciever don't get me wrong, after the fiasco that was last season and the off-season that led to it, 2025 has been an increasingly better year for the boys in blue. With a good draft that set up this move, the cowboys have built a formidable team that can hand in there with the Eagles and the Commanders. However, they must ensure that this move doesn't jeapordize the culture that Schotty and the staff have been building.