George Pickens instantly wins over Cowboys fans with perfect Dak Prescott comment
Even though the Dallas Cowboys were expected to make a move for a wide receiver, they still sent shockwaves around the league on Wednesday when they sent a third- and fifth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for star wideout George Pickens.
There is no denying that Brian Schottenheimer and team leaders will have their work cut out to harness Pickens’ propensity to let his emotions get the best of him, but this is a trade you make 10 times out of 10 because of its sheer upside.
In theory, Pickens’ skill set is a perfect marriage with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb. His ability to stretch the field will open up the playbook and create more real estate for Lamb and the team’s other pass-catchers.
Appearing on a conference call with the Dallas media on Thursday, Pickens could hardly contain his excitement to catch spirals from Prescott.
George Pickens waste no time praising Dak Prescott after Cowboys trade
“I feel great. I like the mojo here. I like the swag,” Pickens said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “I feel like they have a great thing going for sure. I’m grateful to be here. I’m grateful to play with Dak.”
That could be interpreted as Pickens throwing shade at the Steelers, but he commendably ducked any and every opportunity to jab his former team. The 24-year-old is focused on doing “whatever the team” needs of him and “building a winning culture.”
At the same time, though, it is easy to understand why Pickens is giddy to play with Prescott.
Last season, Pickens tallied 471 receiving yards on targets that had less than a 50% completion probability, according to NFL Pro. That is both a testament to Pittsburgh’s lousy QB play and Pickens’ elite catch radius and ball-tracking ability. Not many receivers are better than Pickens when it comes to tracking the ball in the air and torquing their body to make a difficult catch.
Even though the Dallas Cowboys were expected to make a move for a wide receiver, they still sent shockwaves around the league on Wednesday when they sent a third- and fifth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for star wideout George Pickens.
There is no denying that Brian Schottenheimer and team leaders will have their work cut out to harness Pickens’ propensity to let his emotions get the best of him, but this is a trade you make 10 times out of 10 because of its sheer upside.
In theory, Pickens’ skill set is a perfect marriage with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb. His ability to stretch the field will open up the playbook and create more real estate for Lamb and the team’s other pass-catchers.
Appearing on a conference call with the Dallas media on Thursday, Pickens could hardly contain his excitement to catch spirals from Prescott.
George Pickens waste no time praising Dak Prescott after Cowboys trade
“I feel great. I like the mojo here. I like the swag,” Pickens said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “I feel like they have a great thing going for sure. I’m grateful to be here. I’m grateful to play with Dak.”
That could be interpreted as Pickens throwing shade at the Steelers, but he commendably ducked any and every opportunity to jab his former team. The 24-year-old is focused on doing “whatever the team” needs of him and “building a winning culture.”
At the same time, though, it is easy to understand why Pickens is giddy to play with Prescott.
Last season, Pickens tallied 471 receiving yards on targets that had less than a 50% completion probability, according to NFL Pro. That is both a testament to Pittsburgh’s lousy QB play and Pickens’ elite catch radius and ball-tracking ability. Not many receivers are better than Pickens when it comes to tracking the ball in the air and torquing their body to make a difficult catch.
It just so happens that Prescott is one of the best deep ball throwers in the league. He just hasn’t had many opportunities to let it loose, largely due to personnel deficiencies. The offense’s top deep threat last year was a 31-year-old Brandin Cooks. KaVontae Turpin ended up leading the team with 13.4 yards per catch.
Pickens was saddled with some of the most inconsistent QB play over his three years in Pittsburgh. Between Russell Wilson, Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph and Mitch Trubisky, it is no surprise Pickens grew frustrated with the offense.
That does not defend some of his antics, but it sounds like the former Georgia Bulldog desperately needed a change of scenery.
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