New Cowboys WR George Pickens ‘dialed in;’ how CeeDee Lamb aims to impact his career like Pro Bowl ex-teammate

FRISCO, Texas — How excited were the Dallas Cowboys to acquire explosive wide receiver George Pickens in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier in May?

Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones called Dak Prescott many times to inform him about the newest playmaker in his arsenal. The three-time Pro Bowl quarterback being away from his phone for “a couple hours” also factored into the volume of calls plus a voicemail Prescott was happy to recreate through a verbal impression after Dallas’ second organized team activities (OTAs) practice Tuesday.

“I was actually away from my phone for a couple hours,” Prescott said. “I came back to like six missed calls from Jerry’s assistant. I had literally no idea what it could have been about.”

“Actually got a voicemail from Jerry: ‘Hey! I’ve got some good news I want to share with you!'” Prescott then exclaimed while mimicking Jones’ southern drawl.

Prescott did call Jones back later that night, and they shared their excitement to pair Pickens with All-Pro Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb in Dallas’ offense

“So I called him back and he was excited,” Prescott said. “Yeah, just a lot of excitement from the both of us. … “I mean, looking at the guy’s tape, you see what he does, the kind of receiver he is. He’s going to win one-on-ones. He can win two versus one if he has to. Very, very talented guy. When you can add him alongside a CeeDee and the rest of the weapons we have, I’m super excited.”  

Prescott and Pickens, who was wearing No. 13 (a jersey number that hasn’t been finalized yet), connected for a pair of completions on a quick screen and a comeback route down the left sideline at Dallas’ second practice of OTAs, the first open to media viewing. 

The Lamb-Pickens connection

Lamb also shared similar anticipation for Pickens’ arrival since he was one of the first Cowboys players to call Pickens once the news broke. 

“He [Lamb] was actually one of the first people that reached out to me besides Jerry and the actual people. As far as players, he was one of the first players,” Pickens said Tuesday. “Just good vibes, he was super happy, some of the guys on defense as well, the whole team [was] super happy.”

What excites Lamb about the addition of the 6-foot-3, 200-pound Pickens lining up alongside him in the Cowboys formation? Everything. Pickens averaging an NFL-best 16.7 yards per reception across the last two seasons, a figure that leads the entire NFL among 61 players with at least 110 catches since 2023, is certainly a factor. 

“Everything,” Lamb said. “His demeanor, everything he brings to the table. His ability to block and the energy he just brings to the game. … Man, we complement each other very well. Obviously, he’s a tall figure. His ability to go up and get the ball at the highest point is amazing. I don’t think anybody in the league can really; he’s up there with the guys in the league as far as 50/50 balls, deep threat. Anything as far as running routes, it’s pretty good. It’s good to see.”

The two have picked up right where they left off when they first met back in 2022. Lamb was two years into his NFL career and fresh off his first 1,000-yard season at the time that they met, and Pickens was training for the draft when the two first worked out together in Atlanta. 

“We started off when I want to say it was his combine prep and everything. We were out in Atlanta, just getting right. Grinding,” Lamb said. “We are all students of the game, still are, but it’s giving him the little things that I learned as far as my first year in the league and just passed him what I could while I could. It’s crazy how things come full circle, having him on the team now, catching up on everything that we left off.”

Pickens’ reception heat map, courtesy of TruMedia, indicates a bright, glowing yellow along the sidelines where he was a big-play deep threat as his gaudy 16.7 yards per catch average indicates. 

Pickens, a former second-round pick who is entering the final season of his rookie deal in 2025, has made a point of taking notes from Lamb about his technique running routes over the middle, something the latter does better than arguably the rest of the league. Lamb leads the NFL in catches (114) and receiving yards (1,377) out of the slot since 2023. That’s why his reception heat map in 2024 from TruMedia below is glowing highlighter yellow over the middle of the field. 

“Just intermediate [route] stuff,” Pickens said when asked what he’s learning from Lamb. “He’s got great feet, stepping in certain places. He steps in place a lot, which means he can get where he’s going fast and in a short space. And he’s tall [6-2]. A lot of people don’t know he’s kind of tall.”  

Lamb, who is entering his sixth NFL season in 2025, agreed he and Pickens’ relationship has some similarities to how much of a sponge he was when he was learning from five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper in his first two seasons from 2020 to 2021. 

“No, not at all because when I was a rookie I was still a student of the game, and I was excited to learn, anxious to learn and stay in my books and asking questions, which is what he [Pickens] is doing,” Lamb said when asked if this is different from he and Cooper’s time together. “I feel like again, seeing how fast forward three, four, five — how many years, five, wow oh my goodness — fast forward five years later now the roles are reversed. Still grateful again, I can’t appreciate Coop enough for the knowledge that he’s given me. Man, he’s impacted my career for the long haul.”

Changing the narrative

Copious note-taking and making the most of his resources indicate the maturity of a veteran, which what Pickens has done since his Dallas arrival. That’s a contrast from the narrative coming out of Pittsburgh that he needed to grow up. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin publicly challenged him to do just that last season. Tomlin’s critique occurred after Pickens was called for two personal foul penalties in Pittsburgh’s 44-38 road win at the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13 last season. 

“I already knew what it was. I knew who he was as a player,” Lamb said when asked about that narrative of Pickens’ being immature and temperamental. “Obviously just watching him with the Steelers and how passionate he is about the game, I think they kind of get it confused when you’re so passionate about something, you’re willing to do anything for it. As far as winning goes, just being happy in an organization. Not saying that he wasn’t, not saying that he was, you never know. He hasn’t stopped smiling since he got here so I’ll start with that.”

“I’m actually like a chill guy,” Pickens said with a smile when asked about the previous narrative that surrounded him with the Steelers. “It’s like a big phase of a tornado that’s not even true. I’m a chill guy who likes to work.”

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A steady veteran who has come in ready to work has certainly been new Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer’s experience with Pickens, so perhaps things will be different in Dallas for the playmaker formerly viewed similarly to that of a roaring tornado. 

“My time with him has been just incredible,” Schottenheimer said Tuesday. “I think we were all on board [with the trade]. We’re always trying to find the right pieces and good pieces, and I think we’re really excited about what he brings as a football player. But I see a guy that’s maturing. I see a guy that we’re excited to put out there and watch him grow and get better. He’s obviously a tremendous athlete, but I love watching him in meetings, because in meetings, he’s been so dialed in, taking great notes. He knows he’s a little bit behind, not a lot, but a little bit behind in terms of what the veterans are doing. But intentionality in the meeting room has been really cool for me to see.”