‘Move Them Around More’: Brian Schottenheimer Says Dallas Cowboys Must Get George Pickens Going Early

FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday that Dallas has to move receiver George Pickens around more to get him involved early in games, a day after Pickens caught 1 pass in the first half of a 23-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Pickens finished with 6 catches for 73 yards on 11 targets at Lambeau Field. He had 1 catch for 16 yards before halftime and 4 catches for 50 yards in the fourth quarter, including a 21-yard catch on the Cowboys’ final touchdown drive. Schottenheimer said Pickens keeps working and finds ways to make plays late.

“We need to, I mean, I think that’s fair. We need to, we need to move them around more. Again, I think when you look at GP, he’s able to move around. We just gotta do a better job of moving around with the design, put them in different spots,” Schottenheimer said.

“But they’re certainly paying attention to him, they’re certainly finding him. And this team was no different. You can see him pointing and calling them out, and that’s a sign of respect,” Schottenheimer continued. “What you love about GP is his ability to keep working and find ways to make plays late.”

Brian Schottenheimer On Creativity In The Dallas Cowboys Offense

Dallas threw 54 passes in the loss and has trailed in both of its last two games. Schottenheimer said trailing has also cut into how often the Cowboys play from under center and use motion.

“Yeah, yeah, I think so. I think at the end of the day, I mean, you’re always going to be accountable and responsible for when you struggle for two weeks like we have. And again, we don’t have to move George around for him to make plays, but it’s something we’d like to do. And I think that falls on myself and the offensive staff to make sure we’re using the things that we need to,” Schottenheimer explained.

“But again, I will say this in terms of how much we’re playing from under center and how much motions we’re using. Again, those numbers are affected because some of these games we’ve been playing behind the eight ball and having to go two-minute or up-tempo to try to get back into games,” Schottenheimer continued.

CeeDee Lamb was targeted 18 times and caught 9 passes for 70 yards. Dak Prescott said after the game that he still did not have the answer for getting Lamb the ball.

“As we’ve said before, right, these teams know his capability. They know we want to attack with him downfield and really just any which way. And they do a good job of putting two guys on him. And so I think for us it’s about moving him maybe more early,” Prescott said.

Schottenheimer Says Execution Falls On Players And Coaches

Dallas won 2 of its first 4 games before losing to Tampa Bay and Green Bay. Schottenheimer said the players practice hard and play hard.

“Well, again, I start with the way they played last night from an effort standpoint. I mean, this team gives us what we ask for. I think it starts there. These guys practice hard. They play hard,” Schottenheimer said. “The execution has not been good enough these last two games for sure. Again, a lot of football left.”

Execution falls on both the players and the coaches, Schottenheimer said. He said Dallas will look at how it wants games to unfold.

Dallas visits the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday, Oct. 26, at Lincoln Financial Field. Kickoff is set for 7:15 p.m. CT on ESPN and ABC.