FRISCO, Texas — George Pickens went back through the film of the Dallas Cowboys’ season opener and came away believing he was open on most of his routes. The receiver said Wednesday at The Star that the part he has to fix is finishing the catch.
Pickens caught 3 of 6 targets for 28 yards in the 28-20 loss to the New York Giants on Sunday night. He played 49 of 58 offensive snaps. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said earlier Wednesday that he had not said anything to Pickens about the drops and that Pickens would be just fine.
His releases jumped out on the tape.
“Definitely the releases. I’d probably say the releases. Really everything. I felt like I was open on most of the stuff, honestly,” Pickens said. “Just making the play, you’ve got to finish it. You can run a beautiful route, you’ve still got to finish the catch.”
George Pickens Doesn’t Need A Talk After Week 1 Drops
Pickens does not need a conversation after a game like Sunday’s, he said, because he does that on his own regularly.
“Nah, not really. Just because I do it on a regular,” Pickens explained.
The drops are part of football, Pickens said, and he wants to limit them because he knows what he is capable of.
“I’d definitely say just the same thing. It’s football, so you’re going to have something here, you’re going to have something there,” Pickens said. “But you definitely want to limit those just to make the big plays because that’s what I know what I’m capable of, but football is football.”
Pickens set career highs in 2025, his first season in Dallas, with 93 catches for 1,429 yards and 9 touchdowns on 137 targets.
George Pickens Says Dallas Cowboys Could Have Started Faster
It was only the first game, Pickens said, so disappointment is not the word he would use. Schottenheimer and the whole team felt Dallas could have started faster.
“I wouldn’t say disappointed just because it’s the first game. And I know we’ve got a lot more games to come,” Pickens said. “But definitely as a unit, I think Schotty said that too, just a full team. I feel like we could have just started a little faster.”
“Oh, yeah, most definitely. Always motivating,” Pickens continued. “Even when you do good, you should be still motivated to do better. But definitely motivating.”
Dallas went three-and-out on its first possession. CeeDee Lamb caught 5 of 8 targets for 44 yards and a touchdown, and Dak Prescott completed 22-of-34 passes for 175 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception.
Dallas hosts the Washington Commanders on Sunday at AT&T Stadium. Kickoff is 3:25 p.m. CT on FOX.
