FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens did not want to get too much into the criticism he received following the Dec. 4 loss to the Detroit Lions.
Speaking to the media for the first time Wednesday since that game, Pickens initially deflected a question about the criticism he received after catching five passes for 37 yards against the Lions by saying his focus was on Sunday’s opponent, the Los Angeles Chargers. Prime analyst Richard Sherman said Pickens looked, “disengaged,” and “uninterested,” after the Lions game
Pickens wrote and later deleted a social media post aimed at Sherman, but he agreed with CeeDee Lamb‘s assertion that people were waiting for Pickens to have a poor game.
“Yeah, that’s definitely what it felt like,” Pickens said, “but I can’t really get into that. Everybody’s got a job to do.”
Pickens leads the Cowboys with 81 catches for 1,212 yards and eight receiving touchdowns, all career highs. In the past two weeks, however, he has caught just eight passes for 70 yards.
“Just double coverage,” Picken said. “Surely that simple. Just double coverage. Offensively, all we can do is just try to execute at a high level no matter who it is.”
Pickens said the added attention has played a part in the 100-yard games Lamb and Ryan Flournoy have had against the Lions and Minnesota Vikings. He said the way to beat double coverage is to move around the formation and run the ball.
“Definitely got offensive ways to get a guy open,” Pickens said.
Pickens has earned the trust of coaches and teammates with how he has worked on and off the field since his trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers last spring. He faced similar critiques in his first three seasons in Pittsburgh.
“Everybody has a job to do,” Pickens said. “Some people’s job is to do that. It’s like tear down a character, see how much clicks they can get. But I’m just here to play football and help the team honestly.”
Is he used to it by now?
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “Starting to get kind of old honestly.”
