FRISCO, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys' (2-2) offense is once again humming through the first quarter of the 2026 season. Their Dak Prescott-led attack 30.5 points per game, and the most points per drive (3.39) in the league. Naturally, Prescott's numbers are elite: he ranks fifth in the league in per dropback (0.24), fourth in completion percentage (70%), seventh in passing yards (1,065), tied for seventh in passing touchdowns (eight) and tied for seventh in passer rating (105.0).
CeeDee Lamb has been on the receiving end of much of that production, leading the league in catches (37), receiving yards (498) and receiving first downs (28). Those 498 yards receiving are the most through the first four games of a season in Cowboys history. But what about George Pickens?
Pickens has been a statistical casualty of Dallas' defensive struggles leading to the Cowboys having a league-low 36 drives this season. In 2026, playing alongside a healthy Lamb, Pickens has 225 yards receiving and no touchdowns on 18 catches through four weeks while averaging a career-low 12.5 yards per reception at the moment. However, Pickens is as valuable as ever if you ask the Cowboys.
"I think if you look at George last year, I don't know, you guys can look it up. I don't think he was putting up the insane numbers even till week four, five, six, whatever it was, because I think it's when CeeDee kind of went out, but George is learning the system as well. George easily could have had three catches for 180 yards in that game [on Sunday in the 34-30 win at the Houston Texans]," coach Brian Schottenheimer said.
He caught one with his eyes covered, and he opens people up all the time." Pickens' role in the 2026 Cowboys offense, often, is that of the sacrificial lamb (pun intended) or field stretcher to open things up in the intermediate areas of the field. Pickens has run 45 go routes this season, the second-highest frequency in the league behind only DK Metcalf's 47 per TruMedia. Despite his high number of vertical routes deep down the field, Prescott maintains they're not making Pickens play decoy over and over again, even though that's what it may look like to the naked eye.
"He's pulling two guys with him almost all the time, and I don't know if he's clearing guys out," Prescott said. "Those are all real routes, and if you want to leave one guy on them, I'm going to throw it to him. So that's just making the defense show us what they want to do.
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