Last week, there were antennae raised all around The Star when the Dallas Cowboys‘ Brian Schottenheimer did something that has been decidedly rare in his tenure as the team’s head coach–he openly criticized one of his best players, in this case George Pickens. No doubt, Schottenheimer was right to do so, because Pickens was not putting up much effort as a run blocker when he was on the field, and Pro Football Focus had him rated the fifth-worst receiver in the NFL when it came to blocking for the run.
Effort and professionalism have been two big question marks around Pickens early in his career with the Steelers, and it appeared in 2025, after arriving with the Cowboys and having a breakout season with 93 catches and 1,429 yards, that Pickens had put that reputation behind him. But Schottenheimer called out his effort again, saying, “He needs to understand that he impacts us in the running game as well.”
But it was not just talk. Schottenheimer took action.
George Pickens Snap Reduction ‘Good Coaching’
Effectively, the Cowboys did what they could to get Pickens off the field during running plays, and intentionally reduced his snap count because of it. Among Cowboys receivers, CeeDee Lamb played 55 snaps, and Ryan Flournoy played 53. Pickens played only 41, a season low, registering only 63% of the team’s Week 7 snaps.
Former Cowboys receiver Jesse Holley, now an analyst for DLLS Cowboys, said Schottenheimer was right to make the change.
Speaking on the site’s podcast, he said, “I think this is good coaching. Take him off the field on running plays. That’s good coaching.”
Cowboys WR Hierarchy Still Intact
Fellow DLLS Cowboys host Jeff Cavanaugh agreed. He pointed out that Schottenheimer challenged Pickens and, rather than giving Pickens a chance to block better, simply pulled him off the field. Said Cavanaugh: “The answer to, George knows that’s part of it and he has got to do that, his answer was, ‘George come stand here, we’re not throwing the ball.’”
Now, that should not be interpreted as Flournoy surpassing Pickens on the depth chart, Holley said. It’s just a matter of Flournoy understanding his role.
Said Holley: “I don’t give a darn what you say, and I said this last week, George Pickens was not brought to this football team to block. Ryan Flournoy, we value the No. 3 receiver far too much here. We put the No. 3 wide receiver up there in the conversation, like, it should only be CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens when we are talking about wide receivers.
“Three and lower, you just get in where you fit in. And Ryan Flournoy, guess what, buddy? That is your job. The No. 3, the No. 4 wide receiver, you must do the dirty work. You must do all the things that the stars don’t want to do. And in return, you get to nibble on the crumbs.”
Indeed, Lamb leads the NFL with 81 targets, and Pickens is second on the team with 58. Flournoy hardly gets crumbs, but is still firmly No. 3 on the list at 40.
Cowboys Tough George Pickens Action Draws Praise