The NFL season is officially underway, and the New York Giants are getting ready to take on the division rival Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium on Sunday Night Football.
After back-to-back disappointing seasons where the Giants combined for only seven wins, the team has renewed optimism in 2026.
That optimism led to one Giants player making a bold claim regarding his position group, and now Cowboys Pro Bowl wide receiver George Pickens has shared his own words before the game.
George Pickens Answers New York Giants’ Greg Newsome’s Claims
New York Giants cornerback Greg Newsome previously made the bold claim that he was a member of the best cornerback room in the NFL. Additionally, Newsome expressed confidence in their ability to perform well in Week 1 against Dallas, as he said, “I feel like all of us can be out there Week 1 and play at a very elite level.” Regarding how they feel about facing Pro Bowl wide receivers George Pickens and Ceedee Lamb, Newsome said, “Definitely great players, but I like our chances.”
Asked about those comments, Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens responded, “That’s definitely how he should feel. Now how we should feel, I’d definitely probably say a completely different story. That’s cool that he thinks that. He should definitely feel like that, but I feel like we’re definitely not thinking the same thing.”
Pickens went on to make his own bold claim as he stated that he and Lamb were the best wide receiver tandem in the NFL.
In the first matchup between the Giants and Cowboys during the 2025 season, Pickens and Lamb combined for 180 receiving yards and one touchdown in a 40-37 Dallas win. During their second matchup, Dallas rested their starters for most of the game.
Greg Newsome was not a part of the Giants during the 2025 season.
New York Giants Secondary
Despite Newsome’s bold claim that they have the best cornerback room in the NFL, analysts don’t seem to agree.
The team’s secondary was ranked 27th in the NFL by Pro Football Focus. PFF wrote of the Giants’ secondary: “Run defense was a major concern for the Giants whenever the front seven defenders were taken out of the equation. New York finished with the lowest PFF run-defense grade of any secondary last year. The Giants also committed the second-most penalties of any defensive backs group. They’re practically rolling out the same underwhelming group in 2026, with the exception of newcomer Greg Newsome II. Now on his third franchise in four years, Newsome is badly out of form. No cornerback in the league allowed more receptions in coverage between Week 14 and Jacksonville’s wild-card round exit.”
Fortunately for the Giants, Week 1 provides an opportunity to change the narrative as performing well against Dallas’ star tandem would likely turn heads.
Regarding the tough task the Giants’ secondary has in the first two games of the season, Giants On SI’s Stephen Lebitsch wrote: “It’s going to take much more than Newsome’s talents to elevate the playmaking of the Giants’ secondary into one of the peskiest units in the league. They’re set to open up their schedule against two of the most productive offenses in the league: the Dallas Cowboys and Los Angeles Rams.”
George Pickens Doesn’t Hold Back on Giants Cornerback