Stephen Jones Says George Pickens Reminds Cowboys of Dez Bryant After Steelers Trade

After acquiring wide receiver George Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers, one Dallas Cowboys executive compared him to one of the franchise's former stars.

Per The Athletic's Jon Machota, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said of Pickens during a radio appearance: "We think of him as more than a (No. 2 wide receiver). … Here you get a guy who has experience, who has had great success in the NFL, obviously a tremendous competitor. He reminds a lot (of us) in our building of Dez Bryant, in terms of his competitiveness and what he brings to the field, his edge."

Like Bryant, Pickens is a big-bodied receiver who can make plays downfield. He led the league with 18.1 yards per catch in 2023 and averages 16.3 ypc in his three-year career. Similarly, Bryant averaged 14.0 ypc in his 10-year career, eight of which were spent in Dallas.

Bryant was also known for his brash personality on the field, and Pickens might bring even more volatility to the team. He was involved in multiple on-field incidents during his time in Pittsburgh, prompting Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin to say at one point last season that he's "got to grow up in a hurry."

Pickens addressed the questions about his maturity while speaking to reporters during a conference call last week, saying he thinks he's moving in the right direction.

"I can't change anyone's opinion. Me, personally, I just continue to grow," Pickens told reporters. "Everyone in the world has to grow as you get older and older. I'm just trying to build a winning culture, which they already have at the Cowboys. I'm just glad to be joining."

Jones added that the Cowboys feel that Pickens will be a solid fit as they try to compete for a playoff spot in 2025.

"We had some opportunities around the league that we were looking at, and this one, at the end of the day, made the most sense," Jones said. "Whether it was Coach [Brian] Schottenheimer and his offensive staff looking at him or Will McClay and the personnel group, and obviously Jerry and myself, felt like this was the best action for us and certainly one that made a lot of sense to us."