The Dallas Cowboys might be winding down a disappointing 2025 season, but even with their playoff hopes dashed, the team is still under the microscope. After George Pickens made a jaw-dropping touchdown catch against the Chargers on Monday Night Football, one familiar voice reignited the debate.
Big Catch Brings Old Questions Back
NFL Analyst Skip Bayless didn’t hold back. He tweeted a sharp seven-word jab: “Where was THIS George Pickens in Detroit?” he said. Just as Pickens seemed to be finding his groove, Bayless shifted the focus back to the Cowboys’ wide receiver.
Where was THIS George Pickens in Detroit?
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) December 21, 2025
Pickens’s 38-yard touchdown catch from Dak Prescott came early in a game where Dallas, despite no postseason aspirations, came out swinging. It was the kind of explosive play many had been waiting for since his quiet outing in a Week 14 loss to the Lions, where he posted just five catches for 37 yards on nine targets. That underwhelming performance was especially jarring given Pickens’s breakout season.
Bayless wasn’t the first to raise an eyebrow. Richard Sherman also called out Pickens post-Detroit, accusing him of appearing “disengaged” and “uninterested,” a critique that Pickens addressed with a now-deleted social media response.
Despite missing the playoffs, the Cowboys have made statistical history. With Pickens and CeeDee Lamb both surpassing 1,000 receiving yards, Javonte Williams over 1,000 rushing, and Prescott crossing 4,000 passing yards, Dallas accomplished a feat they’ve only hit once before in 2019.
Pickens is ranked fourth in the NFL in PFSN’s WR Impact Score through 14 games, with an 89.3 grade. And the Cowboys are also ranked fourth in offense with an 85.3 grade in PFSN’s Offense Impact metric.
Bayless’s tweet didn’t just question one performance; it highlighted the stakes in Dallas. Pickens is up for a significant contract extension this offseason, and so every explosive game fuels the narrative.
If Pickens finishes the year with the same intensity he showed against Los Angeles, the Detroit game may soon be a distant memory.
