
Will George Pickens step up in CeeDee Lamb's absence? Can Dallas overcome defensive end depth issues? Marcus Mosher and Landon McCool analyze the Cowboys' evolving strategy, highlighting Pickens' potential impact and the need for efficiency over raw stats. The duo dissects defensive struggles, speculating on future draft priorities to bolster the pass rush.
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The Dallas Cowboys are going to lean heavily on George Pickens over the next month. Is he ready for the challenge? We'll talk about that more next. You are Locked On Cowboys, your daily Dallas Cowboys podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast network. Your team every day. Welcome back to the Locked On Cowboys Podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen of the day. Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Right now, new customers can bet just $5 and if your bet wins, you'll get 300 in bonus bets to use across the app. Welcome back. I am your host Marcus Moser. He is Landon McCool and we are part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your team every day. On today's show we are getting to your Twitter questions including what is going on with the defensive ends on this roster. We'll talk about some potential lineup changes the Cowboys might be making, but I want to start with George Pickens here because it feels like the next four games or so, we don't know for sure how long CD Lamb is going to be out for. Hopefully it's closer to two rather than four. But this is a big time opportunity for George Pickens Landon to show that he is somebody that the Cowboys should be investing in into the future. What are your expectations for Pickens as the number one receiver over the next month?
A
Yeah, I think it's, it's really just being efficient with the opportunities that he's going to be given because the truth of the matter is is that he's immediately going to become now the CDs gone, the, the focus of the, the defense to try and stop. Like this is a different situation than when CD Lamb got hurt and Jaylen Tolbert was elevated. You know, I, I think that the, the defenses weren't necessarily having to do a lot to kind of stop and slow down a Tolbert. So really at that point when, when that happened, we just needed to see Tolbert beat single coverage and, and, and just be competent and, and, and you know, we saw a little bit of that but certainly not enough for what we wanted for C for, for Pickens. You know, he's actually gonna get the CD Lamb treatment I think from a lot of teams right. Like he, like he actually will be accounted for by the defense coordinator. They'll have, they'll specifically game plan to contain him. You know, he's had, he's had some success early on so far in the season and, and I think that you know, now that CDs gone, it certainly changes the angles a little bit for how he's going to be able to produce and focus that's being put on him. So it's. I, I don't know that it's like a production based metric that I'm looking for him to clear because I do think that with increased attention becomes, it becomes more difficult to be. To get a whole bunch of targets in this and I'm not gonna put thrust that on him. But he is going to get his opportunities and when he gets those opportunities, I want to see more of the touchdown catching CD Such a touchdown catching George Pickens, then the blanging off his hands and then into a defender's open arms kind of George Pickens.
C
Yeah, I can't base it just on production because if he's really bad in the first two quarters of these games and he's putting up a bunch of garbage time stats. When the Cowboys are getting blown out and he goes 8 for 110 in a touchdown, nobody's gonna care. Right. Like, it's just not going to be that big of a deal. But if it's 6, 4, 9, 5 in the Cowboys are winning these games, that's going to be way more impressive. So it's, it's not necessarily a number thing.
A
Yeah. And if, like we're, we're continuing to draw shell coverage because the teams are afraid of Pickens getting downfield, and our run game is continuing to be efficient because we have one less guy in the box than we would if we didn't have George Pickens. You know, that counts for me being a threat and like, continuing to be a threat like that still requires you making the play when it comes your way. Right. Because eventually teams will just stop giving you all the attention if they don't think that you're going to burn them if they, if they don't spend extra resources your way. So you've got to find a way to take advantage when, when the teams kind of drop their guard a little bit, make the big play down the field, remind everyone, hey, I'm George Pickens. I, I have to be accounted for. And if it's just a matter of being like a gravity guy, like CD is a lot of games, that works too.
C
The good news is this isn't completely new for George Pickens. It's not like Jalen Tolbert or Jonathan Mingo. Like somebody who has never been an alpha number one receiver like Pickens has been a number one in Pittsburgh on playoff teams. Now, again, those have been some bad offenses, but he's done it where he's been the focal point for years. It's now just he's going to do it in Dallas and he's going to have to be reliable. And I think the thing for me is it's the consistency in the little things because you go back and watch the tape, there are a couple times where he, like, he doesn't run the right route or he doesn't run at the right depth. And you see Deck getting on him a little bit, like, hey, you're not in the right spot. I think a lot of that stuff can be cleaned up. He's just going to need to be able to do that quicker. Right. And I do think long term, this absence of CD Lamb could be a good thing for the Cowboys and George Pickens because the best way for Dak and George Pickens to get into rhythm and in sync is to play a lot together. And if they're going to get 40, you know, targets over the next four weeks, that's how you start to build that chemistry and that trust. I'm, I'm fascinated by this because I could see it going really well. And we come out through it and you feel awesome. Even better about CD Lamb and George Pickens, I can see it going the other way as well. And we get to November and it's just clear like, hey, not the right guy to be opposite of CD Lamb.
A
And I think you mentioned a really important part of this too is I do think that Dak Prescott is, is, needs to be. Not that he is being irresponsible, but he also needs to take some ownership here. And I'm, I know that he will just knowing who he is because I do think that some of the times that we've seen some of these mistargeting with, with, with Pickens and Dak, it's been a lack of chemistry, which I think is a, is a two person thing. Right. It's not just, it's not just Pickens necessarily, you know, running the wrong route. So we need to make sure that Dax obviously giving some focus and practice and getting extra reps in with Pickens to kind of finely tune that. Look, it's not going to be where, where he is with cd. He's been with CD for multiple years. Like they've been one of the longest running QQB wide receiver duos in the league at this point. Point. But you need it to get to the point where you're. If he's going to be the number one wide receiver, you're converting more of these targets because you're putting the ball where, you know, CD where we're. See, I'm screwing up where George Pickens wants the ball, not necessarily where CD Lamb wants the football.
C
The other thing I'd like to see this is more, more of a Brian Schottenheimer and Dak thing is figuring out ways to utilize Pickens as the number one receiver. And in ways that CD Lamb is different because one of the, like Pickens is not fantastic at playing in the slot and Yak and all that kind of stuff. Now he can make plays, right? But he, he's at his best when he's like making plays vertically rather than cutting across the middle of the field. Now they're going to do some of that. So change your game plan. Change the ways that you're going to target Pickens and just on some of these, like Dak, he's been awesome this year. You got to give him more catchable balls. Like the, the fade of the end zone wasn't catchable.
A
Some of these throws out.
C
Yep. On the sideline like they're just too far out of bounds. The Cowboys have got to find a way to best utilize Pickens during this four game stretch or otherwise the offense is going to struggle.
A
Well, I, I, I gotta say that I do think that Pickens's skill set in the way that he threatens defenses is probably the best fit for what you want for providing for the rest of the players. Right. Because he's a downfield receiver. He's a, he's an ex guy. He's a guy that can line up isolated on, on the, on his side of, of the, of the offense and win in one on one coverage. And I think that what that may do better than, you know, when we've had to put cd, I mean if you remember last year, CD had to play outside all the time because you needed him to provide for the rest of the offense. And, and it wasn't necessarily the best part of his game. Like his best part of his game is catching, you know, intermediate and short passes and turning them into big plays. Right. For Pickens, this is what he does right, like getting down the field, creating vertical stretch on the defense, opening things up underneath for the run game and for the short passing attack. I, I do think that, you know, one good sign that we may see is a continued usage of Jake Ferguson because of all the space that Pickens is providing for him in the middle and in the short part of the area of the field.
C
All right, let's talk about the Cowboys defensive end depth because we are going into the season really excited about this unit land like really excited about what they could potentially be. So far it's not been great. We will get to that next. This episode is brought to you by Mazda. Mazda crafts cars for those who do more than simply move. Mazda delivers confidence with every ride with more IIHS top safety pick awards than anyone else. From footwork to breath work, athletes sweat all of the details. And Mazda brings the same intention to to how they craft every single model. You can feel the Japanese craftsmanship in every detail. From metallic accents to available Napa leather upholstery, you can make your everyday drive feel like anything. But with smooth handling and fantastic controls and with all wheel drive standard in every SUV crossover, you can drive with confidence through any season. I know where I live, you have to have all wheel drive and Mazda delivers every single time. Like our players, we sweat every detail because when you make every move count, impossible becomes irrelevant. Mazda move and be moved. Welcome back to the Lot Done Cowboys podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen of the day. We are answering your Twitter questions. And this next one comes from Jonathan. He wants to know, aside from Micah Parsons, why was it conveyed to the fans that the Edge depth was among the tops in the league going into the season and now everyone stinks. What happened?
A
Well, you know, it's kind of like the, the revert versus George Pickens situation, right where it's like when we talked about signing George Pickens, one of the best benefits we thought was the re slotting of all these other wide receivers and how appropriate it felt for to kind of slot everyone down a rung and, and, and how that fit their individuals, you know, play styles and also where they are in their development as, as NFL players. You know, with the defensive end position, we've done the opposite except imagine we, we've removed CD Lamb and, and, and, and that's where we are with, with the pass rush right now is you like a lot of these guys. You like Fowler as the alternate pass rusher, you know, who's your first gu. Opposite Parsons, but not as the primary pass rusher you like. You know, seeing Sam Williams kind of mixed in as part of a group to kind of develop early on and give him the space to, to grow into being a better player, a player that uses his hands every once in a while. But right now he's having to be the, you know, basically the primary pass rusher at this point or a primary pass rusher. And he's getting a ton of snapshots that he's basically that we're throwing away. You know, Neyland, you'd love to kind of relegate to a role where he gets to play a lot of early down stuff and then as he develops his pass rush, you can throw him out there in unnecessary situations. Now it's, he's, he's like the third guy off the bench and you need him and, and to spell a lot of these guys to get opportunities. You're having to force Donovan Ezraku to play more than, you know, five or six snaps a game, which is not exactly what you want early in the year for a rookie pass rusher. So, you know, it's, it's not just that the quality drops when you, when you get rid of a very, very quality player. It's that you're forcing all the players underneath them to play a more, you know, difficult role, an upgraded role. And it's a lot to ask up, ask players to do, to kind of step up. And especially again, like, you know, this all got done two weeks before the season started. Everybody went into this situation, preparing for their roles and then it got. The whole thing got shook up.
C
Not even two weeks, it's like five days before the season started. Right.
A
So, yeah, I mean, so it's just, it becomes one of these things where, you know, they, they act like, you know, because Parsons wasn't at training camp this whole time, that, that they weren't expecting him or that that wasn't part of the plan, but it, but it was. Right. And, and I think the fact that it's being, the reason it's being even more pronounced is because in this system that Eberfluss is running, you need to rush four guys and get home. And that is putting a lot of pressure on specifically the edges. And you've just given away your best edge, as we've said, you know, multiple times for the last few weeks.
C
Yeah, I mean it's, it's really as simple as when you have someone like Michael Parsons, that's the guy that everybody's gonna double and chip and have their focus on and that kind of creates one on one matchups for everybody else. And now OSA Digizua is still winning at a really high rate. Kenny Clark is playing really well. So you're getting good wins there. It's just the other guys aren't beating the one on ones or the extra attentions really at all. And I'm not shocked with Neland because Neland is a really more of your base and run defender and I. He has had some wins, so it's not like he's been useless. Fowler's been okay. I think Fowler's kind of been what you've expected. Expected. It's just that Donovan as a raku has not really performed well the first three games and Sam Williams has not been as dynamic as you'd hoped. And that's why it looks the way it does. And I will also say there's really no surprise when these guys line up, they're going to be the ones rushing. So like these offensive tackles aren't having to think about who's coming, who's going, you know, who's, you know, is this guy gonna actually rush? Is he going to drop into coverage? So your scheme isn't doing them any favors at all. They're not getting any easy scheme wins. And I think the confidence of the entire group has just taken a big hit.
A
Yeah, I mean, it, it's, you've seen, you know, you've seen Sam Williams come in here and get pressures, but he can't convert any of them to sacks. And then you see, it's just the inconsistency, which wouldn't be so, like, you know, maddening. And, and I think the same thing with as Ross as a Raku. It wouldn't be so maddening if you weren't so overly reliant on him. Right. And it's easy for us to sit here and blame Eber Flutes because it doesn't look, it doesn't look right. The truth of the matter is he's dealing with a ton of injuries at two key positions or at a key spot, quarterback. And then you add in what we've just talked about, a defensive end. Those are the two most reliant positions in, you know, having an effective pass defense. So he's kind of making do with what he can. And again, it's kind of tough to spend a whole season with a defensive coordinator who's installing a plan that is heavily reliant on pass rush, forcing the issue and for coverage to work and then for you not to, to have your, your top pass rusher and then also to lose your cornerback and then have another guy coming back from injury. It's just, it's, it's a, it's a negative feedback loop.
C
And here's the other problem. Well, no, it's not a problem. Genevian Clown is going to play this week and it's just gonna take someone's snaps. Whether that's Donovan as a Rockus, whether that's Sam Williams, whether that's James Houston, and these guys are just not going to be able to get into a rhythm. And like someone like Donovan as Raku, like, I want him getting a lot of these snaps, but he posted a 0% win rate last week. I, I, he needs to develop, but if he's not getting any pressure, I don't see how they put him out on the field.
A
Yeah, I mean, you know, and that's the thing that's frustrating about Sam Williams specifically, right. Is that you feel like he is getting a ton of snaps and he's showing you stuff sometimes and you just like waiting for it to finally arrive. And it's like, like he's still not breaking through. You're throwing a ton of snaps at him that you could be throwing at some two or three other guys that you also need to develop. It's just a very frustrating situation all around and obviously you need to produce at the end of the day. And ultimately that's kind of what they were relying on Micah Parsons for in long term.
C
Right? Like I, Fowler's on a one year deal. Clowney's on a one year deal. James Houston is on a one year deal. Sam Williams is on the last year of his deal. So the only guys that we know are going to be on the roster, like what, Marsha Nealon and Donovan Azaraku. Is it as simple as just drafting a first round edge rusher and hoping that he becomes that guy? Or do you think they're just going to continue to add more second, third round type of caliber players and try to fill it out that way?
A
I would be shocked if one of those four first round picks in the next two years is not a, is not an edge rusher. Like, I mean, just, just for, just for the reason that you simply laid out right there.
C
I will be shocked if two of the first round picks aren't edge rushers over the next two years. Honestly.
A
Maybe pass rushers. Right? Like, maybe.
C
However you clarify. Yeah, right.
A
I, I, I think, I, I think certainly, like, I mean it's the, that's where they need, they just need physicality and pass rush up front in the worst way. I mean, I, I keep watching Bane from Miami. We don't need to get into this. You need that. Yeah, I mean, but if you're talking about a body type, like, you know, the Cowboys need a Jared Verse type player to kind of really make this defensive line reputable again.
C
Sounds like you just want to do a show on Ruben Bane here as soon as what it is. Right?
A
I mean, look, I mean, I'm a War Eagle fan, so we could talk about Kendrick Fall too, Falk, if we want to do that too because there's a couple different guys I like here. I don't, we don't need to, we shouldn't be getting into draft stuff yet. I know. It's, it's too early in the season at this point. I know, but it is still do it.
C
It's, it's a little early. All right, let's talk about some potential lineup changes that we would like to see happen over the next couple games. And whether we think they will happen or not, we'll get to that next. This episode is brought to you by FanDuel. The NFL season is here and FanDuel is making sure that you are ready for Kickoff with a can't miss offer. Right now, new customers can bet just $5 and if your bet wins, you'll get $300 of bonus bets to use across the app. I love using FanDuel because it fits however you like to bet, whether that's player props, building a same game parlay, or even jumping in live as the action unfolds. Like for me, I love the futures market. I got up early on Tuesday morning, looked at all the division winners who I thought was going to win, the divisions, the odds, who's going to make the playoffs, the win totals. Right now you can get The Cowboys at six and a half wins over on FanDuel. I know it's pretty bleak right now. It's quick, it's easy, and it's the best way to add just a little bit more energy and juice to your Sundays. So are you ready to play? Download the FanDuel app now by visiting FanDuel.com to get started. That is FanDuel.com to place your first five dollar bet.
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C
Welcome back to the Lock on Cowboys podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen of the day. For your second listen, check out the Loton NFL Podcast. Two shows every single day. One in the morning with Tyler Roland, one in the afternoon for with Tony Wiggins. Available wherever you get your podcast. All right, Landon, let's talk about some lineup changes. And this question comes from Gabe. He wants to know, could we see Wanye Thomas in the starting lineup soon? What about Maris Liafou? And what about Nate Thomas?
A
Yeah, I mean I'll take all of them. I look first of all, Wanye, he's already, we've talked about it yesterday. He was already kind of rotating in, it seemed like with Wilson. I, I think that they should be playing Wanye more to figure out exactly what they've got there. You know, they, they've they, they signed both him and Bell to extensions. I, I'd like to see them kind of go out there and mix it up a little bit more just because I do think that there isn't a ton of benefit necessarily to playing the older safeties if they aren't going to play at a, at a minimum level. Right. And it feels like everybody, everybody's getting burnt in, in the secondary. Right. Like it's not, it's not necessarily any one spot, but the difference is, is that I've got some young guys that I can look at right now at safety that I may not have necessarily at corner, at least the point where I want to even put them out there. Right.
C
And I gotta, I've got a good hunch as to who in the secondary is messing things up and I'm gonna guess it's not the guy that played with Matt Eberfluss before in Indianapolis.
A
No. Yeah. And I mean the problem is, is that he's always been a, a high variance player. Right. And, and like we've talked about it, like when it was bad, it was just extremely up and down right at when it, when it got good with Donovan Wilson, he raised the floor on the, on the bad plays a little bit and then was still able to continue to make big plays. Now you're kind of underwater at this point. I mean, he had the interception obviously earlier in the season, but it was also thrown directly at him in an arm punt situation. And, and the, the downsides there have been, have been pretty significant. And again, it's not even necessarily that he's like poll worthy. And, and I'll say the same thing for Terence Steele in, In the name.
C
Let's talk about him because I think.
A
Both of these guys, it's, it's not both of these guys. It's interesting. Both of these guys, Steel and Wilson at certain points in their careers in the last two years have played poor enough to be pulled. I feel like, like if, if you had a solution to fix like a guy to put in there, they probably would have put someone. And frankly, Wanye Thomas should have been playing for Wilson at certain points, you know, last year more than he had. I, I think with, with Steel and Wilson, they are both not playing great, but it's not necessarily pull worthy. Wilson. Maybe it is pull worthy.
C
I was gonna say for Steel, I'm willing to write it out because I think as a pass blocker it's been rough. Okay. But he's been such a good run blocker and I think with, especially with CD Lamb out. You're gonna need to really lean on your run game for sure to kind of control the clock, not only just for your offense, but also for your defense. Like, they got to try to figure out ways to limit possession so their defense doesn't get exposed anymore. I'm willing to ride with Steel at least for a little bit longer because he's been a good run blocker. Whereas with Donovan Wilson, like, let me ask you. Yeah, well, I was gonna say, do you see any scenario where Donovan Wilson is back in 2026?
A
I mean, I'm never gonna say never, but. But no, I. I can't imagine that they re sign him unless it's for like something like the vet minimum and he's part of a rotation. But like, yeah, like that's why I think you kind of do need to see Wanye Thomas at this point is, you know, it's time to start handing that baton. And even with Steel, like I think if the Cowboy season starts to go to a certain spot, like rotating series with Nate Thomas, that doesn't make. It's it. It makes some sense to me. Right? You get night start getting a look at the guy that you think is going to be the replacement there. You get him some snaps to kind of work in there. I don't know that it's going to be a drop off and in fact you may find that it's an improvement for from Steel as he starts to get more and more of these snaps. But look, if you're gonna have a lost season, like, you know, it's the same thing like last year, like it's unfortunate we lost Micah Parsons, obviously, but one of the things that was a benefit of last year is that you felt like Micah Parsons learned a lot. You felt like CD Lamb learned a lot because they both had to become leaders. They had to fight through injuries and that that's something that you could take forward with your team through this year. I want to see these young guy, young guys get opportunities so we can see what we've got in them. And I want to see some young offensive line continuity start to grow so we can start to build that into a juggernaut.
C
One more position change or lineup change I'd like to see a little bit. Do you know who the Cowboys highest graded player is right now on Pro Football Focus? Let's take a guess.
A
Is it Ready Stewart? Because sometimes I look up there and it's like, what is going on with Ready Stewart?
C
That's a good one. But it's actually brevin span four.
A
Oh, yes, obviously.
C
Okay, so he is their highest graded player now. Again, the snap count is relatively low. He's PFF's highest graded run blocker on the season now. He had an awesome reception that was taken back by a penalty. But I think with the offensive line injuries you have now and with CD Lamb being out, I think leaning into more two and three tight end sets and getting him on the field is something I would like to see a lot more.
A
Yeah, he's kind of different than these other two because, like, he's outright earned his spot to continue to get more and more snaps like it. This isn't even about like trying to, you know, see what a young guy could do and try to develop a guy. Like, he's just better than spoon maker. He's one of the best weapons you have on this team. Like, his blocking on the edge is one of the things that you do best overall. So, yeah, get brev out there as much as possible.
C
It's just like lean into that, right? Like, if you're going to, you're gonna have to change your offense up anyways because of the injuries. You've got two receivers out now with Mingo and CD Lamb. I would just like to see them use more of these two tight end sets. Use more of my guy, Hunter Lipke, who has hardly been used at all since his contract extension. Find ways to utilize some of these players that earn snaps that have been playing well. Maybe you'll, you know, you'll strike lightning. Whatever. We'll see. I wouldn't be surprised. All right, that is it for today's show. We want to thank you for making lot on Cowboys your first listen every single day. Follow Lean in on Twitter @mccoolbcb. I'm @Marcus underscore Moser and we will see you right back here on Thursday with a crossover show with lots on Packers.
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Episode: George Pickens THRUST Into Spotlight as Cowboys' New WR1 | Will He Step Up In Primetime?
Date: September 24, 2025
Hosts: Marcus Mosher and Landon McCool
Network: Locked On Podcast Network
This episode dives deep into the Dallas Cowboys’ rapidly changing offensive landscape, with George Pickens taking over as the WR1 due to CeeDee Lamb’s injury. Marcus and Landon set expectations for Pickens, evaluate Dak Prescott’s growing responsibility, break down issues with the defensive end rotation, and debate potential lineup changes as the Cowboys try to adapt during a pivotal stretch of the 2025 NFL season.
[03:12]
"It’s not just about production. If our run game is efficient because defenses fear Pickens, that counts as being a threat — he still has to make those key plays when the coverage shifts."
— Landon McCool, [05:23]
"For Pickens, getting down the field, creating vertical stretch on the defense, opening things up underneath... that’s what he does."
— Landon McCool, [09:36]
[10:40]
“I would be shocked if one of those four first round picks in the next two years is not an edge rusher.”
— Landon, [19:10]
“I will be shocked if two of the first round picks aren’t edge rushers over the next two years. Honestly.”
— Marcus, [19:22]
[22:38]
“Do you see any scenario where Donovan Wilson is back in 2026?” (25:09)
Landon's answer: "Unless it’s for the vet minimum and he’s part of a rotation? No." ([25:51])
If you haven’t listened to this episode:
For the full episode and deeper Dallas Cowboys insights, follow Landon (@mccoolbcb) and Marcus (@Marcus_Mosher) on Twitter, and don’t miss the next crossover episode with Locked On Packers.