FRISCO, Texas – Heading into the ninth game of the season, George Pickens' impact on the Cowboys offense has continued to be a positive one that went above and beyond Dallas' expectations.
Pickens, a pending free agent this offseason, has said in the past and again on Thursday that he "wouldn't mind" playing for the Cowboys long-term. When asked if he would rather get an extension done now or wait until after the season, Pickens put the ball in the front office's court.
"That's kind of up to what [Jerry Jones] wants to do," Pickens said. "All I can do is just perform at my best."
Have the two sides had any conversations yet?
"No, not so far," Pickens said "Like I said, me personally, I'm just trying to get a dub, trying to stack victories, trying to get us to the playoffs, win, win, win."
Another prospect that Pickens was asked about is if he had put any thought into the chance of him being traded before the Nov. 4 NFL trade deadline. He stays away from that chatter.
"I kind of don't get into that stuff, I can only be where my feet is," Pickens said. "I kind of just stay with the guys, practice with the guys, try to put my best foot forward."
It's not likely that Pickens will get traded away from the Cowboys. What's really in the air is his extension, which is a two-way street in terms of when the sides want to potentially get one done.
In Pickens' case, it benefits him to wait until the end of the season and, if he continues to play at such a high level, can put him into a position of high leverage where he can command top-of-market money at the WR position.
For now though, it's on to the Arizona Cardinals on Monday night as the Cowboys look to improve to 4-4-1 heading into the bye week. After struggling to get going in Denver, Pickens is confident that returning home can help get the offense back on track for the rest of the year.
"Just executing and being consistent," Pickens said. "I feel like if we start honing in on that, I know we got a bye week coming up after this, but for the rest of the season I think we'll do a great job."
And the numbers back up their strength at home, too. Dallas' offense is averaging north of 40 points per game at AT&T Stadium this season, while their points per game on the road is nearly half of that. The Cowboys won't play on the road until they face the Raiders after the bye week, but how do they find a way to improve offensively on the road?
"Bringing your own energy," Pickens said. "Having an away game, we're in somebody else's territory. Kind of bringing our own energy, bringing our own juice, and then trying to figure out where it goes it goes from there. When we're at home, keep home, home. You never want anybody to come in here and take over."
