FRISCO, Texas - Football season is getting closer and closer.
The Cowboys are set to depart for training camp in less a month. That's when we'll get an up-close look at Brian Schottenheimer's second season with this revised roster and coaching staff. When we get to Oxnard, that's when we'll start to get some real answers about this 2026 Cowboys team.
But what are the questions? We've compiled our annual list of pressing questions that need answers heading into the regular season. The staff writers, consisting of Patrik Walker, Tommy Yarrish, Nick Eatman, Mickey Spagnola and Kurt Daniels, weigh in on some of the pressing issues.
Today, we'll continue the series with a look at where the Cowboys' wide receiver tandem of CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, both of which were Pro Bowlers in 2025, rank among the best wide receiver duos in the NFL.
No.16) Where does CeeDee-Pickens rank as WR duos?
Tommy: I'll say top three. Personally, I think the Rams' duo of Davante Adams and Puka Nacua is the best, followed by Lamb and Pickens, and then the Bengals' Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins is the order, but I could really hear arguments about those three in any sort of order.
What separates Adams and Nacua for me is the sure-handedness of Adams, especially when Los Angeles' offense gets into the red zone and he becomes an even more lethal target. Add in Nacua's all-around skillset and ability to produce after the catch, and that's what makes them the best in the league. Although they're second, I don't think Lamb and Pickens are that far behind, and if they are able to produce like they did in 2025 together, it'll be difficult to hold them from the top spot.
As for the Bengals, Ja'Marr Chase is one of the two best receivers in the league (along with Justin Jefferson) and consistently shows it year in and year out, with Higgins serving as a nice compliment to his skillset with a taller build. So all in all, Pickens and Lamb I think are top three, and can at the least be in the argument for the number one slot.
Patrik: 'Tis a great question, it is. In looking around the league, in both conferences I'm hard-pressed to find a more potent duo at WR than CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. This isn't a biased take, but rather the science of the situation. Lamb and Pickens are not WR1 and WR2. They are two true WR1s that are also led by an All-Pro quarterback who, if not for a historically-bad defense in 2025, might've been in the MVP conversation (again). Everyone knows what Lamb can do, and that's why he's one of the best in the league at the position, regardless of who you ask.
What many were hoping to find out is what Pickens can be, and that answer was carved in stone with a 1,400+ yard season (with nine TDs) in Dallas that led to his first-ever Pro Bowl nod and and a Second-team All-Pro honor. I'll stop short, at the moment, of saying they're the No. 1 WR duo in all the land — mainly because the sample size for what Pickens did last season is small as compared to, say, the top two guys in a Rams uniform. But I'd put them higher than Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, squeezing them right into the No. 2 spot.
Mickey: Can't imagine any lower than Top 5 in the NFL. Think about it, two Pro Bowl receivers in 2025 on the same team, and CeeDee Lamb achieved that recognition when limited to just 14 games but still producing 1,077 receiving yards while Pickens earned his first Pro Bowl selection by picking up the slack in Lamb's absence, finishing with career-highs of 93 catches, 1,429 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. Who else can match those numbers? Only two other teams had two 1,000-yard receivers in 2025, Detroit with Amon-Ra St. Brown (1,401) and Jameson Williams (1,117) and Philadelphia with Devonta Smith (1,008) and A.J. Brown (1,003), no longer with the Eagles. Only Cincinnati had two Pro Bowl receivers in 2025, Ja'Mar Chase and Tee Higgins in the AFC. And while their numbers were no way equal to those of Lamb-Pickens, the Rams duo of Puka Nacua and Davante Adams is pretty strong, too.
