George Pickens "glad" to be with Cowboys, "won't look into the past" at his time in Pittsburgh
Wide receiver George Pickens said all the right things about his trade from Pittsburgh and the chance at a new beginning in Dallas.
At his introductory video call Thursday, Pickens gave variations of the same answers about his past in Pittsburgh.
"I'm where I'm at right now. I can't look into the past," he said, via Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Pickens had well-documented maturity and accountability issues with the Steelers. He paid more than $200,000 in fines from the NFL and the team combined in 2024, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports has reported, and coach Mike Tomlin publicly called out Pickens more than once.
Pickens was asked about an outside perspective of his character Thursday.
"I can't change anyone's opinion," Pickens said. "Me, personally, I just continue to grow. 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."
Pickens said he found out about the trade to the Cowboys "when everyone else found out." The Steelers sent Pickens and a 2027 seventh-round pick to the Cowboys in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick.
"I feel great," Pickens said. "I like the mojo here. I like the swag. There's a lot of new players I've been meeting. I feel like they have a good thing going, for sure."
The divorce between Pickens and the Steelers was brewing since the middle of the 2023 season. Entering the final year of his rookie contract, the Steelers already had decided they weren't paying Pickens and traded for DK Metcalf as their No. 1 receiver.
Pickens, though, wouldn't bad-mouth his former team.
"This game is just as much of a business as it is football," Pickens said. "It was kind of out of my control. I'm just glad to be here in Dallas and continue the winning culture that they have."