The Cowboys realized what Steelers fans and Mike Tomlin never did about George Pickens

There were two reactions to when George Pickens was traded to the Dallas Cowboys this offseason along with a 2027 sixth-round pick while the Pittsburgh Steelers got a 2026 third-rounder and a 2027 fifth-rounder. On one hand, Cowboys fans knew they were getting an elite talent at receiver, which they direly needed. On the other hand was the message from Pittsburgh, including head coach Mike Tomlin but also echoed heavily by fans, that he wasn't worth the trouble.

After a Thanksgiving win against the Chiefs that followed up a comeback victory over the Eagles — and not to mention by far the best season of Pickens' career to this point — I think we know exactly what message we should've believed. And it sure as hell wasn't the Steelers'. Pickens is finally being allowed to run free, and in more ways than one, in a manner that Pittsburgh never allowed.

George Pickens has been everything the Cowboys could've ever wanted

Pickens was electric in the blow-for-blow win over Kansas City as part of the holiday slate. While the numbers might not be gaudy, catching six balls for 88 yards and no touchdown (though he did end up notching a two-point conversion), the big plays he did make were some of the biggest of the game. That's been a consistent theme for him in Dallas, too, providing the most jaw-dropping efforts in the most crucial moments.

For instance, when the Cowboys were down 21-20 early in the fourth quarter, it was Pickens who came up with a nice grab over the middle, but then used his exceptional footwork and agility to put his defender on skates with a spin move, and then run 39 yards up the sideline that put Dallas in the red zone.

And it was after Javonte Williams' go-ahead touchdown on that drive that Pickens then did a little toe-tap dance in the front corner of the end zone on an extended play to convert the two-point conversion that gave the Cowboys a full possession lead.

This isn't anything new for what he's done on the field in his first season with Dallas, though. With his performance on Thursday for the holiday, Pickens now has 73 catches, 1,142 yards and eight touchdowns on the year, all of which are more than he ever had in a season with Pittsburgh. An important note there: the Cowboys still have five games left to play this season.

What stands out just as much, though, is that he was getting his shine for the Thanksgiving performance, and he wasn't even Dallas' leading receiver. That, of course, was CeeDee Lamb with 121 yards and a touchdown. But then again, if Pickens wasn't on the field with his cohort, the defense wouldn't have as much divided attention as it does with the duo working together.

As this is all coming together for Pickens, though, it's hard not to look at how things devolved with the Steelers and how swimmingly they're going in Dallas and wonder what's different. And in reality, the difference may not be Pickens turning over a new leaf — though you can't rule out a newfound sense of maturity given that he's just 24 years old. Instead, the difference might be going from a culture of trying to break your will into the Steeler way under Tomlin to a culture of empowerment with the Cowboys.

The Steelers were and are the problem, not George Pickens

Don't be mistaken, there have still been some brain farts when it comes to the former second-round pick. He has five unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on the year, and there was the incident with him and Lamb in Vegas where they missed curfew and were forced to sit out the Cowboys' first drive of the game as punishment. No one is trying to say he's not a bit of a firecracker still.

At the same time, it's also not an exaggeration to say that you're not hearing nearly the same tone out of Dallas than you did throughout three seasons in Pittsburgh. Brian Schottenheimer isn't throwing Pickens under the bus like Tomlin did whenever there are mistakes. It was something you could see in the offseason, too, and you can see it in his demeanor as well.

Part of that may come down to simply letting a young player largely be himself, within reason at least. At Georgia, Pickens was mercurial as well. However, the talent has always been so great, that there's been a line to walk when it comes to letting a wild horse run free. Tomlin and the Steelers were trying to break a colt and make him something that he was never going to be.

But part of it is less directly associated with Tomlin, though not entirely separate because the head coach has quite a bit of power in Pittsburgh when it comes to the roster. As such, it's not hard to notice the primary difference between the Cowboys and Steelers, which is Pickens is now playing with a high-end NFL quarterback after being saddled with the dregs of the league previously.

Seriously, how would you expect a player who is this talented to react when he's being limited because he has the likes of Kenny Pickett, Mitchell Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, Justin Fields and Russell Wilson throwing him the football? Not to mention, all of those offenses were largely run-first as well. The transition from that to playing with Dak Prescott and as a 1B to Lamb's 1A can't be understated in terms of what it could do for a young player's mentality.

Again, no one is ever going to confuse Pickens for being a boy scout, particularly with his on-field antics (I still can't believe he celebrated a touchdown jumping to hug the goalpost the day after we saw a flag for that exact move). At the same time, there have been plenty of players who have thrived while being of a similar ilk, just as he's doing now in Dallas.

When you start to boil that down, the problem with Pickens in Pittsburgh wasn't the receiver, at least not entirely or even mostly. Instead, it's looking more and more like the Steelers were the issue — and now they're paying for that, because the price they took to get rid of their "problem child" is now looking like one of the biggest steals in modern trade memory for the Cowboys.