George Pickens has been 'incredible' with Cowboys after failed Steelers tenure

The Pittsburgh Steelers reportedly grew "fed up with" George Pickens before they traded the mercurial wide receiver to the Dallas Cowboys in May. 

While speaking with reporters on Tuesday, first-year Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer indicated that Pickens has been nothing but a model employee over his first several months with the organization. 

"From the time we got George and he came into my office, he made it clear that he wants to be coached," Schottenheimer said, Sports Illustrated's Tyler Reed shared. "He wants to be a great player. He told me to 'lean into me, be tough on me.' He’s been nothing but incredible in terms of the way he’s worked and communicated with us." 

Per the Cowboys' website, Pickens has been responsible for multiple highlight-reel plays during training camp. That's hardly surprising, as the 2022 second-round draft pick flashed all kinds of physical talent across his three seasons with the Steelers. 

That said, Pickens also developed a reputation during his Pittsburgh tenure with his emotional outbursts during games and for looking displeased over a lack of targets while on the sidelines. Additionally, he allegedly was guilty of a "litany of violations," such as showing up late for Pittsburgh's Christmas Day game against the Kansas City Chiefs last season.

It's no secret that Schottenheimer and Co. hope that having No. 1 receiver CeeDee Lamb as a teammate will help keep Pickens on his best behavior through the upcoming season. On Tuesday, Schottenheimer said that "the relationship [Pickens] has with CeeDee is special."

Pickens has many reasons to want to excel while with the Cowboys. He is in the final year of his rookie contract and is not expected to receive an extension before the season begins. Meanwhile, DraftKings Sportsbook had Dallas at +180 betting odds to make the playoffs this season as of Wednesday morning. 

Pickens will get his first real opportunity to show the Steelers made a mistake by letting him go with a prime-time matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sept. 4.