Indeed, the Cowboys were lucky to have Pickens on hand, although in the end his effort was all for naught.
The star wideout finished with nine catches for 130 receiving yards, both of which were easily personal bests for the 2026 season, and contributed a highlight-reel-worthy touchdown grab.... Needless to say, he took advantage, which the Cowboys desperately needed, especially considering it was fellow wide receiver CeeDee Lamb who had a rough time of it in this one. Lamb had an outstanding game against the Texans, during which he hauled in 17 catches for 189 receiving yards while playing 86% of the offensive snaps. But versus Tampa Bay, he managed only two receptions for nine yards before being sidelined in the fourth quarter due to a quad injury, on the field for just 57% of the snaps.... “Most definitely,” he responded when asked if he tries to rise to the challenge when Lamb is not available. “When CeeDee went out, I just definitely was trying to do the best I could to keep us in the game.”
Nathan Jahnke·
The Cowboys try to get KaVontae Turpin involved: Turpin posted a season-high snap rate, particularly in the first half. Turpin has flirted with the third wide receiver spot in Dallas in recent seasons, particularly when he was competing with Jalen Tolbert. However, Ryan Flournoy won the job last season, leaving Turpin as a clear backup. Jonathan Mingo has played more snaps than Turpin over the first four weeks, leaving Turpin fifth on the depth chart. This week, Turpin received eight snaps in the first half alone, taking snaps away from both CeeDee Lamb and Flournoy. In that time, he caught one pass for seven yards on three targets. The Cowboys were behind multiple scores throughout the second half. This left Dallas rotating much less than usual. Javonte Williams, George Pickens and Jake Ferguson reached season highs in snap rate, and the only reason Lamb and Flournoy didn’t also achieve season highs was because of Turpin’s first-half usage. Turpin was able to haul in a 15-yard reception in the fourth quarter to help his stat total. It will be worth monitoring if this was part of this game plan, or if Dallas plans to have Turpin play more frequently going forward.
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