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Jon Gruden believes the Dallas Cowboys possess something too valuable to separate after one more season.
Perhaps even the best wide receiver duo in football.
During his NFC East breakdown on his YouTube channel, Gruden compared CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens to Cincinnati Bengals stars Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
“Is this the best wide receiver duo in the NFL?” Gruden asked. “I know a lot of Cincinnati Bengals are saying, ‘Nah, man, we got Higgins and Chase.’ Let me tell you, these two receivers, Pickens and Lamb, they combined for 168 catches and 2,500 yards and 12 touchdowns last year.”
Technically ... they produced slightly more yardage than that.
Pickens recorded 93 receptions for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns during his first season in Dallas. Lamb added 75 catches, 1,077 yards and three scores despite appearing in only 14 games.
Together, they finished with 168 receptions for 2,506 yards and 12 touchdowns.
READ MORE: Cowboys EXCLUSIVE: 'Cerebral' Jaydon Blue Off To Electric Start At Camp
Those numbers give Dallas a legitimate argument.
But they don't settle it.
Chase and Higgins combined for 184 receptions, 2,258 yards and 19 touchdowns last season. Cincinnati's pairing caught 16 more passes and reached the end zone seven additional times, while Lamb and Pickens produced 248 more receiving yards.
There isn't an obvious wrong answer.
Jeremy Fowler's survey of NFL executives, coaches and scouts provides additional support for Dallas.
Lamb ranked sixth among the league's receivers, while Pickens finished seventh. The Cowboys were the only team with two players inside the top seven.
One NFL coordinator even told ESPN that Pickens ... not Lamb ... is the Cowboys receiver who currently sits atop opposing game plans.
“It's Pickens,” the coordinator said. “He has emerged.”
That statement demonstrates what makes Dallas' pairing so difficult to defend. Lamb has produced five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and remains one of the NFL's best separators, yet opponents may now devote more attention to the player lined up across from him.
Cincinnati possesses the highest-ranked receiver in Chase, who earned approximately 70% of the first-place votes. Dallas, however, has two players whom league evaluators currently view as top-seven receivers.
But the Cowboys also possess more than two weapons.
“They are outstanding,” Gruden said. “And they got Ryan Flournoy, I just talked about. He had 40 for 475. They're loaded.”
Flournoy added four touchdowns to those 40 receptions and 475 yards, giving Dak Prescott a productive third option behind Lamb and Pickens.
Entering his third professional campaign, many — both in the media and at The Star —believe "Flo" could be primed for a breakout.
The depth Gruden highlights helped Dallas finish second in total offense and passing yards last season.
But now comes the expensive part.
READ MORE: Cowboys Camp: Trade Talk In Top 10 ‘Good News’ Updates from Opening Day
Pickens signed his $27.3 million franchise tender in late April after producing the best season of his career. Because the July 15 deadline passed without a long-term agreement, the Cowboys cannot extend him until after their final regular-season game.
Lamb remains under the four-year, $136 million extension he signed in 2024.
Their combined 2026 cash compensation is $53.3 million, approximately 17.7% of the NFL's $301.2 million salary cap, although their official cap charges are calculated differently.
The financial commitment didn't change Gruden's conclusion.
“Heck, if I'm with the Cowboys, I say as long as they're great, I'm keeping them both,” Gruden said. “It's hard to find guys that can do this much damage to a defense.”
Whether Lamb and Pickens definitively rank ahead of Chase and Higgins depends on personal evaluation.
But the league provided Dallas with the most compelling evidence yet.
No other team possesses two receivers ranked inside the NFL's top seven.
Gruden believes the Cowboys should pay what it costs to keep that distinction beyond 2026.
Continue reading...
Perhaps even the best wide receiver duo in football.
During his NFC East breakdown on his YouTube channel, Gruden compared CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens to Cincinnati Bengals stars Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
“Is this the best wide receiver duo in the NFL?” Gruden asked. “I know a lot of Cincinnati Bengals are saying, ‘Nah, man, we got Higgins and Chase.’ Let me tell you, these two receivers, Pickens and Lamb, they combined for 168 catches and 2,500 yards and 12 touchdowns last year.”
Technically ... they produced slightly more yardage than that.
Pickens recorded 93 receptions for 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns during his first season in Dallas. Lamb added 75 catches, 1,077 yards and three scores despite appearing in only 14 games.
Together, they finished with 168 receptions for 2,506 yards and 12 touchdowns.
READ MORE: Cowboys EXCLUSIVE: 'Cerebral' Jaydon Blue Off To Electric Start At Camp
Those numbers give Dallas a legitimate argument.
But they don't settle it.
Chase and Higgins combined for 184 receptions, 2,258 yards and 19 touchdowns last season. Cincinnati's pairing caught 16 more passes and reached the end zone seven additional times, while Lamb and Pickens produced 248 more receiving yards.
There isn't an obvious wrong answer.
Jeremy Fowler's survey of NFL executives, coaches and scouts provides additional support for Dallas.
Lamb ranked sixth among the league's receivers, while Pickens finished seventh. The Cowboys were the only team with two players inside the top seven.
One NFL coordinator even told ESPN that Pickens ... not Lamb ... is the Cowboys receiver who currently sits atop opposing game plans.
“It's Pickens,” the coordinator said. “He has emerged.”
That statement demonstrates what makes Dallas' pairing so difficult to defend. Lamb has produced five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and remains one of the NFL's best separators, yet opponents may now devote more attention to the player lined up across from him.
Cincinnati possesses the highest-ranked receiver in Chase, who earned approximately 70% of the first-place votes. Dallas, however, has two players whom league evaluators currently view as top-seven receivers.
But the Cowboys also possess more than two weapons.
“They are outstanding,” Gruden said. “And they got Ryan Flournoy, I just talked about. He had 40 for 475. They're loaded.”
Flournoy added four touchdowns to those 40 receptions and 475 yards, giving Dak Prescott a productive third option behind Lamb and Pickens.
Entering his third professional campaign, many — both in the media and at The Star —believe "Flo" could be primed for a breakout.
The depth Gruden highlights helped Dallas finish second in total offense and passing yards last season.
But now comes the expensive part.
READ MORE: Cowboys Camp: Trade Talk In Top 10 ‘Good News’ Updates from Opening Day
Pickens signed his $27.3 million franchise tender in late April after producing the best season of his career. Because the July 15 deadline passed without a long-term agreement, the Cowboys cannot extend him until after their final regular-season game.
Lamb remains under the four-year, $136 million extension he signed in 2024.
Their combined 2026 cash compensation is $53.3 million, approximately 17.7% of the NFL's $301.2 million salary cap, although their official cap charges are calculated differently.
The financial commitment didn't change Gruden's conclusion.
“Heck, if I'm with the Cowboys, I say as long as they're great, I'm keeping them both,” Gruden said. “It's hard to find guys that can do this much damage to a defense.”
Whether Lamb and Pickens definitively rank ahead of Chase and Higgins depends on personal evaluation.
But the league provided Dallas with the most compelling evidence yet.
No other team possesses two receivers ranked inside the NFL's top seven.
Gruden believes the Cowboys should pay what it costs to keep that distinction beyond 2026.
Continue reading...
