The Dallas Cowboys are heading to play the Chicago Bears in Week 3. George Pickens and company will look to build off their exciting 40-37 win over the New York Giants last Sunday, after the offseason acquisition had his best outing of the season against New York, finishing the win with five catches for 68 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Pickens couldn't contain his excitement about the variety of routes he's running in Dallas, and Sunday's game against the Bears could be his breakout performance with the Cowboys. The Bears' secondary will be without Jaylon Johnson, who has a groin injury, and Kyler Gordon has been dealing with a hamstring injury since the beginning of the season. Both players were DNP's in Wednesday's practice, and it doesn't look good for their chances of playing in Week 3.
Those two will likely be on the sideline for the Bears, and that only bodes well for Pickens' outlook in this contest.
George Pickens Poised for Breakout vs. Bears
Head coach Brian Schottenheimer spoke with reporters on Wednesday and said he knows the Bears will double-team CeeDee Lamb cause that's what the Saints did last season when Dennis Allen was in New Orleans. In that contest, Lamb finished with four catches for 90 yards and a touchdown, but the team lost 44-19.
Fast forward to this team, and Allen's unit has been a disaster for the Bears. Through two games, Chicago is 28th in total defense (382.5), 22nd in pass defense (234), and last in scoring defense (39.5). In the loss to the Detroit Lions last week, they allowed 52 points, while allowing Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams to go over 100 receiving yards.
Chicago will be leaning on Nahshon Wright and Tyrique Stevenson on the boundary with Nick McCloud in the slot. And no matter who lines up in front of Pickens, the WR will have the advantage. Wright has a 52.8 overall grade (100th among 141 graded corners) and 59.8 coverage grade (76th among 141 graded corners) on PFF. Stevenson has a 44.7 overall grade (118th among 141 graded corners) and 49.4 coverage grade (103rd among 141 graded corners). Meanwhile, McCloud has a 38.7 overall grade (132nd among 141 graded corners) and 33.7 coverage grade (134th among 141 graded corners).
None of these DBs will be able to stay in front of Pickens consistently. If the Bears throw one of these guys on an island, Pickens is sure to win that matchup more times than not and would put him in line for a massive day.
The Bears head into this game battered in the secondary, and Pickens looks to keep the momentum going into this tilt.